If you loved
The Awakening
Kate Chopin · Book · 1899
What hooked you in The Awakening was the way domestic confinement pushes a woman to pursue her own suppressed desires.
Films on the same thread
Unfaithful
Adrian Lyne · Film · 2002
Much like Edna in The Awakening, Connie finds her identity stifled by a conventional marriage, leading her to seek a dangerous, transformative affair that shatters her existing social reality.
The Piano
Jane Campion · Film · 1993
This film mirrors the isolation and stifling social constraints found in The Awakening, portraying a woman who uses forbidden romance to reclaim her agency within a patriarchal, colonial landscape.
Body Heat
Lawrence Kasdan · Film · 1981
Just as the sweltering heat of New Orleans mirrors Edna's awakening in The Awakening, the oppressive atmosphere here intensifies the moral corruption and illicit desire driving the protagonist's desperate choices.
The Seven Year Itch
Billy Wilder · Film · 1955
If you appreciated the summer setting of The Awakening, you will recognize that same seasonal restlessness here, where a long-term marriage meets the sudden, disruptive temptation of a new encounter.
Series on the same thread
Unchosen
Julie Gearey · Series · 2026
This narrative echoes the central conflict of The Awakening, following a woman who breaks away from a rigid, sheltered environment to finally confront the forbidden desires hidden within herself.
The Summer I Turned Pretty
Jenny Han · Series · 2022
Like Edna's transformative summer in The Awakening, Belly navigates a pivotal season of self-discovery where the pressure of family expectations gives way to the burgeoning intensity of romantic longing.
The Affair
Sarah Treem · Series · 2014
This series captures the profound marital dissatisfaction that defines The Awakening, exploring the complex, often devastating consequences of stepping outside of a committed relationship to find personal truth.
The White Lotus
Mike White · Series · 2021
While more satirical than The Awakening, this show explores similar tensions regarding privilege and social constraints, revealing the dark, hidden complexities of individuals trapped in their own performative lives.
Podcasts on the same thread
Where Should We Begin? with Esther Perel
Esther Perel Global Media · Podcast · 2026
If the internal struggle of Edna Pontellier in The Awakening fascinated you, these raw counseling sessions provide a modern, real-world lens into the messy, complex reality of human intimacy.
Grow with Adete Dahiya
Podcast
For those moved by the self-discovery at the heart of The Awakening, this podcast offers a contemporary framework for moving past the people-pleasing constraints that once defined your life.
Keep exploring
Common questions
Is The Awakening about a woman in 1890s New Orleans?
Yes, The Awakening follows Edna Pontellier, a woman who spends a summer away from her home in 1890s New Orleans. While residing in a coastal community with her children and other families, she begins to experience deep personal yearnings that remain unfulfilled by her marriage and motherhood.
How old is Edna Pontellier in The Awakening?
Edna Pontellier is 28 years old during the events of The Awakening. The story focuses on her experiences throughout that specific summer as she navigates her feelings of dissatisfaction and engages in an illicit liaison that reawakens her long dormant desires.
Does The Awakening feature Edna Pontellier as a mother?
Yes, Edna Pontellier is a mother in The Awakening. The narrative explores the conflict between her role as a mother and wife and the deep, unfulfilled yearnings she discovers while spending the summer at a coastal community away from her husband.
What prompts the events in The Awakening?
The events in The Awakening are prompted by Edna Pontellier spending a summer in an idyllic coastal community, away from the sweltering heat of New Orleans and her husband. This environment allows her to confront her unfulfilled yearnings and eventually pursue an illicit liaison.