Is Edna likeable? How important is the like-ability of a character in literature? Does a likeable character make the central idea of the text easier to understand, or does it take away from the meaning?
Explain.
Check out this video link: John Green (author of Looking for Alaska and Paper Towns) briefly hits on the like-ability of Holden Caulfield. He also talks about the function of metaphor and symbolism. Good stuff!
I think Edna is a likable character, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that I like her myself. I don’t really like her, but I don’t dislike her either, I feel sorry for her, because she seems so trapped, not just in a lifeless marriage but in a lifeless life. It is hard to like a character who is so miserable but cannot seem to figure out what would make her happy, even though it becomes pretty obvious to the reader and I am assuming other characters will find it obvious as well. Having a likable main character is important in literature because it makes the reader a actually interested in the outcome of the character’s life. It is easiest to like a character when the reader can relate to them. As for whether or not a likable character makes the text easier to understand, I think it can make it easier or it cannot, depending upon the circumstances. It can make it easier because the reader will actually want to spend time reading every part of the book, instead of skipping things here and there, which is what I find myself doing when I dislike a character or something else about a book. It also makes the book easier to understand because if you like a character then chances are you can identify with what they are going through, and therefore understand the actions that they end up taking due to the situation they find themselves in. However, it can also make it harder to understand what is going on in a story, because if the character that you like does something truly awful, you might think that they are justified in their actions, even if they are not. Just because a character is likable doesn’t mean they are what could be considered a good person.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Edna is a likeable character. Personally I don’t feel that I relate well to her, but I’m sure other people do. She hasn’t done anything wrong, she might not be the best mother but some women just don’t have the motherly instincts that others do. She seems to try her best at being a mother and wife but it isn’t the lifestyle that suits her. I feel sorry for her, she doesn’t enjoy the responsibilities and expectations that come along with being a wife and mother. It almost seems as though she feels trapped, she can’t escape this lifestyle. In the time period that this took place it was an expectation of women to marry and have kids, it was taboo not to.
ReplyDeleteI feel that it is important for the main character to be liked. If the reader has no connection to or hates the main character they will most likely not find the book interesting. The reader is more likely to want to learn the ending of the book and what happened to the main character if they like them. I don’t know if liking the main character makes the text easier to understand. In a way if you like the main character you are more likely to pay better attention to what happens throughout the text and it won’t seem as boring. Yet it is also possible that the reader likes the main character and still doesn’t know what the main idea the text is trying to portray. I defiantly don’t think liking the main character can take away from the meaning of the text though. By liking the main character I don’t think it will in any way distract the reader from trying to understand the text, they are going to want to understand what the main character is going through.
Edna can be likeable, depending on your view of how women should act in society and what their roles should be. Personally, I believe Edna is forced by society into her roles that were totally unattractive to her, so I feel for Edna. However, I could also understand someone else's response to her having everything making her seem spoiled. In that case, Edna is not a likeable character. Edna is different from most women in that time period, so she is acting out of the norm. This may cause dislike towards her character.
ReplyDeleteLikeable characters are very important to the story. Most of the time, these characters relate to the readers in some way. Therefore, the readers place a part of themselves in the character, and they want to figure out what would happen to them in that situation. Edna may seem to be going crazy, but I see it as her breaking free from the person she is being forced to be. I try to put myself in the characters shoes, instead of their shoes being on me. If I can understand both of their struggles and their accomplishments, then their actions don't seem so bizarre. If a character is not likeable, then the story can become a nuisance. The story breeds hate, which most people try to avoid in the first place. Most of the time readers root for the hero. People try to see that good always wins over the evil in the world. If the main character is not seen as the hero, then most of the book is spent on finding the good somewhere that will defeat the main character. If the hero is not the center of the book, then readers, like me fall into an undesirable depression in an attempt to try to connect to this character. This theory may be a psychological thing having the likeable character create more of an interest is the book, and therefore having the dislikeable character create a disgust for the book.
In my opinion Edna is a likeable character, but not one that I can connect to. I like her in a sense of understanding where she comes from and some of her views, but I don’t feel an emotion connect with her. I think the likeability of a character in literature is very important. Having feelings toward a character makes one connect to the book and wish to read on. No matter if the character is kind or evil having a feeling toward them is important. How can one love Batman is there isn’t the Joker to hate? Each character in a story witnesses a conflict. If I personally like the character going through the conflict I find myself unable to put the book down because I need to know if the character ends up resolving the issue. Being able to like the characters, such as Edna, adds to the book. It gives the book a bigger meaning since I can imagine what Edna is doing, guess what she will do, or assume how she will react to the problems that come her way. Emotions make a book grow, for example, Robert is now leaving for Mexico and I honestly feel Edna’s pain for she truly cared about him. If I has no feelings toward Edna then Robert’s leaving would just merely be another event in the story.
ReplyDeleteEdna really doesn’t do anything to make her dislike her, so in that case, I’d say she’s pretty likeable. She’s just a woman living her life and not really affecting anyone else. I can’t really connect with her and she is somewhat hard to understand. She cries for unknown reasons which makes me feel sorry for her. I think she feels trapped in a life where she is forced to conform to the norm of society. The like-ability of a character in literature is very important. Characters that are either really great or terrible tend to stand out the most. The like-ability of the characters tends to keep the reader interested and sets the mood for the book. I think it’s easier to understand the main idea of the text because a lot of times, likeable characters are ones that we can relate to. Edna is slightly different though, I can’t really relate to her but it makes me search harder for the meaning. I’m not in her situation, nor have I ever been, but this makes me try harder to relate. I don’t think it takes away from the meaning because it still keeps the reader interested. The reader wants to know Edna better and figure her out. Edna is unlike the other woman that she associates with and I think this is what makes her interesting. She’s different which makes her stand out. I think with a likeable character, we try to find connections or try to feel what it would be like in their situation. I respect Edna for the woman she is and pity her because she feels so trapped. She has a mind of her own and wants to be her own person. With a protagonist like Edna, the book isn’t necessarily easy to understand, yet it is still very meaningful. It takes more to figure it out and clear things up but getting to that full understanding is what makes it so meaningful. Along the way, the reader finds bits and pieces, such as symbols and emotions from characters that help to get to message.
ReplyDeleteHaving read a significant portion of the story The Awakening, I have come to a set opinion on many of the story’s aspects. One opinion that I have formed is that I am not a fan of Edna Pontillier. I have a difficult time seeing anyone like her in fact. While I see that her “awakening” into a new independent person as something that is a good thing, as a person I feel that she is selfish, immature, and spoiled. First off I don’t think there is any denying that her lavish upbringing makes her elitist and at times unapproachable. Her actions rarely seem to have any forethought behind them; to me it seems that she just does whatever when she feels like it. The final issue I have with her is her apparent lack of interest in her children. She says that she would give up her life for her children, but not herself. This uncaring attitude to her children is seen throughout the story. I’m not saying that it’s a mother’s job to constantly hover over her children, but I’d think that any parent should at least appear to be interested in their kids. I think that while like-ability is important in literature, it isn’t necessary for a story to be compelling. I think that when the reader likes the character they become more emotionally invested in that character’s fate, which in turn can make a story much more entertaining. I don’t think that having a likeable character necessarily makes finding the theme easier in a story but I also don’t think that having one takes away from the meaning. Huck Finn was a likeable character but that didn’t make finding the theme of his story easier, it also didn’t distract the reader from the more subtle points of the story. In the context of The Awakening I don’t think that Edna being not likeable does much to the story other than decreasing the level of attachment I feel towards her and whatever her fate might be.
ReplyDeleteI definitely think that Edna is a likeable character to certain people. Personally, I really like Edna but for some reason, I think saying that will come back and haunt me later in the book. Pertaining to like-ability of characters, it seems as though Edna is not one for the common crowd. Of course there's a certain character everyone likes, the character everyone dislikes and the character that's smack dab in the middle. I believe Edna is the cream of this complicated, drama-filled oreo. It seems like in many successful books there is a very like-able character. However, I believe that a part of this "like-ness" has to do with the time period in which the book is being read. When it was written, the book was no popular at all because Edna's character would have been outcasted if she were a real person. On the other hand, when it was being read in the 1970's, everyone liked it because Edna's character was not uncommon at the time. I also think that having a likeable character in a novel makes it much easier to understand the text because the reader can then relate to the main character and what they're going through. This then creates a good relationship between the reader and character, making it easier to understand the text and what the character is going through.
ReplyDeleteI think that Edna is likeable and isn’t likeable at the same time. I think it really depends on the person reading the book. I don’t dislike Edna, but she isn’t my favorite character I’ve read about. However, I think that someone who’s maybe in the same situation as Edna or feeling some of the same things can definitely relate to her more. I think the likeability of a character is really important when reading a book. I think if a person doesn’t like the character they’re reading about they get bored with the book and they don’t really get a meaning out of it after all is said and done. I think that readers better understand novels when they like or can relate to one or some of the characters. I don’t think it takes away from the meaning at all when characters are likeable. I really think it helps the reader to understand the central theme of the novel. I know from personal experiences that when I don’t like a character (Mersault) I lose interest in the novel and then it becomes almost insignificant to me. I definitely think that the likeability of a character is important in a novel and I think that Edna can be likeable or unlikable depending on who is reading the novel.
ReplyDeleteEdna is an odd character, sometimes I like her and other times I don’t. I feel sorry for her because she feels trapped. She feels forced into her life, and doesn’t take pleasure in her responsibilities as neither a mother or wife. She cries a lot too, that makes me feel a little bit of remorse for her. On the other hand, she is handed anything she desires, and is throwing away her marriage for a boy that falls for a new married woman every summer. She is selfish in that she doesn’t care for her children. It shouldn't matter whether or not you want your children, they become your responsibility, and they depend on you from the moment they are born. For these reason I can’t relate to Edna. Having a like-able main character is extremely important to the work. If a reader can’t relate to the main character, it starts to take away from the meaning. Some find themselves skipping bits of the work here and there, which definitely hinders the piece. The story becomes meaningless to the reader once they can no longer relate. Having a like-able main character makes the text easier to understand, and more interesting. Not being able to comprehend the text definitely takes away from the meaning and overall rating of the book. Readers tend to dislike books with which they cannot relate, therefore, the like-ability of a main character is extremely important.
ReplyDeleteI don’t find Edna likeable at all. Perhaps this is because of the type of people I respect and try to be like. Edna is overdramatic and whiney. First of all, if you have an issue you should speak up and do something about it, not mope around crying and pitying yourself as she does. I feel like she likes being miserable otherwise she would do something to fix her situation. The other issue I have with her is she lives a life that is already far better than the majority of people. She is very wealthy, healthy (that wasn’t meant to rhyme), and has a life of luxury. She acts like she suffers so much, and she may be suffering but she is already living a much better life than most people can say. There are people living in far worse conditions who are far happier. I guess I just can’t stand complainers who refuse to actually do anything. The likeability of a character definitely affects the central idea of a text. If I dislike a character, I immediately check out of a plot if I don’t like the character. I get distracted by how much I dislike them and spend the duration of the piece of work thinking about how much I hate them and finding more reasons to hate them instead of concentrating on the point of the literary work. On the other hand, I learn more from characters that I like because I admire them and try to be like them. I pay attention to what they are doing, how they react in situations, and how situations affect them. Because I am so absorbed in the character and every action that they make I study the text and therefore reap the benefits of what the author was trying to convey.
ReplyDeleteHmmm. This is a difficult prompt. I personally do not yet like Edna. Do I feel she could be likeable to different people, yes I do. However, for me she lacks life, personality, and when she shows some hint of whom she really is I feel it is never whole-hearted. She to me seems like a spoiled, rich kid who is trying to be deep but can’t really manage it because she can’t let go of the security her old life offers. She’s afraid to actually move on from her old shallow life and embrace life where she can think for herself. I don't necessarily think that the "like-ability" of a character is important to the novel. I don't think a character has to be likeable in order for an author to get their point across. In fact I think you could completely hate a main character and that could make the novel even more significant. I think that making the central text of a novel understandable lies in how the book is written and if it is poorly written then the text will not be understood but I don't think the understanding lies within the like- ability of the characters: Look at Lord Voldemort, I hated him and I think that his character made the text even more relevant. Also, I think that authors specifically create characters that are almost impossible to like because of their actions. They do this, I think, because they want to show their readers that even though the character is a bad guy he still is human and must learn from his/her mistakes: like Meursault. I think the more strongly you feel about the character, good or bad, the more you understand the central idea or ideas of the text.
ReplyDeleteI believe Edna is a likable character. (Maybe its just me but I find many of the protagonists likable. I like a lot of people even if they are different from me... Maybe because I find them interesting and that’s why.) I think I like Edna because she wants to change herself and become something more than what people just expect from her. She is trying to determine her own fate; I think that is very respectable of her. I believe it is very important for the readers to like the main character because if the readers are interested they are more likely to relate to them and may find the message the author is trying to get across to the readers easier. If the author is trying to get the oppisite message across he/she may characterize them as as individual that you wouldn’t like. The way the characters are characterized is important because the words and qualities given to them will determine if the readers will like them or not. I think that a likeable character makes the central idea of the text easier to understand because if the readers are interested they will be more willing to keep reading and relate the plot to their lives which has to be the most effective way to get a point across to someone.
ReplyDeleteI think Edna is a likeable character, however, I am undecided if I like her yet. I still believe it is too early in the novel to form a complete opinion about her. Currently, I think I am more sympathetic with her than actually liking her. Edna has a pitiful life that holds no true meaning. She is trapped in a loveless marriage and is confined by the societal expectations of the time. Honestly, I do not know if she’ll ever truly be able to achieve happiness.
ReplyDeleteThe like-ability of a character is important, but not necessary. As a reader, I always secretly wish the protagonist is likable, as it helps me connect more to the novel. By the final chapters, I am always rooting that everything will work out for them. On the other hand, detesting a character can also have a similar effect. Reading the novel, it always leaves you wondering what will happen next. Surely after a while the horrible, loathsome character will get what they deserve. I think any strong emotion towards a character plays an important role while reading a novel. Whether it is positive or negative, the reader ends up making some type of emotional investment in a character. This helps the reader relate to the character. Perhaps the reader has a soft spot for the protagonist because they share something in common. Likewise, the reader may despise a character because they are reminded of their own shortcomings. I think like-ability could only become an issue if the reader is blinded by their own personal opinion of the protagonist. An unfailing hate or love of a character may cause the reader to miss the meaning of a certain action in the story. For example, if a reader believes their favorite character can do not wrong, they may simply glance over their shortcomings. This could become an issue if one of the negative actions was significant and held symbolic meaning. As a result, the reader would not have a firm understanding of what occurred.
I am not entirely sure how to respond to this post because in the first few chapters I found Edna to be a very likeable character. I was able to relate with her frustration at the limitations imposed on her by society and I understood her longing for a sense of fulfillment. Now, I am disgusted with her character and how she chose to handle her frustration. To be quite frank, I am becoming very perturbed at the amount of infidelity that is taking place in the novels we read. How is it that whenever something becomes difficult, the characters find the need to look outside their relationship for satisfaction? For example, Mersault’s mother dies so he hooks up with an ex-coworker, Tom thinks he can do whatever he pleases so he find himself a mistress in the city and Ethan is board with his harsh New-England lifestyle so he sleds into a tree with his secret lover. And for Edna, “Since when has realizing you have feelings for a man other than your husband been considered an awaking”? I believe that feminists have created the reputation they have because of the kind of vulgar behavior some of them indulge in. I definitely do not equate sexual promiscuity to liberation. Although this may seem like a senseless rant, I ultimately do have a point. The likeability of a character plays a significant role in what I take away from a story. If I hold no respect for a character, it is very unlikely that I will trust any great revelation they might reveal throughout the novel. I find that an unlikeable character detracts from my enjoyment. I disappointed enough by human kind’s actions in the real world that I don’t need to read about them in my free time. I would much rather read about people who I am able to use as role models and who I respect enough to want to read about.
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