An project based on Kate Chopin’s novel

The Awakening. Published in 1899, it tells the story of Edna Pontellier, a young woman who, by having an illicit romance, tries to ‘break free from the stifling attitudes of Louisiana society’ with tragic consequences.

 

My illustration shows Edna as a Victorian folio portrait, surrounded by the flowers traditionally found in Victorian photo albums. With the Acacia symbolising ‘secret love’, the Yellow Carnation symbolising ‘disappointment’, and the Wormwood symbolising ‘absence’, my drawing illustrates the sadness of Edna’s love story, reflecting the struggle of traditional gender roles for women in the 1800 and 1900s. 

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