Rating: 
Summary: Ruthlessly perceptive
Review: "The Awakening" is ruthless in its complete exposure of social oppression and in its avoidance of hypocrisy. Although the novel was written more than one hundred years ago, most if not all of its themes are relevant today."The Awakening" examines both women's social position and the perception of that position from the point of view of both genders. When Robert makes his first amorous overtures to Edna Pontellier a mutual friend warns him to act carefully because Edna will not behave in the same manner as other women. She is warning Robert, that Edna will respond to him in an independent and emotional fashion instead of playing the role dictated to her by society. This becomes clear when Robert returns from his self-imposed exile and informs Edna that he wants to ask her husband's permission to share her. Edna mocks this proposal and tells Robert that her life and her feelings are hers alone to give not her husband's. Unfortunately, Robert is unable to love Edna in a manner that is not socially sanctified. In fact, Robert prefers the absurdity of sharing Edna with her husband to having Edna give herself to him of her own volition. To Robert the choice must still be the husband's not Edna's. His affection for Edna is both shallow and inextricably conditioned by social parameters. The most difficult part of the novel is Edna's decision to commit suicide, knowing she will leave her children behind. From an emotional perspective this is probably difficult for any reader to endure. But it accurately conveys Edna's plight. No man and very few women are capable of accepting Edna on her own terms. They cannot even conceive of her as an independent person so much as an eccentric. Edna's suicide is not meant to promote suicide as a means of female social emancipation. Instead, it demonstrates that if a woman really wants to escape the pervasive restrictions imposed on her by men, she has few, if any, alternatives. While the legal and social status of women has improved considerably in the developed world, I wonder to what extent men really view them independently of social convention? And in the end, don't the men get a raw deal in this novel? Edna's husband is never able to grasp who she is. Her lover does not even know whom he loves or why? Most of the men in "The Awakening" are in love with the perception of a woman more than with the woman herself. I feel sorry for them.
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Summary: A true breakthrough in women's literature
Review: I read this book in high school and had the opportunity to read it in a women's literature course in college last summer. The Awakening is by far one of the best books I have ever read and I have read hundreds of novels. I truly believe that most every woman can see part of herself in Edna Pontellier. Out of the thousands of significant women characters that have been depicted in novels, Edna is certainly one of the most complex as well as realistic. Her emotions were raw, REAL, and completely unabashed and honest. Chopin included so many "tabboo" topics, including lesbianism. I can read this book over and over and still never get tored of reading it. I will always see Edna as a woman who wanted to come to grips with her own sexuality and independence. Although I did see her as selfish, I ultimately realized that she felt trapped in a society that stressed women as being the nurturers and taking care of their husbands and children...they could not dream or fufill the dreams that they had. Edna desperately wanted to cross this boundary that was set upon her society during that time. The ending was so emotional to me personally that I never fail to cry every time I read it. This book is incredibly emotional and original. Chopin realized that women should not have limits. It is just sad that society during Chopin's time did not think that women should have any other choices.
Rating: 
Summary: A Riveting Tale!
Review: After reading The Awakening, a story of a woman breaking free from typical society, we concluded that the themes portrayed in this novel will continue to perpetuate themselves throughout time. Therefore, we recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading 19th century literature. In life, everyone lives through their own periods of "awakenings", and reading Chopin's novel can help to better understand them. What a riveting tale filled with both romance and suspense!
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Summary: Who to read this novel to
Review: I read something to my soulmate every night and I chose this novel for us. We loved its simplicity although it is a piece of literature filled with complex undertones. Similarly, I suggest "Book of Luminous Things" as a backup to this experience.
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Summary: Novel With a Twist
Review: Edna Pontelier, the protagonist of Kate Chopin's "The Awakening," is a wealthy New Orleans housewife who devotes herself to her family, fulfilling their wants and needs and abandoning her own. She begins her awakening when she takes a vacation with her family to Grand Isle, Louisiana and develops a close relationship with a man named Robert Lebrun. Robert Lebrun flees to Mexico and while he is gone Edna realizes she must escape the burdens society has placed upon her. She wants to become an independent woman, a woman who can fulfill her psychological and social needs. She also realized her friendship with Robert had escalated to love. When Robert returns to New Orleans Edna confesses her feelings for him and he reciprocates those feelings. However, in the 1890's there is no cure for love outside of marriage and as a result Edna can never be truly happy. Chopin uses excessive symbolism, such as the parrot in the cage, which symbolizes Edna's emotional captivity. She also uses foreshadowing, for example, Edna's brush with death in the water foreshadows how she will die. Although this novel is well written those who do not like endings with a twist will not like this novel. Chopin lived for her surprise endings and those who like that sort of style will find this novel highly enjoyable.
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Summary: Desires vs. Duties: A Review of The Awakening
Review: At a time when a woman's roles in society were the doting wife and devoted mother, Edna Pontellier becomes more and more aware of her distaste for these responsibilities. Kate Chopin's heroine embodies the theme of escapism and the view of marriage and motherhood as traps. During the summer at Grand Isle, Edna becomes more apathetic towards her devoted, providing husband (whom she never loved, but was "fond" of) and vague, nondescript children (who symbolize children as burdens rather than blessings). As she distances herself from her family, Edna grows closer to a dear acquaintance and the object of her romantic desire, Robert Lebrum. Once Edna and her family return to New Orleans, she shirks her former duties, such as being a hostess on Tuesdays, and instead focuses on her artistic talents. When her husband goes on a business trip and her children stay with their grandmother, Edna becomes more bold and independent, finding pleasure in a man who satisfies her physical desire, Alcee Arobin. As her senses awake, she allows herself to become receptive to personal pleasures as a way to discover her true self and what she really seeks: freedom. The novel provides excellent psychological insights and guides the reader through Edna's mind as she begins the journey towards self-fulfillment and independence. The novel is also filled with symbols and motifs such as birds (symbolic of Edna), music (passion), the sea (escape), the young lovers (Edna and Robert), and the lady in black (always seen following the lovers as a symbol of their fate). Nearly every sentence bears a deeper, symbolic meaning. Through the vivid characterizations and descriptions of emotions and psychological drives, the reader is pulled through the novel with a passionate sympathy and understanding of Edna's motives. As the chapters come to an end, Edna presents her realization about her desires and takes the only path that can give her what she seeks. Though one may not agree with her choices, one can see her reasons. For that, Chopin establishes herself as a master of the portrayal of the female psyche and a phenomenal writer.
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Summary: The Awakening: a not so simple book
Review: Kate Chopin's controversial novel The Awakening was greeted with immediate attack by critics who believed it to be too provocative and questioned her motives and morals. Set in Louisiana, the protagonist Edna Pontellier, struggles to reach her awakening through her journeys and experiences in New Orleans and the Grand Isle. The Awakening is filled with symbols and different themes which reveal Edna as a complicated and intricate character. Throughout the novel, there is a constant dualism between Edna Pontellier's outward existence and her inner self. Her outward existence conforms to society and her duties as a wife and mother, and in contrast, her inner self is represented through her dreams. Her dreams are to be free and to no longer be viewed as an ornament hanging off of her husband. Symbolized by the parrots who are tamed and domesticated in the gilded cage, she feels restricted by her current life and desires to escape. The birds also foreshadow her departure by their cries of "Allez vous-en!" (Get out!) and reveals the theme of escape from maternal and matrimonial bondage. When she moves out of her husband's house, her new home is known as "the pigeon house." This is significant because pigeons are not caged and therefore, able to roam free. The dualism between New Orleans and the Grand Isle symbolizes constraint and freedom. New Orleans is proper society and extremely hectic, whereas Grand Isle possess more of an relaxed atmosphere and is much like the Garden of Eden. It is in Grand Isle where she meets and falls in love with Robert Lebrun. Edna faces a dilemma of choosing between her husband and children or Robert Lebrun. She believes that in Robert she has found her true self and identity, but later realizes that her infatuation with Robert is only a sexual desire and can be satisfied by any other man. It is ironic that in the end Mr. Pontellier and Robert Lebrun turn out to be the same-a common man. Like Hester Prynne in The Scarlet Letter, Edna becomes alienated from society. Her final dinner party parallels the Last Supper where she invites 12 guests symbolizing the 12 disciples. After the conclusion of her party, she returned to Grand Isle where the voice of the sea "speaks to the soul" and attracted Edna for a spiritual and emotional cleansing. Kate Chopin's novel with its simple short sentences and chapters is actually not simple at all. The Awakening is filled with many symbols and themes, all of which helps increase the readers understanding of Edna Pontellier. It must be read with close attention to detail. Although the ending was some what disappointing, it is still worth reading. This book about feminism that shocked the literary world over a hundred years ago will still shock readers today.
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Summary: The Awakening Review
Review: The Awakening, by Kate Chopin, details Edna Pontellier's growing independence from the acceptable role of mother through her interaction with other characters and heavy usage of symbolism. Edna, born to a Presbyterian family, rarely has intimate friends. This changes, however, when she spends a summer in Grand Isle, Louisiana. There she meets numerous Creole families, including Robert Lebrun, and grows accustomed to their casual and affectionate ways. at the same time, Edna begins to realize her discontent with her role of wife and mother in Society. To escape the burdens that Society has placed on her, Edna focuses on her talent as an artist and removes herself from her previous duties of catering to her husband and children. Edna starts to appreciate solitude, and this, along with the desire to free herself from Society, leads her to commit her last act of escapism. Kate Chopin illustrates Edna's universal relationship to Society with her use of symbolism. Nearly every word in The Awakening pertains to a symbol, namely the sea, a recurring theme for Edna. While this creates an intricate novel that is well-written, less careful readers may fail to see the importance of the passages that Chopin placed in the book. Although the novel is based more upon character development than action, The Awakening is highly enjoyable, especially for those who appreciate psychological tales or Sigmund Freud.
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Summary: A true Masterpiece
Review: From the title, one can gather a plethora of ideas and symbolic hints pertaining to this novella. Kate Chopin's protagonist, Edna Pontellier, transforms from a typical well-to-do wife and mother to an "individual" aware of her desires for love and affection. Filled with oceanic and musical imagery, this book is must-read for art, women and music students/lovers especially. * * * * *
Rating: 
Summary: I have read much worse stuff.
Review: I had to read this book in my Women's Writing Class. I can not say I enjoyed this. Edna does not really capture much sympathy or admiration. The pace of this is also quite sluggish. The supporting characters are not really memorable either. But at least Chopin had a good idea. She was trying to portray a woman who had everything, but could not be happy with the role of women in society. If you want to check this out, you must keep this in mind, or the book may seem meaningless. I did not really care for this, but I remember reading many books that were MUCH worse.
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