Awakening: The Contradictions of Sexuality,

¶ … Awakening: The contradictions of sexuality, marital fidelity and infidelity play

Edna Pontellier of Kate Chopin's The Awakening is trapped in a milieu that is simultaneously sexually repressive, yet primarily defines women in terms of their sexuality. To articulate herself, Edna 'must' engage in marital infidelity. Women are given few other channels than sexuality to explore the world in 19th century society. At the beginning of the novel, Edna is searching for her 'calling,' and is dissatisfied with the roles and responsibilities of being a conventional wife and mother to two young children. To express herself, Edna embarks upon an ultimately fruitless affair with Robert Lebrun. She is unable to find fulfillment, like her friend Adele, who cheerily bears a difficult childbirth and the tedium of marriage. However, Edna is not able to lead a completely transgressive existence, like the artist Mademoiselle Reisz. She lacks a sense of a singular calling, and instead seems to have more of a 'calling' for life, a calling that is denied by her social world.

Edna is 'betwixt and between,' neither able to wholly isolate herself from society, sexuality, and love like the reclusive Mademoiselle Reisz and unable to limit her intellectual and emotional capacity like Adele. In modern language one might say that Edna wants a balanced life, or wants to 'have it all,' but this is impossible given the Victorian morals of her day. To be sexually faithful renders her into an Adele-like role, but to rebel through infidelity simply subjugates her into another stereotypically feminine role, and denies her the social status of being a wife and mother. Yet Edna does not have either the talent or full inclination to be a hermit and slave to her art like Mademoiselle Reisz. Caught adrift socially, Edna flounders and literally as well as figuratively drowns in a sea of contradictions, in a society that demands women either abandon their sexuality to pursue their art, or subsume themselves sexually to a man, in marriage or as a mistress.