Symbols are objects, characters, figures, and colors
used to represent abstract ideas or concepts.
Birds
In The Awakening, caged birds serve as reminders of Edna’s
entrapment and also of the entrapment of Victorian women in general. Madame
Lebrun’s parrot and mockingbird represent Edna and Madame Reisz,
respectively. Like the birds, the women’s movements are limited
(by society), and they are unable to communicate with the world
around them. The novel’s “winged” women may only use their wings
to protect and shield, never to fly.
Edna’s attempts to escape her husband, children, and society manifest
this arrested flight, as her efforts only land her in another cage:
the pigeon house. While Edna views her new home as a sign of her
independence, the pigeon house represents her inability to remove
herself from her former life, as her move takes her just “two steps
away.” Mademoiselle Reisz instructs Edna that she must have strong
wings in order to survive the difficulties she will face if she plans
to act on her love for Robert. She warns: “The bird that would soar
above the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong
wings. It is a sad spectacle to see the weaklings bruised, exhausted,
fluttering back to earth.”
Critics who argue that Edna’s suicide marks defeat, both
individually and for women, point out the similar wording of the
novel’s final example of bird imagery: “A bird with a broken wing
was beating the air above, reeling, fluttering, circling disabled
down, down to the water.” If, however, the bird is not a symbol
of Edna herself, but rather of Victorian womanhood in general, then
its fall represents the fall of convention achieved by Edna’s suicide.
The Sea
The sea in The Awakening symbolizes freedom
and escape. It is a vast expanse that Edna can brave only when she
is solitary and only after she has discovered her own strength.
When in the water, Edna is reminded of the depth of the universe
and of her own position as a human being within that depth. The
sensuous sound of the surf constantly beckons and seduces Edna throughout
the novel.
Water’s associations with cleansing and baptism make it
a symbol of rebirth. The sea, thus, also serves as a reminder of
the fact that Edna’s awakening is a rebirth of sorts. Appropriately,
Edna ends her life in the sea: a space of infinite potential becomes
a blank and enveloping void that carries both a promise and a threat.
In its sublime vastness, the sea represents the strength, glory,
and lonely horror of independence.
