Read the excerpt from chapter 32 of The Awakening.

When Mr. Pontellier learned of his wife's intention to abandon her home and take up her residence elsewhere, he immediately wrote her a letter of unqualified disapproval and remonstrance. She had given reasons which he was unwilling to acknowledge as adequate. He hoped she had not acted upon her rash impulse; and he begged her to consider first, foremost, and above all else, what people would say.
What does Mr. Pontellierâ€™s letter reveal about his personality?

A. He is jealous that his wife may be thinking of leaving him for a much younger man.
B. He hates to be away from his family for such a long period of time and aches to return home.
C. He is very concerned about maintaining an appearance of financial good standing within his community.
D. He feels his wife has a good grasp of the situation at home and relies on her to take care of everything.

Kate Chopin's "The Awakening" is a novel about the fictional character Edna, set in the late 1800's. Married, with two children, and very much accustomed to the painful impositions of society, Edna begins to awake after interacting with different people. Her dormant passion for life, for art, and for herself resurfaces. From then on, she fights to free herself from moral obligations and to pursue her own true happiness, even if that involves leaving her husband and children behind.

As we can see in the excerpt, her husband is very much worried about their social status: "consider first, foremost, and above all else, what people would say." He is not truly concerned with his family, with his wife's happiness, with the love that once might have existed between them. It is all about social conformity. That is why the best option is C. He is very concerned about maintaining an appearance of financial good standing within his community.