The Awakening- Alison Alessi

This is my second reading of this story and what I noticed now more than ever is Edna's relationship with her husband. Mr. Pontellier is described almost as the perfect husband. He is kind, generous, loves his kids and his wife, has a good job and sends his wife chocolates and bon-bons while he is away. However, he changes in how he acts towards his wife once her "awakening" has occurred. It is amazing how quickly he jumps on her when she does the slightest thing that might suggest household negligence. Edna was wondering why he made such a big fuss over calling cards on Tuesdays and so was I. He is a man that is lenient and generous when things are done the way he likes them done. But when things don't get done to his satisfaction, he turns into a nit-picking, chastising bully. Chopin could be using him as an example of why perfect husbands are so perfect. It is very easy to be kind and all that when you get everything you ask for and don't ever come up against any opposition. Through his interactions with his wife after she neglects her household chores, the reader can see that Mr. Pontellier is not the perfect husband he appears to be. That even the most generous and kind seeming man, turns into a domineering bully when opposed. This is enforced all around Edna. Husbands are supposed to be like Mr. Pontellier, and her job as his wife is to appease him. He expects it, all their friends expect it, but she just can't do it anymore. Reminds me of Ibsen's A Doll's House. In that text, the wife experiences that same domestic situation as Edna. Her husband is only good and kind when he gets exactly what he wants. She later finds out that her husband doesn't care about her so much as she thought. In both texts, the wife seems to be an extension of a man's wealth. In The Awakening, Mr. Pontellier likes to go around his house and just look at all that fancy things he has. His wife is nothing more than an extension of that.