What is Edna like, as a mother? Choose a line or short passage from the text that tells us something about Edna as a mother. In your comment, be sure to quote the passage, give the page number, and explain what the quote tells about about what kind of mother Edna is.
“Edna once told Madame Ratignolle that she would never sacrifice herself for her children, or for any one. Then had a rather heated argument; the two women did not appear to understand each other or to be talking the same language. Edna tried to appease her friend, to explain. “I would give up unessential; I would give my money, I would give my life for my children; but I wouldn’t give myself. I can’t make it more clear; it’s only something which I am beginning to comprehend which is revealing itself to me.”” (Chapter 16, page 46)
ReplyDeleteThe fact that Edna admitted she wouldn’t give up herself for her children proves her selfishness. Any mother who truly cared for her children would give up anything for them, including her life, herself, her lover, and her wealth. Edna seems to think that her children are not worth more than herself. This shows that she is in her own world with her own fantasies, and does not want to care for her responsibilities, which are her own loving children. As we read on, we’ll see Edna grow more ignorant and selfish over time. –Cora
I agree with Cora about Edna’s selfishness as a mother in “The awakening” from the very beginning until now. When Edna said that she would only give the unessential but wouldn’t give up herself for her children, Madame Ratignolle replied: “I don’t know what you call the essential, or what you mean by the unessential.” (Chapter 16, page 46). In here, I think Edna should rethink her role as a mother as being a mother means you would never only give the “unessential” part of your life to your own children- the ones who you’re supposed to care the most. By saying “I would give my life for my children, but I wouldn’t give myself”, Edna seems to devote her life to her kids as a responsibility that she ought to spend her life taking care of the family like other women at that time, not because she is willing to care for her children with love from the bottom of heart, from what she called “myself”.
ReplyDeleteThere’s another part in Chapter 18, page 51, when Leonce is gone and Edna stood on the front of the veranda looking at her 2 sons playing, Chopin wrote: “She felt no interest in anything about herself. The street, the children, the vender, the flowers growing there under her eyes, were all part and parcel of an alien world which had suddenly become antagonistic.” Edna is emotionally unstable when she always hoping to chase something in which she believe it is freedom, awakening, the true part of who she is. However, in reality, all I can see here is the indifference that she has for herself and her children along with all the beauties around her. Although I can’t deny that our main character Edna did nothing wrong hoping to have a better life or understanding herself, I still think that she didn’t do a good job being a mother. She doesn’t need to “idolize their children, worship their husbands, and esteem it a holy privilege to efface themselves as individuals and grow wings as ministering angels”, but at least she should give her sons what they deserve: true love and attention from a mother. -Khuyen-
Edna is a very bad mother in my opinion. Here selfishness is clearly evident in the scene when she leaves her children in the house and goes to her new luxurious house and starts to have fun there. She is selfish not only as a mother, but overall as a person. She was imprisoned by her husband and had absolutely no freedom, so after getting rid of Mr. Pontellier she tries to enjoy the life and even forgets about her children. -Albert-
ReplyDeleteEdna was described as not as motherly woman as the other women. She also admitted that she wouldn't sacrifice herself for her children to Madame Ratignolle like Cora said above. These evidences showed that Edna was not a very good mother. She cared about herself more than anything else. She was selfish in my opinion.
ReplyDelete"but a woman who would give her life for her children could do more than that-..." Madame Ratignolle said this on Page 46, Chapter 16. Edna was telling Madame Ratignolle about how she would give up the unessential, money,... for her children, but not herself. Madame Ratignolle in the order hand thought that a woman, especially a mother should care about her children more than anything else. Edna right now didn't really care about her husband nor her children. She got quite distracted by Robert, whom I think she cared the most right now.
Why she said “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.” ?( In chapter 16 )
ReplyDeleteEdna is not kind of the perfect Victoria's time wife. She wants to get the thing that he likes and she always have dream. She was more like the woman who wants to track his dream, like at the beginning of the Chapter 11, Edna seems dream about her future and i think that as a mom she can't just stay up whole night to think about herself but her children. And in chapter 12 that she went out with Robert, She is just caring about her own happiness but not the children. All the sense that shows her always leave her children to the maid and I don't think that her husband will do that for her too. In chapter 16 (p46), she was even begging other women about the situation of Robert. In my opinion she isn't a good mom at all. The things she did day after day is deal the relationship with Robert or with other women.
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ReplyDeleteEdna is not a good mother.from chapter 11 page 31." Edna began to feel one who awakens gradully out of dream. a delicious grotesque impossible dream to feel again the realities press into her soul" she is a selifish women who always think about self first. always want to self happy first. he went out with Robert did not care about his kids. she can not as a very good mother she is a who very selfishness women.
ReplyDeleteBeing a mother didn't come naturally to Edna. Though she cared both for an about her children, she was not a particularly loving mother--and she knew it. Our narrator describes her this way: In short, Mrs. Pontellier was not a mother-woman. The mother-women seemed to prevail that summer at Grand Isle.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.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, Edna is not a good mother and a good wife. We can see from chapter one to twenty. Her feelings and emotion keeps changing too much. In the beginning, she even doesn't want to stay close with Robert. In few days, she go out with him though she has children in her house. She doesn't talk with her husband well and politely even I think her husband has the same problem. If she is a good man, I think she will stay home and have fun with her children or not go out with the other man. We know she has the special feeling for him now and she acted like she dated with him. She isn't a good mother and a good wife. However, she is a person, she has the rights to chase her love. I just don't think she give her husband up first and find the other man is a good idea.
ReplyDeleteEric Li
As We have read till page 46, I agree with Linh Le that Edna wouldn't sacrifice herself for her children to Madame Ratignolle.
ReplyDeleteQuote:'' 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..." This sentence proves that Edna doesn't care much about her children and she is so selfish. She didn't said that she just cares about herself but the book also tells us that she only cares about Robert and his life! She was not a good mother she was a selfish and a heartless mother.
Well in my opinon Edna is a really unstable women with confused feelings this caused maybe by her life style and by her not complete freedom.In one part of the vook she saiys to her friend Ms.Ratignole that she would never sacrifice herself for her children which is very hard to hear becouse we are used to hearing our mothers saying the children comes before everything and that they would give even their lives to help and see us happy.but apperantly this is not Edna’s case.She expresses this feelings in this lines where we can clearly see that the two friends have different thoughts on th subject: “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. I can’t make it more clear; it’s only something which I am beginning to comprehend, which is revealing itself to me.” “I don’t know what you would call the essential, or what you mean by the unessential,” said Madame Ratignolle, cheerfully; “but a woman who would give her life for her children could do no more than that.But in another occasion is when Edna comes back from her little trip with Robert and her children were with Ms.Ratignole.In that moment Edna’s younger son had refused to sleep and she just took him in his arms and starting saying sweet woords and trying to make him sleep.This is well shown in this lines: Edna took him in her arms, and seating herself in the rocker, began to coddle and caress him, calling him all manner of tender names, soothing him to sleep. When Etienne had fallen asleep Edna bore him into the back room.So it doesnt mean that she is completely a bad mother or that she is ignoring her children ,she is just confussed and she is trying to make up herself and her life. ~~DEHLI~~
ReplyDelete"It seems to me the utmost folly for a woman at the head of a household, and the mother of children, to spend in an atelier days which would be better employed contriving for the comfort of her family."
ReplyDeleteEdna is the kind of mom that wants to have her own life without given up her freedom or individuality for the children. She is not the perfect mother or the mother woman she prefer staying in the atelier or doing something else then stay at home taking care of her kids, her house or her husband.
-Mariana
Though out the novel Edna portrays herself as selfish and unmotherly. For example on page 46 the narrator writes, "Edna had once told Madame Ratignolle that she would never sacrifice herself for her children". This shows Edna is not willing to fully love her children and fully give her undivided attention to her children. She is not a mother woman like adele, because when you become a mother, you have to be prepared to do whatever to protect and keep your children happy. In conclusion Edna is not a good mother, because she is too selfish and is only thinking about herself.
ReplyDelete-Nikkie