Realist Novel Study, Part 4

"Out!" exclaimed her husband, with something like genuine consternation in his voice as he laid down the vinegar cruet and looked at her through his glasses. "Why, what could have taken you out on Tuesday? What did you have to do?"

...

Which word best describes the overall mood of this passage?

1. Confrontational

Which devices does the author use to establish the mood? Check the four best choices.

1. details about the actions of Edna's husband

2. an exclamation point

4. short and direct statements

5. the word choices of "exclaimed" and "consternation"

Which conflict does this passage best show?

3. conflict between Edna and her husband

What theme does this conflict help show?

1. Traditional relationships can stifle individual freedom.

Select one of these themes and explain how it is developing in The Awakening. Provide text examples to support your explanation.

Society and culture often pressure women to fit a certain image or fill a specific role.

Being an outsider is an isolating experience.

The search for self-identity sometimes conflicts with society.

Edna's identity crisis reflects the theme that society and culture often pressure women to fit a certain image or fill a specific role. Edna wanted life beyond marriage and motherhood. In Creole society, however, the ideal woman was a happy wife and mother. After she left the Ratignolles, Edna "felt depressed rather than soothed.... It was not a condition of life which fitted her, and she could see in it but an appalling and hopeless ennui." Edna knows that the mother role is not for her, and this concept supports the theme.

Which of the following predictions is most likely to happen, based on the themes that have emerged so far in the story?

2. Edna will further distance herself from her husband and friends as her independence grows.