Kate Chopins The Awakening is full of symbolism such as...

Kate Chopins The Awakening is full of symbolism such as birds, clothes, houses and other narrative elements are symbols with an extremely significant meaning. The birds are the major symbolic images from the very beginning of the novel: A green and yellow parrot, which hung in a cage outside the door, kept repeating over and over: `Allez vous-en! Allez vous-en! Sapristi! Thats all right! (Chopin pp3) In The Awakening, caged birds represent Ednas entrapment. She is caged as a wife and mother; she is never expected to actually be able to think and make decisions for herself. The caged birds also symbolize the entrapment of Victorian women in general since their movements are limited by the rules of the society that they live in. Just†¦show more content†¦In the end the little house will not prove to be the solution that Edna had expected. While the house provides her with independence and isolation, the pigeon house just becomes another cage. It represents her inability to remove herself from her former life. Mademoiselle Reisz provides Edna with music that awakens her soul, advice and letters from Robert. Mademoiselle Reisz views Edna as a bird, who is seeking to fly away from societys conventions and from her responsibilities. She warns Edna that 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. (Chopin pp 82). Mademoiselle Reisz seems to know that Edna will try to fly away from the Creole society, but she does not know whether she will be strong enough to succeed. Mademoiselle in many ways warns Edna that her flight may not be successful however, Edna does not understand the advice that Mademoiselle Reisz supplies: I am not thinking of any extraordinary flight. I only half comprehend her. (Chopin pp83). In the last scene of the novel: A bird with a broken wing was beating the air above, reeling, fluttering, circling disabled down, down to the water. (Chopin pp 113) this bird represents Ednas disillusionment as she realizes that her ideals of freedom and independence canno t be reality in the Creole society of 19th century. EdnaShow MoreRelated Symbolism in Kate Chopins The Awakening Essay1467 Words   |  6 PagesSymbolism in Kate Chopins The Awakening Chopins The Awakening is full of symbolism.   Rather than hit the reader on the head with blunt literalism, Chopin uses symbols to relay subtle ideas.   Within each narrative segment, Chopin provides a symbol that the reader must fully understand in order to appreciate the novel as a whole.   I will attempt to dissect some of the major symbols and give possible explanations as to their importance within the text.   Art itself is a symbol of both freedom