Symbolism in The Awakening

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Allie Horton
Ms. Kliebenstein
AP Literature
2 September, 2014
The Awakening

The undeniable symbolism in The Awakening is scattered throughout Kate Chopin’s

novella. The most prominent of these symbols include birds, Edna Pontellier’s swimming abilities, and her many different homes. Kate Chopin expertly adds symbolism to add to Edna
Pontellier’s journey.
The “green and yellow parrot, which hung in a cage outside the door” represents Edna at the beginning of the book, the beginning of her journey of self­discovery (1). During her visit to
Grand Isle with her husband Léonce and her children that her feelings for Robert Lebrun grow.
Try as she might, she cannot break free from her family and be with the man she truly loves. As summer ends, the Pontelliers’ venture back to their home in New Orleans. Edna looks to
Mademoiselle Reisz for advice and she tells Edna, “The bird that would soar above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings. It is a sad spectacle to see the weaklings bruised, exhausted, fluttering back to earth” (83). She encourages Edna to follow her heart and break with tradition. Robert moves away and she can never have him. Soon she visits his family on Grand Isle. As she walks along the beach she sees a bird overhead with a broken wing. The bird “was beating the air above, reeling, fluttering, circling disabled down, down to the water” and it is then that she realizes what Mademoiselle was trying to tell her. Edna does not have the strong wings to be brave.

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Edna also does not have the ability to swim. At the beginning of the summer on Grand

Isle, Edna simply wades in the water or sits on the shore while others swim because she cannot herself. She spends most of her days with Robert and slowly accepts her feelings for him. One night during a party, Robert suggests that everyone go for a swim and it is then that Edna learns to swim. She swims away from the others, signifying she is leaving tradition behind by loving
Robert and not her husband. She soon becomes tired so she turns back to swim to the shore. This night swim suggests that Edna is becoming independent in spirit, but lacks have what it takes to free herself completely. When Edna returns to Grand Isle the following summer she decides to take a swim. This symbolizes her finally being free from the complicated life she lives, because when she grows tired she does not turn back to the shore but instead lets the ocean take her life.
Throughout the story, Edna Pontellier stays in many different homes. The home on Grand
Isle is quaint and attractive, the perfect fit for a little family. When Robert begins spending time with Edna, she spends most of her time out on the front porch by herself. Back in New Orleans
Edna spends most of her time at Mademoiselle Reisz’s house or in her room painting. She begins to distance herself from her family, wanting more privacy and independence. When her family is gone Edna decides that she does not want all the worldly possessions that the Pontellier’s mansion has. She finds a small home not too far from the mansion and moves in without the permission Léonce. The “pigeon house” as Edna calls the new home, symbolizes her freedom.
All of the symbols found within The Awakening tie together in the end to show the emerging independence of a young woman. Edna Pontellier struggles just as the bird, swims independently, and moves on just as she did with her houses.