Such bold steps taken confidently impact her work positively: Her teacher-turned-broker, Laidpore, is able to sell her paintings and illustrations as her work "grows in force and individuality." Her art enables her, in part, to support herself financially, to fund her independence. The sale of her paintings therefore helps to liberate her from Léonce: By refusing his bounty, she frees herself from his definition of her as one of his possessions.
Like her passion for Robert, art is an escapist venture for Edna because of her devotion to process over product. Ultimately, Edna does not pursue art as a means to achieve self-realization or provide insight about the world around her but merely to escape that world.
