USING A MORAL AND INTELLECTUAL APPROACH– THE AWAKENING By: Whitney Blankenship, Amanda Johnson, Ally Long, and Molly Vaughan

HOW TO APPLY THIS APPROACH:

When using a Moral/Intellectual approach the reviewer is concerned with content and values.

This approach is as old as literature. It is a way to view philosophy, ethics, and

religion. The idea behind moral/intellectual critiquing

is not only to discover the meaning, but to determine whether the literature is both true and significant.

HOW TO APPLY THIS APPROACH CONT’:

The reviewer must decide if the work conveys a lesson or a message and if it can help the reader live a better life and improve their understanding of the world.

The moral/intellectual approach is not a sermon and it is meant to leave the reader wondering whether the content is morally or personally acceptable.

QUESTIONS THE CRITIC MUST ASK:

What ideas does the work contain? How strongly does the work bring forth

ideas? What application do the ideas have to the

work’s characters and situations? How may the ideas be elevated both

intellectually and morally?

IN THE AWAKENING HOW IS THIS APPLIED?

Themes- Self expression and identity and feminism

Suicide- Drowning herself Title- The Awakening

SELF EXPRESSION

Self expression is a major theme in this novel.

Throughout the story Edna discovers many ways to express herself.

While finding these ways to express herself, she learns to face her emotions that she has been holding in all along. One of these ways is through art.

Edna didn’t want to be controlled by Leonce, but rather she wanted to be her own person.

Once Edna decides to be open about things, she decides she wants to be honest about all areas in her life.

SELF EXPRESSION CONT’

Edna started to do things that she wouldn’t normally do. She swam more often as well as move out of her

house away from her husband and children. As Edna’s self expression started to grow, her

friends and the people around her started to understand her less.

Edna ended up being by herself which ultimately lead to her death in the end.

Instead of conforming to what society told her to be, she chose to express herself in different ways than women in that time period.

FEMINISM

Feminism is another major theme in this novel. Feminism is an organized movement for the

attainment of rights for women. Women were viewed as weak and dependent by

society during Kate Chopin’s time period. (She wrote The Awakening in 1899).

Women were told that all they should be doing is housework.

The attitude that the society showed towards women in that time period is also found in The Awakening.

Chopin expresses urges and desires disguised by the female gender through Edna.

FEMINISM CONT’

Throughout this short novel, Edna constantly acts the opposite of what society accepts.

Examples: She moves out of her house. She learns to swim and paint to express herself. Although she is married, she turns to other men

to fulfill her sexual needs (Alcee) and empty feelings (Robert).

SUICIDE

Suicide is defined as the act of self-destruction by a person sound in mind and capable of measuring his or her moral responsibility.

During the time period that this short novel was written, female heroines were killed off in major literary works.

The most popular were the women who committed suicide.

In the end, Edna walks into the ocean and commits suicide because she cannot make compromises to her personality to please the people around her.

TITLE

The title of The Awakening can only be understood after the incorporation of themes and content throughout the short novel.

The title represents the protagonist, Edna Pontellier.

Her first awakening: When she hears Mademoiselle Reiz play the

piano. Her second awakening:

Throughout her relationship with Robert Lebrun. Her third awakening:

Her death

TITLE CONT’

The title was not meant to summarize the story, rather it was meant to introduce the concept that Edna will encounter a mental awakening.