Spoilers for “The Awakening” by Kate Chopin are present in this article, proceed with caution.
“The Awakening” is a 1899 classic of feminist literature by author Kate Chopin. It follows the life of Enda Pontellier as she attempts to find her passion and identity in the world of Victorian America.
The novel has found a home in many American literature classrooms, holding a solid position as a cornerstone of feminism in America and a critique on patriarchal standards placed on women. However, the novel poses an additional question beyond simple gender roles: what does it take to ‘find’ oneself, and what is the purpose of life in the presence of confines?
This ever-present question goes beyond women of the Victorian era—it is relevant in every individual’s life before her time, during her time, and in the present. Life’s true purpose is the search that has spurred on religious movements, societal change, art, literature, and even family dynamics.
Most, if not every, major philosopher and philosophical system has taken some stance or opinion on the topic of the purpose of life.
In Buddhism, the meaning of life is to take the path that leads to the end of all suffering, the Fourth Noble Truth and reach Nirvana, ending the cycle of death and rebirth. According to an article by The Collector, in Confucianism, purpose in life is gained “by fulfilling our social roles and responsibilities while cultivating virtuous character.”
An article by the Meaning Movement describes that Plato’s meaning of life “rests on three fundamental pillars: truth, beauty, and goodness. These aren’t abstract concepts but practical guideposts for daily living.” The Meaning Movement also writes that, “Nietzsche suggests that life’s meaning isn’t something we discover— it’s something we create.”
As is made clear by various religions and philosophers, the meanings of life vary from person to person. Some wildly swing from a detailed description of how to attain an end goal to a simple idea that is fulfilled through day to day living.
In “The Awakening” Mrs. Edna Ponteiller’s meaning of life is freedom.
This is not outright stated in the novel, but strongly implied. Edna searches for some unknown thing, some lifestyle that will satisfy her inner self. Her soul is yearning for more than her body can achieve. Within the confines of her time, she is unable to find the path that is right for her, that can truly satisfy her.
Perhaps one reading of the novel is that the purpose and satisfaction of the soul is impossible in one version of reality (in the book, this is a strict Victorian society). Yet, another reading of the novel could urge the individual to move past the physical constraints of the modern world and return to a natural flow that supports the soul.
Edna was a tragic example of how an individual can be placed in a cage, unable to reach great heights. She resembled a scene written by Chopin at the end of the novel, where “a bird with a broken wing was beating the air above, reeling, fluttering, circling, disabled down, down to the water.” While she couldn’t find what she was searching for, reaching beyond the physical limits of her life, challenging her own perception of freedom, may have satisfied her.
There may not be a need to find a purpose in life, and there may not be one. The search is tiring and we are shown in multiple tragedies that the end of the search results in death—either death of the soul, self, or ego.
This is not to say that satisfaction with an unsatisfactory life is the answer, and to give up the search for purpose and freedom and fulfillment all together. These are all philosophical journeys key to the human experience.
However, perhaps the key to freedom: to satisfaction, lies in ‘giving up’ the search, and allowing passion to take over. Maybe Edna’s freedom lay in her artwork, in her loved ones, and in the garden she took lunch in.