Just because men say women can't do the hardest jobs doesn't mean women can't do the same things men do, too they want to be equal. Leonce tells Edna that she can't do the same things as her because she's a woman. “You were a very, very foolish boy, wasting your time dreaming of impossible things when you talk about Mr. Pontellier freeing me! I am no longer one of Mr. Pontellier's assets to be disposed of or not. I give myself wherever I want" (Edna, page 102). Chopin's Awakening received mostly mixed reviews when it was first published, as people back then (mostly men) did not understand the feminist act. However, other people gave the novel good ratings understanding Edna's actions to escape reality, including the Chicago Times (now known as the Chicago Sun-Times), which praised the novel for its sexist traits. “There is no denying that the book is strong and that Miss Chopin has a profound knowledge, for a writer, of certain phases of the female character. But it was not necessary for a writer to be so refined and possessed of poetic grace to enter the overworked field of sexual fiction” (Chicago Times-Herald, 1899). They also said that although it was not a pleasant story due to its depressing ending, they gave thumbs up to Kate Chopin for making Edna a likable character with a believable personality and said that Chopin was the best character.