Topic > The concept of a love triangle and its effects on Edna's choices in Robert Lee Mahon's article on The Awakening of Kate Chopin

Beyond the Love Triangle: Trios in The Awakening is an article on Kate Chopin's The Awakening written by Robert Lee Mahon. In this article, Mahon presents a new concept that had many important effects on Edna's choices, including her choice to drown. Mahon highlights the fact that Kate Chopin constantly illustrates Edna's position between two extremes, and is always in a triangle. This article could be very useful to the readers, because it will show the difficulties that Edna went through throughout her life by being put in an extreme position. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Mahon begins his article by providing the focus of his essay, which is to illustrate that the catastrophe that causes Edna's awakening and death is a result of her being stuck between two extremes. The author successfully presents his concept by providing examples to support his thesis, one example he mentions is Edna's birth order. She is between her two sisters, the older one, “who is labeled as matronly and dignified” and the younger one, illustrated as “a kind of fox.” (229). Another extreme that Edna got stuck in according to the author is a threesome of two females. She is caught between two women, Adele Ratignolle, a traditional and "typical" woman, depicted as a perfect mother and wife. And Mademoiselle Reisz who is far from being “traditional and acceptable”. (230). Society expects Edna to be an angel or a devil. A traditional and typical mother like Adele or an independent woman like Madame Reisz. Additionally, she was stuck in several other triangles, her two sons, Robert and Mr. Pontellier and Iberville, New York and New Orleans. All the triangles mentioned by the author demonstrate the dilemma Edna Pontellier is trapped in and illustrate her indecisive power. This article, written by Mahon, successfully addressed the focus of the essay, presenting the concept of a triangle. The concept of the triangle, which was presented to us by Mahon, is very useful for understanding the real reasons behind Edna's various choices. As for weaknesses, the article lacks transition words and connecting sentences, for example the author does not move from one idea to another smoothly. In summary, Beyond the Love Triangle: Trios in The Awakening presents a new concept that has been thoroughly explained by the author. Edna's position, caught between two extremes, contributed to her tragedy. This article, despite being written in 1998, could still help potential readers interested in knowing the real reasons that led to the end of Edna Pontellier.