At times, Mr.
Pontellier is controlling of his wife, while simultaneously asserting that he
cares only for her. When we are first introduced to Mrs. Pontellier, Mr.
Pontellier “look[s] at his wife as one looks at a valuable piece of personal
property which has suffered some damage” (2), after he notices that she is
sunburned. He also later calls his wife “the sole object of his existence” (5).
Although he is contending that he cares only for her, he is also looking at her
as an object, not a person. This is clear when he comes back from the hotel and
he gets angry with her, scolds her, until she goes outside to weep. He believes
that “his wife failed in her duty toward their children. It was something which
he felt rather than perceived” (7). He had no actual reason to believe that she
did not care for her children; he just thought that she did not care for them.
Yet, Mrs. Pontellier still agrees with other women that her husband is the best
husband. I’m curious as to where their relationship will go further in the
novel.
Keegan, You have picked up on some of the conflict and contradiction that permeates the early pages of Chopin's story. The instances you quote in your post reveal that something is missing from the Pontellier's relationship, perhaps indicating that at a deeper level each partner is in some way dissatisfied with the other. I think that Edna Pontellier is not fulfilled by her comfortable marriage and her culturally assigned role as housewife and mother. Her soul needs more. It will be interesting to see if this conflict is resolved.
ReplyDeleteKeegan, I find it interesting that you have chosen to focus on Mr. and Mrs. Pontellier's marriage. When I read that Mrs. Pontellier is "the sole object of [Mr. Pontellier's] existence," I thought of Marxist criticism. Mrs. Pontellier is Mr. Pontellier's "ideal" and commodity to use as he wants, when he wants.
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