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Sea Symbolism In The Awakening

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Over the years, numerous covers of Kate Chopin 's novel, The Awakening, have been created since the novel was originally published in 1899. The covers differ in appearance and each cover reflects its own important symbols and themes that are portrayed in The Awakening. However, some are more effective than others and allow for a deeper insight into the novel. For example, Enriched Classics’ cover with a bird in the cage and Edna gazing out into the wilderness, provides insight into the symbol of the birds and Edna’s desire for freedom and escape. This cover allows for better understanding of the novel than Rafi Romaya’s cover of a seashell. Although a seashell can be connected to the novel in some ways, it does not hint to as many themes and …show more content…

The island is in the Gulf of Mexico and thus is surrounded by the warm, gulf sea. Throughout the novel, Edna is always around the sea and she constantly finds herself drawn to its allure. She feels that the seductive voice of the sea calls to her, and as if the “touch of the sea is sensuous, enfolding the body in its soft, close embrace” (Chopin 13). The sea’s lure continuously pulls at her until she gives into its temptation. When Edna decides to go into the sea, there is a spark inside her and she is awakened. Edna has her first realization of her innermost desires, both intellectually and sexually. In the cover, she is out far into the sea, away from the beach. This can represent the first time she is able to swim. Edna strays far from land and although she is frightened at first, she discovers a feeling she has never felt before: freedom. “A feeling of exultation overtook her, as if some power of significant import had been given her to control the working of her body and her soul” (27). For the first time, she challenges herself, and she is able to do something she was not able to previously do. Learning to swim is Edna’s first step in her journey to challenge and defy society. The cover of the novel is effective because the picture of Edna emerged in water alludes to the fact that she is connected to the sea and finds her awakening in the

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