# XXV explained — The Awakening

> Chapter companion for The Awakening by Kate Chopin.

## What happens

Edna's creative work depends on sunny weather; on dark days she seeks company or broods. She goes to the races with Alcée Arobin and Mrs. Highcamp, wins money, and feels exhilarated. Later, Arobin escorts her home, and they grow intimate. He kisses her hand, and Edna, though conflicted and thinking of Robert Lebrun, succumbs to a languorous, dream-filled sleep.

## Themes in this chapter

### Sexuality and Desire

Edna's physical and emotional response to Arobin's touch and kiss marks a significant step in her sexual awakening, as she grapples with feelings of infidelity and desire.

### Freedom vs. Confinement

Edna's restless mood and her seeking of excitement at the races contrast with her domestic obligations, such as writing to her husband, highlighting her struggle between freedom and societal expectations.

### Art and Creativity as Liberation

Edna's need for sunlight to work and her satisfaction in the creative process itself, devoid of ambition, underscore art as a means of personal expression and escape.

## Character check-ins

### Edna Pontellier

Edna struggles with her mood and creative block, seeks distraction at the races, and experiences a growing sensuous attraction to Arobin, while feeling guilt and thinking of Robert.

### Alcée Arobin

Arobin escorts Edna to the races and later to her home, where he becomes increasingly intimate, kissing her hand and stirring her awakening sensuousness.

### Mrs. James Highcamp

Mrs. Highcamp accompanies Edna and Arobin to the races, remains indifferent and unmoved, and later hosts a quiet dinner.

### Léonce Pontellier

Edna remembers she forgot to write to her husband and composes a letter in her mind, though she feels distant from him.

### Robert Lebrun

Robert is on Edna's mind after Arobin's kiss; she wonders what he would think, revealing her emotional attachment to him.

### Adèle Ratignolle

Edna briefly considers inviting Adèle to the races but knows she rarely leaves the house except for a walk with her husband.

## Key lines

> She did not perceive that she was talking like her father as the sleek geldings ambled in review before them.

Edna unknowingly spoke with the same authority and knowledge about horses as her father did.

_This shows Edna's inherited confidence and expertise in a traditionally male domain, linking her to her father's influence._

> 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.

Edna felt as if she had been unfaithful in a passionate moment, understanding the betrayal but still caught in its allure.

_This captures Edna's internal conflict and moral awakening regarding her feelings for Arobin and her marriage._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_awakening_se/chapters/xxv
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_awakening_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/the_awakening_se/chapters