The Awakening

"He could see it plainly between the gaunt trunks of the wateroaks and across the stretch of yellow chamomile.  The gulf looked far away, melting hazily into the blue of the horizon." pg 4.
These words don't have much direct importance to the story itself, but they're worded in a very elegant way, and it allows you to very easily visualize the scene the author wants to depict.
"He reproached his wife with her inattention, her habitual neglect of the children.  If it was not a mother's place to look after children, whose on earth was it?" pg 12.
This is the first evident example of sexism present in the story.  We today have an understanding that men and women are roughly equally well equipped to raise children and perform business, but at the time period the story is set in this was not yet a common idea.
"Since the age of fifteen, which was eleven years before, Robert each summer at Grand Isle had constituted himself the devoted attendant of some fair dame or damsel.  Sometimes it was a young girl, again a widow; but as often as not it was some interesting married woman." pg 25
This is intriguing because it foreshadows the relationship between Mrs. Pontellier and Robert, especially when coupled with the earlier declaration that they were already at an advanced stage of intimacy.
"That summer at Grand Isle she began to loosen a little the mantle of reserve that had always enveloped her." pg 35
This is the major idea of the story: the "awakening" of Mrs. Pontellier; and this is the first time that this rebellious loss of restraint is mentioned.
"Who can tell what metals the gods use in forging the subtle bond which we call sympathy, which we might as well call love." pg 36
This is another well worded phrase that elicits strong imagery and also offers commentary on the nature of love itself.  I like the multifaceted purpose this sentence serves.