Awakening Post #1

Discuss the title of the novel. Is it appropriate? In what way? If you could give this novel a different title, what might that be?

The Awakening is a very appropriate title for the novel. It is appropriate because it aptly describes the process the main character, Edna Pontellier, experiences, as she becomes a more aware and conscious human being. The process is similar to waking up from a deep sleep; she is slow and at times foggy. The process is described after Edna refused Mr. Pontellier’s request to come up to bed: “Edna began to feel like one who awakens gradually out of a dream, a delicious, grotesque, impossible dream, to feel again the realities pressing into her soul” (42).  As the novel progresses and Edna becomes more and more aware of her position in the world, the growing awareness of her emotions and societal limitations symbolizes her awakening. If I could give the novel a different I would change it back to its original title. The original title of the novel was A Solitary Soul and it appropriately describes Edna’s behavior and isolation. Throughout the story, Edna evolves into a more and more solitary character. At one point insight into Edna’s lifestyle is offered, “even as a child she had lived her own small life all within herself.” She lived her life independently, alone with her thoughts. Both titles serve the novel well and each offers unique insight into Edna and what the novel is about.