She questions her role as a wife and mother and searches for freedom. Edna begins painting as a way to achieve some independence and self-esteem. He begins to admire and build a friendship with Mademoiselle Reise because he sees how independent a woman can be. Another moment in the novel where she feels a sense of rebirth is when she swims alone in the ocean for the first time, which foreshadows her death. This shows that during this time it was almost unheard of for women to do things by themselves and for themselves. Gender roles are also illustrated by looking at the male characters in this novel. Léonce is a successful businessman and when he travels for work Edna evolves romantically with a young man named Robert, who devotes himself to her for the summer. He is very careful about the way he speaks to Edna, for example he calls her "my dear" because she acts as if Léonce has a possession over her. Léonce even goes to a doctor to talk about his concerns for Edna when she expresses her “rights to