In Kate Chopin' The Awakening , the protagonist, Edna Pontellier is portrayed as an
             artist. Throughout the novel we see instances of where Edna's art is criticized and she even
             admits that she is not a true painter. However, it is not Edna's paintings that make her an artist,
             rather it is her rebellion against society that makes her an artist. Mlle. Reisz defines an artist as
             "a brave soul, a soul that dares and defies." Edna tries to become that brave soul, she was brave
             enough to start her own rebellion but was not strong enough to maintain it. Edna's rebellion was
             a rebellion against society, becoming an artist, to Edna was to discover herself and satisfy her
             At the beginning of the book Chopin describes a caged parrot who "wants everyone to go
             away." This caged parrot is symbolic of Edna, indeed her life is a caged parrot which needs to
             be fulfilled. Edna starts her movement towards self discovery during her summer at the Grand
             Isle, where she begins her pursuit for passion and sensuality. Mlle. Reisz is the mockingbird
             who makes the parrot speak, the mockingbird here represents the only figure who understands
             Ednas's desire to achieve independence. The caged bird imagery here is central to the theme
             when we consider what women's lives were in the late 1800's. It represented the limitations of
             their domestic lives, as represented my Madame Ragionalle, women were expected to be
             mother-women who willingly allow their way of life to be dictated by societies rules. Madame
             Ragionalle represents what the expectations of a women were during this time period. She as
             Chopin makes reference to is one of those woman who let their angel wings be clipped by
             society. Edna uses those wings to soar above society. An artist is portrayed by Mlle. Reisz as
             ...