Imagery and Symbolism in the First and Final Passages of Chopin’s The Awakening :: Chopin Awakening Essays

Imagery and symbolic representation in the First and Final Passages of Chopins The AwakeningThe two races at the beginning and ending of The Awakening illustrate symbolically Ednas retroversion from strong-willed, vivacious, and highly individual to tired and resigned. The passage begins with color symbolism the repeat is yellow and kilobyte. As someone in class pointed out remainder week, yellow often symbolized cowardice or fear while green symbolizes youth, newness, or growth. As the echo is specifically described as universe caged, this color symbolism could illustrate Ednas fear either of be confined or of all that breaking away from confinement would entail. Next, the repeat kept repeating over and over, indicating persistence though confined, it is determined. The phrase it repeats in French translates to Go away, for Gods sake With this phrase the parrot attempts to separate from some force of opposition. Also, the fact that it speaks French as swell up as Spanish and also a language which nobody unsounded suggests that, like Ednas understanding of her identity as a woman, her individuality, and her sexuality, by knowing several languages the parrot also understands more than does the average somebody (or bird?), though it is itself misunderstood. The mockingbird serves as an antagonist to the parrot, or a symbolic representation of the forces that oppose Edna. The description of its fluty notes sounds pretty and feminine, in cable with the harshness of the parrot similarly, Edna struggles with the pretty, feminine roles that are forced upon her within her order with maddening persistence, a constant threat to drown out the parrots, and Ednas, voice. The ending passage shows none of the conflict imagery as does the beginning, hardly rather images of giving up. The old terror flamed up for an instant, then sank once more refers on the surface to Ednas fear of swimming, but could on other level indicate the fear hinted at in the first pas sage that drove her to grow and fight. Hence her drive has, like the terror, sunk, ceased to be. The image of the old dog contrasts with the lively image of the parrot while caged, there is lesser fight against it. The fact that the dog is old suggests dullness and sedentariness it probably isnt going anywhere. There is still confinement, but no struggle. Also the knight officer could represent an army. An army is something that cannot be conquered, as are the forces in Ednas life that cause her to do what she is about to do.