The Awakening Characters?

Question

Could you give me a detailed description of the main characters from The Awakening? Also, what was your favorite/least favorite part of the book? And, if you would like to share anything else about the book, feel free to : )

Answer 1

Such an amazing book, especially because it conjures such varying opinions from everyone who reads it. When I read it in college I remember there being a heated debate on whether or not Edna was admirable or despicable. On one hand, she is a triumph of self-determination over societal constraints. For this, she is a hero feminist--rejecting the roles society has imposed on her and opting instead (in a very Nietzchean manner) to live authentically and by her own moral code rather than society's. By this, she is a liberating force--as tragic as that liberation is. On the other hand, she can be viewed as detrimentally selfish and a neglectful mother--as her "awakening" comes at a price, and that price falls upon the shoulders of her family. The end leaves a number of moral questions: to what do we owe our children? Do we owe them more than we owe ourselves? Should giving birth mean sacrificing yourself for your children? By society's moral standards, the answer is yes--but she argues no. Her husband and many other characters in the book represent and offer the former argument, she and Mlle. Reisz (and to some extent Robert) represent the latter.

I'm not sure if you've read it or not, so I don't want to give away the end--however, it opens the door to more questions, most notably, are her final actions the ultimate self-sacrifice or the ultimate act of self-determination?

This quote, in particular, summarizes Edna's arguement:

"I would give up the unessential; I would give my money, I would give my life for my children; but I wouldn't give myself. I can't make it more clear; it's only something which I am beginning to comprehend, which is revealing itself to me."