Quotes from The Awakening, With Chapter and Context

The quotes from The Awakening that come up most in essays trace Edna Pontellier’s change from a wife her husband regards as property in Chapter 1 to a woman who says “I give myself where I choose” in Chapter 36. Kate Chopin published the novel in 1899. It is set among wealthy Creole families at the Grand Isle summer resort and in New Orleans.

The quotes below are grouped by theme, with the speaker and chapter for each. Chapter numbers are the same in every edition, so cite those rather than page numbers.

Marriage and ownership

The novel’s first chapter shows how Léonce Pontellier sees his wife. Edna has come back from the beach sunburned, and he looks at her “as one looks at a valuable piece of personal property which has suffered some damage.” — Narrator, Chapter 1.

That single comparison sets up the whole book. Edna’s awakening is largely a refusal to be that property.

In Chapter 17, after an argument with Léonce, Edna takes off her wedding ring, throws it on the carpet and “stamped her heel upon it, striving to crush it.” — Narrator, Chapter 17. The ring is undamaged. Essays often read this as a sign that the marriage bond is harder to break than Edna thinks.

By Chapter 36, she says it outright to Robert Lebrun, who has talked of asking Léonce to set her free.

“I am no longer one of Mr. Pontellier’s possessions to dispose of or not. I give myself where I choose.” — Edna, Chapter 36.

Motherhood and the “mother-women”

Chapter 4 describes the other women at Grand Isle, led by Edna’s friend Adèle Ratignolle.

“They were women who idolized their children, worshiped their husbands, and esteemed it a holy privilege to efface themselves as individuals and grow wings as ministering angels.” — Narrator, Chapter 4.

The narrator’s verdict follows soon after: “In short, Mrs. Pontellier was not a mother-woman.”

In Chapter 16, Edna tries to explain the difference to Adèle.

“I would give up the unessential; I would give my money, I would give my life for my children; but I wouldn’t give myself.” — Edna, Chapter 16.

This is one of the most quoted lines in the novel, and a strong choice for a thesis about identity versus duty.

Edna’s awakening

“In short, Mrs. Pontellier was beginning to realize her position in the universe as a human being, and to recognize her relations as an individual to the world within and about her.” — Narrator, Chapter 6.

Chapter 7 explains that this inner life was not new. Even as a child, Edna “had apprehended instinctively the dual life—that outward existence which conforms, the inward life which questions.”

Back in New Orleans, Léonce wonders whether his wife is becoming mentally unbalanced. The narrator corrects him.

“He could not see that she was becoming herself and daily casting aside that fictitious self which we assume like a garment with which to appear before the world.” — Narrator, Chapter 19.

When Edna decides to move into a small house of her own, the narrator says she had “resolved never again to belong to another than herself.” — Narrator, Chapter 26.

In Chapter 32, living in the small house the novel calls the “pigeon house,” she finds that “every step which she took toward relieving herself from obligations added to her strength and expansion as an individual.”

The sea

The sea is the novel’s central symbol of freedom and of the inner life. Chapter 6 introduces it in a passage that returns, almost word for word, in the final chapter.

“The voice of the sea is seductive; never ceasing, whispering, clamoring, murmuring, inviting the soul to wander for a spell in abysses of solitude.” — Narrator, Chapter 6.

In Chapter 10, Edna swims alone for the first time. The narrator compares her to “the little tottering, stumbling, clutching child, who of a sudden realizes its powers, and walks for the first time alone.”

“She wanted to swim far out, where no woman had swum before.” — Narrator, Chapter 10.

Art, courage and strong wings

Mademoiselle Reisz, a pianist who lives alone and ignores social rules, is the novel’s model of an independent woman. When Edna tells her she is becoming an artist, Reisz warns her how much that takes.

“And, moreover, to succeed, the artist must possess the courageous soul.” — Mademoiselle Reisz, Chapter 21.

In Chapter 27, Edna tells Alcée Arobin that Reisz felt her shoulder blades to see whether her wings were strong, and repeats what Reisz said.

“The bird that would soar above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings.” — Mademoiselle Reisz, quoted by Edna, Chapter 27.

Birds run through the whole novel, from the caged parrot in Chapter 1 to a bird with a broken wing in the final chapter. Tracking them is an easy way to organize an essay on freedom.

The ending

In Chapter 37, Adèle, who has just given birth, urges Edna to remember her responsibilities. “Think of the children, Edna. Oh think of the children! Remember them!” — Adèle, Chapter 37.

In Chapter 38, walking home with Doctor Mandelet, Edna reflects on what her awakening has cost.

“Perhaps it is better to wake up after all, even to suffer, rather than to remain a dupe to illusions all one’s life.” — Edna, Chapter 38.

The novel ends in Chapter 39, with Edna returning to Grand Isle and swimming out into the Gulf alone. Most readers take the ending as her death. Critics still debate whether it is a defeat or a final act of independence, and either reading can be argued from the text.

In that last chapter, Edna thinks of her husband and sons: “They were a part of her life. But they need not have thought that they could possess her, body and soul.”

Using these quotes in an essay

Much of the novel’s commentary is in the narration, so be clear about who is speaking. Credit narration to the narrator, not to Edna.

Short lines like “I give myself where I choose” work best blended into your own sentence. Our guides on how to quote a book in an essay and how to analyze a quote in an essay cover the format and the explanation. For an essay comparing Chopin with earlier arguments about women’s independence, our Mary Wollstonecraft quotes are a useful pairing.

FAQ

What is the most famous quote from The Awakening?

“I would give up the unessential; I would give my money, I would give my life for my children; but I wouldn’t give myself,” from Chapter 16, is the line most often quoted.

What does the sea symbolize in The Awakening?

Freedom, solitude and Edna’s inner life. The same passage about “the voice of the sea” appears in Chapter 6 and again at the end of the novel.

How was The Awakening received in 1899?

Most reviewers disapproved of it. The novel was largely forgotten until critics revived interest in Chopin in the mid-20th century.

Who says “the artist must possess the courageous soul”?

Mademoiselle Reisz, speaking to Edna in Chapter 21.