Edna Pontellier and Leonce Pontellier have a more business like relationship rather than a relationship filled with love and lust. Their love exchanged between each other is formal and required.  In their mind marriage is an act of stability and not necessarily an act of true love. Edna and Leonce are married and have two children together. Leonce holds a stable job and receives a steady income which makes Edna feel safe and stable. Edna is allowing herself to change to her true self and this bothers Leonce greatly. He is a highly sociable man that is very stuck in his ways. Leonce believes that wives are required to act a certain way and obey their husbands wishes and demands. Now that Edna is rebelling from the social norm, Leonce is being driven mad. Because Leonce is so close minded, he tends to be very controlling towards his wife, Edna. This leads Edna to drift from him and strive for more independence. The married couple definitely love each other but not in a modern day manner and their actions affect each other greatly.