Free Awakening Essays: The Parrot:
Length: 512 words (1.9 pages)
Rating: Red (FREE)
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
The Importance of the Parrot in The Awakening
"Go away! Go away! For heaven?s sake! That?s all right!" (1) Chopin opens her poetic novella, The Awakening, not with the dialogue of a character, but with the ramblings of a brash parrot. Immediately, Chopin compels her readers to ponder what significance, if any, these seemingly random words will have in the following tale. Yet, it is not until the final pages that we recognize the bird?s true importance and meaning. The parrot, though seldom referred to within the text, comes to symbolize Edna?s role in society and the woman she becomes as she is spiritually awakened.
At first impression the parrot?s bold demeanor creates an image of eccentricity. His spirited exclamations give him an air of impertinence, defiance, and intelligence that one would not expect of such a bird. Chopin portrays Edna in the same light, showing that perhaps as the parrot may deviate from the norm, so does Edna, who digresses from the society in which she lives. She does not conform to the image of a typical woman in society, playing the roles of a devoted mother and wife. Edna ignores these standards by engaging in two extra-marital affairs and by placing her own life before those of her children. Her desire to live as she pleases lies in direct opposition to the duties she is expected to perform, and she refuses to put on this performance to satisfy society. As a result, Edna seems as brazen and audacious as the parrot that obviously does not mimic the sounds he hears and instead seems to create his own. Again squawking, "Go away! Go away!" at the bothersome piano playing of two girls, Chopin writes, "He was the only being present who possessed sufficient candor to admit that he was not listening to these gracious performances for the first time that summer." (23) Edna shows similar candor in her unwillingness to accept society?s burdening stereotypes. The seemingly intelligent bird "could speak a little Spanish, and also a language which nobody understood..." (1) Though the parrot?s remarks appear to fall on deaf ears, Edna is one who can identify with his presumable wisdom, as her existence too is misjudged. Both Edna and the parrot are depicted as extraordinary and misunderstood in their surroundings, yet they are not free:as the parrot must exist in a cage, so Edna is caged by the restrictions society places upon her. What she sees as living her life according to her own will those around her see as unorthodox and therefore unacceptable.
"Go away! Go away! For heaven?s sake! That?s all right!" (1) As Edna drowns herself to escape from a suffocating society, the parrot?s words seem to be have been a foreshadowing of her fate. Indeed he seems to be encouraging her to "go away" and leave a prison he knows all too well. ?That?s all right!" he cries, reassuring Edna and justifying her exit. We perceive that, if he were able to, he might heed his own advice and fly from his cage as well.
Search for: [good character] [people decide] [nothing short] [space program]
|
Important Note: If you'd like to save a copy of the
paper on your computer, you can COPY and PASTE it into your word
processor. Please, follow these steps to do that in Windows:
1. Select the text of the paper with the mouse and press Ctrl+C. Azete.com (the "Web Site") is produced by the "Company". The contents of this Web Site, such as text, graphics, images, audio, video and all other material ("Material"), are protected by copyright under both United States and foreign laws. The Company makes no representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the Material or about the results to be obtained from using the Material. You expressly agree that any use of the Material is entirely at your own risk. Most of the Material on the Web Site is provided and maintained by third parties. This third party Material may not be screened by the Company prior to its inclusion on the Web Site. You expressly agree that the Company is not liable or responsible for any defamatory, offensive, or illegal conduct of other subscribers or third parties. The Materials are provided on an as-is basis without warranty express or implied. The Company and its suppliers and affiliates disclaim all warranties, including the warranty of non-infringement of proprietary or third party rights, and the warranty of fitness for a particular purpose. The Company and its suppliers make no warranties as to the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the material, services, text, graphics and links. For a complete statement of the Terms of Service, please see our website. By obtaining these materials you agree to abide by the terms herein, by our Terms of Service as posted on the website and any and all alterations, revisions and amendments thereto. |
about five years old and he looked well-bred.I hoped he would take me home. The next thing I knew,I was sitting in a plastic bag,in the black seat of a posh car,ready to be used by my new master.He was very excited at owning me and kept taking me out of the bag to examine me.I thought I was going t...a Cruz to the Bishop of Puebla, Manuel Fernandez de Santa Cruz. The Bishop was her sometime friend and adviser, and he wrote to her under the pseudonym "Sor Filotea." This letter is a spirited, autobiographical response to critics among her ecclesiastical superiors. Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz (165...one else. And by these stories I mean the ones that tickle that point in your imagination that triggers both fear and rage. I'm talking about seagull attacks. I myself, the writer of the story have felt the sting of the seagulls in the courtyard. More and more people each day are being attacked. It ...st. The basic intent of the Jewish teaching is a massage of tolerance, morality, peace, and human dignitiy. "Judaism beleives that the purpose of Jewish existance is nothing less than to perfect the world under the rule of G-d"... There are several resons why Jewish beleivers are c...