By means of self-discovery comes independence as well as solitude. In the late 1800s, women who were people in their own right were shunned, and tradition made female independence and solitude impossible. These also made individual expression almost impossible because women were not supposed to have their own ideas and opinions on important matters, but were expected to follow their husband's beliefs. Through all this, women in those days had a lack of control of both their bodies and minds, due to society and their impressions of women. In Kate Chopin's The Awakening and "The Dream of an Hour", she uses symbolism to show women defying society. However, these women were still looked down upon because they believed in what they were doing. .
The Awakening and "The Dream of an Hour" show freedom for women through symbols such as nature. In order to start the path to freedom many women began to do their own thing, as did Mrs. Pontellier. Edna starts to paint. Through her paintings she feels free and begins to believe she has the right to paint what she wants, not just what her husband thinks she should paint. Her art also represents the pinnacle of her awakening towards freedom. This is the awakening Edna finds while on the beach. "The voice of the sea is seductive; never ceasing, whispering inviting the soul to wander for a spell in abysses of solitude The touch of the sea is sensuous, enfolding the body in its soft, close embrace" (Chopin 16). The awakening is the reason she learns to swim. This symbolizes that if she learns to swim she is free to go anywhere she wants. The water where her awakening first appears could symbolize the cleansing of her past, and this causes her to have a rebirth and to look to the future.
Just as in The Awakening, in "The Dream of an Hour" the main character has a symbolic rebirth and experience freedom even though it is only for a number of minutes. In both stories, nature takes center stage.