The Awakening Post #3

Throughout the course of the story, Edna Pontellier shows herself being immature and selfish. Edna’s relationship with Robert is like a school girl crush; her eyes were emerald green when Robert was talking to Mariequita. Edna saw her as competition and “she looked Mariequita up and down, from her ugly brown toes to her pretty black eyes, and back again” (Chopin 81).Edna, a married woman, is selfish. Edna has a doting husband at home, yet she is worried about having another man all to herself. When Edna’s affairs began, she only thought about herself. She was thoughtless, oblivious to the fact that there would be negative consequences when she was caught. Her marriage, children, and reputation were on the line. Edna was already seen as an outsider to the Creole community; her adulterous behaviors would place her in exile and ruin any foreigner’s chance for a relationship with a Creole man.

Edna’s immaturity is most prevalent with her children. Mothers are supposed to care for their children and are even willing to die for their children. Edna struggled when doing either. “Edna had once told Madame Ratignolle that she would never sacrifice herself for her children” (Chopin 97). Children are supposed to help people become more responsible, but it didn’t work for Edna. Edna’s immaturity and selfishness could be partly due to the fact that women were married and had children at a younger age, compared to their husbands marrying at an older age. Edna does not think about the impact of her actions and her carelessness will lead to most of the problems she will later face.