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The Awakening: Leonce. Lauren, Ryder, Labonno and Phil. Description of Leonce. "Mr. Pontellier wore eye-glasses. He was a man of forty, of medium height and rather slender build; he stooped a little. His hair was brown and straight, parted on one side. His beard was neatly and closely trimmed."
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The Awakening: Leonce Lauren, Ryder, Labonno and Phil
Description of Leonce • "Mr. Pontellier wore eye-glasses. He was a man of forty, of medium height and rather slender build; he stooped a little. His hair was brown and straight, parted on one side. His beard was neatly and closely trimmed." • "And the ladies, selecting with dainty and discriminating fingers and a little greedily, all declared that Mr. Pontellier was the best husband in the world. Mrs. Pontellier was forced to admit that she knew of none better."
Relationship with Edna • "Her marriage to Leonce Pontellier was purely an accident, in this respect resembling many other marriages which masquerade as the decrees of Fate. It was in the midst of her deep passion that she met him...He pleased her; his absolute devotion flattered her. She fancied there was a sympathy of thought and taste between them, in which fancy she was mistaken. Add to this the violent opposition of her father and her sister Margaret to her marriage with a Catholic, and we need seek no further for the motives which led her to accept Monsieur Pontellier for her husband."
Edna's Defiance • "She heard him moving about the room; every sound indicating impatience and irritation. Another time she would have gone in at his request. She would through habit, have yielded to his desire..." • "Leonce, go to bed...I mean to stay out here. I don't wish to go in, and I don't intend to. Don't speak to me like that again; I shall not answer you."
On Edna to the Doctor • "I came to talk to you about Edna. I don't know what ails her" • "Yes, yes; she seems quite well but she doesn't act well. She's odd, she's not like herself" • "Her whole attitude- toward me and everybody and everything- has changed" • She experienced a "whimsical turn of mind".
Leonce's Attitude Towards Edna • "He reproached his wife with her inattention, her habitual neglect of the children. If it was not a mother's place to look after children, whose on earth was it?" • "He thought it very discouraging that his wife who was the sole object of his existence, evinced so little interest in things which concerned him, and valued so little his conversation" • "She said nothing, and refused to answer her husband when he questioned her" • - He allows Edna to do as she pleases yet he is agitated by her disinterest in him, his affairs, and their children.
Leonce's Reaction Leonce's initial reaction to the death of his wife would be genuine shock and sorrow. Although at times he may have neglected her feelings and manipulated her for the sake of his own social standing, he truly cared for his wife and would certainly be upset by the strange and sudden nature of her death. While Leonce would certainly be shocked and upset by Edna's death, being a member of the gentile Creole society of the time, he would have to provide some explanation to the community.
Leonce's Reaction Continued Similar to the way he put an ad in the paper when Edna chose to move out, he would find a way to twist the circumstances in order to save face. Throughout Edna's "awakening", Leonce treated her new habits like a condition or a disease, something that could be treated. This can be seen through his initial action of seeking out the doctor to ask about Edna's behavior. For this reason, he would most likely attribute her death to some form of mental illness or chemical imbalance. In the end, he would be able to move on past Edna, most likely remarrying, which would be the most lucrative course of action for his business and social standing.
