Edna Pontellier: Betrayed by Passion

Edna is emotionally detached from the people made available to her and that appear to
care for her, choosing instead to love those who are ultimately unattainable. Ednas intimate
encounter with Alce Arobin causes her to reflect on her motivations for marriage as well as
examine what it is she wants in future relationships. Edna is neither shamed nor proud of her
actions, but rather is confused and conflicted by them. Although it would appear that she is
struggling to decide who she wants to be with, Edna is actually faced with the choice of who she
wants to be.
He cast one appealing glance at her, to which she made no response. Alce Arobins
manner was so genuine that it often deceived even himself.
Edna did not care or think whether it were genuine or not. When she was alone she
looked mechanically at the back of her hand which he had kissed so warmly. The she
leaned her head down on the mantelpiece. She felt somewhat like a woman who in a
moment of passion is betrayed into an act of infidelity, and realizes the significance of the
act without being wholly awakened from its glamour. The thought was passing vaguely
through her mind, What would he think?
She did not mean her husband; she was thinking of Robert Lebrun. Her husband seemed
to her not like a person whom she had married without love as an excuse.
Edna is emotionally detached from her husbands attention as well as Alce Arobins
advances. Her desires for men come from her distance from them. In saying that she did not
mean her husband when wondering, what would he think, she has cast him aside and placed
him outside of her situation, severing the assumed connection they had with one another through
their marriage. She does not respond to and actively ignores Alce, suggesting an attitude of
apathy. She invited him to her home, so she does not mind his company, though refuses to make
any lasting connections with him.
Edna does not love her husband. She has come to understand that she married him
knowing that she did not love him, using that excuse to justify if she became enamored with
someone new that she would not feel as though she had betrayed anyone. It can be interpreted

that she sees love as a noble pursuit, therefore could not be faulted or guilted by her marriage
trap when she felt something for someone else. Edna wants to believe that love conquers all ad
that if she were with someone who she loved she would finally be content, though she does not
actually think this. This way, she can romanticize the notion of love as well as defend her desire
to always be searching.
It would appear that she is trying to fill a void regarding what she wants; in this case,
Edna is still in the process of trying to figure out if Alce can fill the void. Alce gives Edna an
appealing glance which acts as a quick attractive request, indicating that he is sexually
attracted to her and allowed that to be conveyed on his face. This brief expression works as a sort
of question, asking if she feels the same way and wants to act on those feelings. Alce is said to
have a very artificial way of presenting himself. He appears to be behaving sincerely and whole
heartedly to people, so much in fact that they honestly believe that is how he feels. However, the
use of the word deceived lets readers know that deep down Alce has some type of ulterior
motives or feelings that are not exactly what he would have Edna believe.
Edna does not love Alce Arobin. She does not care or even consider Alces true
intentions because she is detached. She does not actually value a relationship with him because
she has set the bar far too high for herself. In her mind she had nothing to lose, but also did not
desire to gain anything from anyone because she is so fixated on the idea of Robert.
In waiting until she is alone, Edna is reflecting on her growing intimacy with Alce. She
performs a sort of personal check up and takes stock of what has happened. She does not want to
do that with him around because she wants to stay detached. If he were to encroach on her inner
most thoughts and feelings then their relationship would become too personal, and what little

excitement they had together would run the risk of fizzling out. Too private a moment like that
could only be shared with someone she loved, or convinced herself that she loved, like Robert.
Describing her actions as mechanically implies an automatic reflex or numbness to the
action. Perhaps she is only now feeling that numbness, though. There is a hint of reminiscence in
the phrase which he had kissed so warmly. That sounds as if she had felt some kind of
enjoyment or affection in the moment, but now as she studies her hand she doesnt know what to
feel. There is also evidence of this kind of unsure appreciation when she had a moment of
passion. This indicates that she experienced a powerful emotion with him, though momentary
and fleeting, which is exactly the kind of think she seemed to be working against (she does not
want to forge any sort of real connection with the man). She may be looking at her hand to
remember him kissing it, trying to conjure the memory of it, as if it had been a dream.
Likewise, the phrase leaned her head down draws some parallels to an image of
someone lying down to sleep. Edna may be trying to get back to the dream state she was in
before when Alce kissed her hand. She is described as not being wholly awakened which can
equate back to her dream-like state; she is only half awake. Her dream, the encounter with Alce,
had been exciting at the time, but now that she was waking up to reality, Edna is unsure of how
she feels about what happened. It is noteworthy that she seems to be pretty sure about how she
feels about Alce (she does not care for him on the same level she cares about Robert), but she is
unsure of whether she should try to stay in her dream world that does not necessarily give her
what she wants but does give her what she needs, or wake up and try to get what she wants for
herself.
In trying to understand her own feelings, she wondered what Robert would think about
her situation. Once again, Edna is making herself part of the corporate self, and is willing to act

according to what his feelings are, saving her the trouble of making up her own mind and
allowing her to have an excuse if things to do not work in her favor. Edna felt as though she
had been betrayed into an act of infidelity, meaning that she showed a desire or feeling with
Alce that she had not wanted or tried to. That in turn made her feel unfaithful (to both Robert
and also to herself for letting someone into her life so personally. She does not want to feel
vulnerable because then someone else will have control over her). Edna knows what she wants, it
is just a matter of getting it and then staying satisfied.

Work Cited
Chopin, Kate. The Awakening. New York: W. W. Norton, 1994. Print.