Chopin’s novel presented a rebellious and independent awakening of the character Edna Pontellier. Edna discovered herself in some way or the other in every chapter. Her discoveries were followed by the desire to be independent and to cater to her own needs instead of others. Chopin showed how Edna’s character initially unhappily conformed to societal expectations. She was to serve her husband, be his possession and take care of her children.
Edna had something to learn from everyone she met at Green Isle. Her friend Adele Ratignolle was someone Edna was able to open up to. Even though Adele was a married Creole whose life centered around her husband and her family, she helped Edna learn how to candidly express herself. Edna had always been the girl who kept to herself. She was not the friendliest with her sisters either. So a little gesture of closeness from Adele helped Edna open up about her repressed thoughts. And then there was Robert, who Edna was very much in love with. To say Robert awakened the kind of Edna in Edna that is happy and joyful would not be completely accurate. The process of this awakening in Edna was gradual. And everyone around her contributed to that.
Edna’s self-discovery and need for independence were not only associated with disliking her husband’s company or being in love with Robert, but it was also about being in love with herself and everything around her. She enjoyed the idea of being Edna, and not just a wife or a mother. The solitude and independence that Edna acquired were about herself. She prioritized her well-being over anyone else’s. There was another character in Chopin’s novel that acquires solitude – it was the lady in black on the background. The lady in black lived a life as her husband’s possession. Because her life was centered around him, losing him left her alone and lonely. Her identity was described by her husband and she connected with the world through him. Her solitude referred to withdrawal from life. Her silence resembled a lack of individuality. Even though the topic of solitude comes here in both the cases of the lady in black and Edna, they both exemplified two very different kinds of solitude.
The lovers often seen at the beach symbolized the happiness and passionate love that a woman experiences before she dives into the world of obligations. Mrs. Pontellier walked away from that very world of obligations. She allowed herself to enjoy her urges and freedom. She let herself be free during her time with Alcee but did not allow herself to be dominated by him. She retained her individuality.
At the end of the novel, Robert’s inability to enter the forbidden relationship and Adele’s words pushed Edna into thinking that she acted on selfishness. This may have awakened a sense of remorse in Edna but Robert’s rejection or the worry for her kids did not push Edna to take her own life. Her suicide perhaps was not a latent remorse dwelling within Edna but the need for ultimate independence. Edna’s independence was always accompanied by solitude. It helped her with discovering herself. Perhaps Edna was at the end of her self-discovery journey. And once this journey came to an end, Edna did not find any reason to keep on walking that path. She knew herself, she knew freedom and she knew love – what more was there for her to see?