# The Awakening — Character guide

> Key figures in The Awakening by Kate Chopin.

- [Edna Pontellier](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/edna_pontellier.md): Edna spends the summer at Grand Isle among Creole families who read one another's hearts aloud, while she keeps her own small life locked within. Robert's easy devotion and Adèle's unguarded candor loosen the mantle of r
- [Robert Lebrun](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/robert_lebrun.md): Robert drifts through Grand Isle as the favorite of every matron, fetching lemonade and inventing moonlight bathing parties, his devotion so lightly worn that no husband objects. With Edna he finds himself holding away f
- [Léonce Pontellier](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/leonce_pontellier.md): Léonce manages his household as he manages his affairs, with an eye to what looks well and runs smoothly, and he is genuinely puzzled when his wife stops performing her part. He is not cruel, only incurious, and his Satu
- [Alcée Arobin](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/alcee_arobin.md): Arobin arrives in Edna's orbit through horse racing and fashionable calls, and he makes intimacy feel effortless, telling her about the saber scar on his wrist as if they had known each other for years. He is drawn to he
- [Mademoiselle Reisz](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/mademoiselle_reisz.md): Mademoiselle Reisz lives alone with her music, tolerated by the Grand Isle circle as an eccentricity and feared for her sharp tongue. When she plays, Edna stops seeing pictures and feels the passions themselves swaying h
- [Adèle Ratignolle](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/adele_ratignolle.md): Adèle moves through Grand Isle like a sensuous Madonna, trailing children and needlework, her beauty and her devotion equally on display. Her openness is so complete that it forms a striking contrast to Edna's habitual r
- [Victor Lebrun](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/victor_lebrun.md): Robert's younger brother, a flirtatious and carefree young man.
- [Madame Lebrun](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/madame_lebrun.md): Owner of the Grand Isle cottages and mother of Robert and Victor.
- [Doctor Mandelet](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/doctor_mandelet.md): The Pontellier family physician who observes Edna's transformation.
- [Mariequita](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/mariequita.md): A young Spanish girl who flirts with Victor and Robert at Grand Isle.
- [Monsieur Ratignolle](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/monsieur_ratignolle.md): Adèle's kind, devoted husband and a pharmacist.
- [Mrs. James Highcamp](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/mrs_james_highcamp.md): A society woman who socializes with Edna in New Orleans.
- [The Colonel](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/the_colonel.md): Edna's stern, disapproving father who visits briefly.
- [Old Monsieur Farival](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/old_monsieur_farival.md): An elderly man who plays the violin at social events.
- [Old Celestine](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/old_celestine.md): The Pontellier family's elderly servant.
- [Ellen](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/ellen.md): Edna's younger sister, mentioned in her memories.
- [Raoul](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/raoul.md): Edna and Léonce's young son.
- [Etienne](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/etienne.md): Edna and Léonce's younger son.
- [Sister Janet](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/sister_janet.md): A nun at the convent school Edna attended as a girl.
- [Margaret](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters/margaret.md): Edna's older sister, mentioned in her past.

HTML index: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/the_awakening_se/characters