A rough-edged, plainspoken spinster, a gifted piano player, and Edna’s closest friend. Many people in the novel dislike Mademoiselle Reisz for her harsh manner and impatience for social niceties. Edna, however, becomes deeply attached to the pianist and her music because both seem to Edna to contain the emotional depth and spiritual freedom that she has recently discovered in herself, and which she has found sorely lacking in her friends and occupations.
Mademoiselle Reisz Quotes in The Awakening
The The Awakening quotes below are all either spoken by Mademoiselle Reisz or refer to Mademoiselle Reisz. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 10
Quotes
A thousand emotions have swept through me tonight. I don’t understand half of them… I wonder if I shall ever be stirred again as Mademoiselle Reisz’s playing moved me tonight. I wonder if any night on earth will again be like this one. It is like a night in a dream. The people about me are like some uncanny, half-human beings.
Related Characters:
Edna Pontellier (speaker), Mademoiselle Reisz
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire The Awakening LitChart as a printable PDF.
Mademoiselle Reisz Character Timeline in The Awakening
The timeline below shows where the character Mademoiselle Reisz appears in The Awakening. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 9
...while and then retreats to the windowsill to observe the party. Robert offers to ask Mademoiselle Reisz , a talented musician and a cantankerous spinster, to play the piano; to Mrs. Pontellier’s...
(full context)
Chapter 16
As she walks to the beach one morning with Mademoiselle Reisz , Edna reflects on her response to Robert’s sudden departure. She thinks of him all...
(full context)
She talks to Mademoiselle Reisz about Robert on their way to the beach. Edna says that Madame Lebrun must miss...
(full context)
Chapter 20
On one of her dark days, Edna decides to go see Mademoiselle Reisz ; to find out her address, she visits Madame Lebrun. Victor greets her enthusiastically and...
(full context)
Chapter 21
Mademoiselle Reisz lives in a cramped, untidy attic apartment crowded by a beautiful piano. She is very...
(full context)
Chapter 26
For peace of mind, Edna often goes to visit Mademoiselle Reisz . One afternoon, Edna tells her friend that she wants to leave the house she...
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As usual, Edna reads the most recent letter from Robert while Mademoiselle Reisz plays piano. Robert does not know that Edna sees his letters; Mademoiselle Reisz tells her...
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Chapter 27
...good woman or a bad one, but Arobin dismisses the thought. She remembers something interesting Mademoiselle Reisz had said about a wayward bird needing strong wings; Arobin has heard only unpleasant things...
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Chapter 30
Out of the eleven invited, nine attend Edna’s party: Arobin, Mademoiselle Reisz , Mrs. Highcamp, Monsieur Ratignolle, Victor Lebrun, and two couples—Mr. and Mrs. Merriman, a pretty...
(full context)
Monsieur Ratignolle and Mademoiselle Reisz talk a little awkwardly about music, but the Mlle is mostly interested in the fine...
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Monsieur Ratignolle and Mademoiselle Reisz go home. Mrs. Highcamp drapes some flowers and her write scarf over Victor, who suddenly...
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Chapter 33
Mademoiselle Reisz is not home one afternoon when Edna comes to visit her, so Edna lets herself...
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While Edna waits for Mademoiselle Reisz , she plays a song on the piano. Suddenly, Robert comes in. She is dismayed...
(full context)
