An Analysis Of The Awakening From The Perspective Of Spatial Theory

Kate Chopin is one of the most essential American women writers in the late 19^thcentury,and The Awakening has established her status in literary circles.The Awakening follows that Edna Pontellier,a married woman,awakens to her own sexuality,and it has become a classic text for feminist critics all over the world.However,this thesis analyzes Edna’s predicaments and spatial explorations from the perspective of Henri Lefebvre’s spatial triad.First,from the representation of space,the study finds that Edna is disciplined by patriarchal power,ostracized by Creoles,and alienated by materialized society.Second,by studying Edna’s spatial practice,this thesis analyzes her budding awareness of individuality and sexuality and her limited spatial explorations on her physical space,body space,and spiritual space.Third,through analyzing Edna’s representational space,the study reveals that Edna actively reconstructs her lived space in the sea to shatter her oppressions and sufferings.The thesis concludes that Edna’s successful spatial transformation from a woman depressed to a woman liberated attests to the possibility of shattering the patriarchal edifice and other social confinements to assert herself by her spatial reconstruction.Besides,after perusing Kate Chopin’s life,the thesis concludes that Kate Chopin aspires to open a window in her stifling life by Edna’s space construction.