Literary Criticism: The Awakening and the Failure of the Psyche
It is apparent that one can correlate Greek mythology to The Awakening when reading Franklin’s criticism. Franklin associates the paradigm of Psyche to the pathological, internal struggle of Edna, where the fear of the confrontation of solitude is prevalent. Franklin first explains the irony in the title of The Awakening, given the fact that Edna sleeps, living in a world filled with fantasy rather than being psychologically and internally awakened. In addition, Franklin delves deeper into the pathological connection between Psyche, describing the tragic relationship between Psyche and Eros. Furthermore, Franklin implicitly associates Psyche and Edna through the “separation and solitude that test her resolve …show more content…
Edna continues to experience a sexual and self-awakening that happened simultaneously. The self-awakening begins as soon as Robert departs for Mexico, where the pain of separation is prevalent as seen through the perspective of Psyche and Eros. As she looks for Robert, she is simultaneously viewing a mirrored image of herself. Once confronting solitude, Edna’s infatuation grows for Robert, as she is looking for letters from him; only does she face disappointment, like Psyche, once she is not mentioned. As Edna visits Mademoiselle Reisz, she is introduced to a symbol of individuation as she states, “the bird that would soar above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings” (521). This refers to the symbolism used in Chapter 1, where a parrot was confined in a cage, desperate to escape. In order to escape this solitude, Edna looked to Mademoiselle Reisz and Dr. Mandelet as guardians. Mademoiselle Reisz’s music awakened Edna internally and psychologically, as the music was soft, yet turbulent, referring to the sea. Dr. Mandelet mentions a story of caution of a woman’s unfaithful love, further helping Edna to realize that she was
It is apparent that one can correlate Greek mythology to The Awakening when reading Franklin’s criticism. Franklin associates the paradigm of Psyche to the pathological, internal struggle of Edna, where the fear of the confrontation of solitude is prevalent. Franklin first explains the irony in the title of The Awakening, given the fact that Edna sleeps, living in a world filled with fantasy rather than being psychologically and internally awakened. In addition, Franklin delves deeper into the pathological connection between Psyche, describing the tragic relationship between Psyche and Eros. Furthermore, Franklin implicitly associates Psyche and Edna through the “separation and solitude that test her resolve …show more content…
Edna continues to experience a sexual and self-awakening that happened simultaneously. The self-awakening begins as soon as Robert departs for Mexico, where the pain of separation is prevalent as seen through the perspective of Psyche and Eros. As she looks for Robert, she is simultaneously viewing a mirrored image of herself. Once confronting solitude, Edna’s infatuation grows for Robert, as she is looking for letters from him; only does she face disappointment, like Psyche, once she is not mentioned. As Edna visits Mademoiselle Reisz, she is introduced to a symbol of individuation as she states, “the bird that would soar above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings” (521). This refers to the symbolism used in Chapter 1, where a parrot was confined in a cage, desperate to escape. In order to escape this solitude, Edna looked to Mademoiselle Reisz and Dr. Mandelet as guardians. Mademoiselle Reisz’s music awakened Edna internally and psychologically, as the music was soft, yet turbulent, referring to the sea. Dr. Mandelet mentions a story of caution of a woman’s unfaithful love, further helping Edna to realize that she was