Edna, the main character of Kate Chopin’s ‘The Awakening’, is the bright example of the 19 century feminism movement awakening.
Speaking about Edna’s selfishness, it is important to mention that we do not usually blame men who find themselves in such situations forgetting about their families and having affairs with other ladies. But when the matter comes to adulteresses, things change dramatically as far as public opinion is concerned. Still, the point here is that for women, matters seem much more complicated: apart from striving to be loved, they strive to be strong, not necessarily independent because being independent generally means being single, and in healthy relationships both partners depend upon each other to a certain extent, but still respected by men and treated nicely, not just as a property or even home slaves.
That is why some women like Edna tend to have affairs, and the root of it is entirely different than those of men’s adultery. Men seek changes, women seek stability. Men want to reaffirm their status of “conquerors” and “machos”, women need to free themselves of the conventional status of “silent house utilities” and “obedient supplement to their husbands”. So, before we accuse Edna of being selfish, it is necessary to consider the circumstances under which she had become such.
On the other hand, Edna does her best to escape from the world that hangs heavy on her: all the conventions of the aristocratic life, her husband’s shallowness, the feeling of being treated like a mere thing. Such a behavior could have been called quite reasonable, but eventually Edna finds the same thing she was trying to escape from, full dependency.
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