Kate Chopin underscores the expression "free as a bird" in the novel The Awakening through the consistent use of aviary symbolism. Throughout the story she cleverly weaves images and descriptions of birds to express the psychological state of mind of her main character, Edna Pontellier. Perhaps the most obvious example of this symbolism is in the first spoken sentences of the novel, which, strangely enough, are not uttered by a human, but rather screeched by …showed first 75 words of 656 total…

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