Passage 1: The Pontelliers possessed a very charming home on Esplanade Street in New Orleans. It was a large, double cottage, with a broad front veranda, whose round, fluted columns supported the sloping roof. The house was painted a dazzling white; the outside shutters, or jalousies, were green. In the yard, which was kept scrupulously neat, were flowers and plants of every description which flourishes in South Louisiana. Within doors the appointments were perfect after the conventional type. The softest carpets and rugs covered the floors; rich and tasteful draperies hung at doors and windows. There were paintings, selected with judgment and discrimination, upon the walls. The cut glass, the silver, the heavy damask which daily appeared upon the table were the envy of many women whose husbands were less generous than Mr. Pontellier. Passage 2: After finishing her dinner she went to her room; having instructed the boy to tell any other calls that she was indisposed. It was a large, beautiful room, rich and picturesque in the soft, dim light which the maid had turned low. She went and stood at an open window and looked out upon the deep tangle of the garden below. All the mystery and witchery of the night seemed to have gathered there amid the perfumes and the dusky and tortuous outlines of flowers and foliage. She was seeking herself and finding herself in just such sweet, half-darkness which met her moods. But the voices were not soothing that came to her from the darkness and the sky above and the stars. They jeered and sounded mournful notes without promise, devoid even of hope. She turned back into the room and began to walk to and fro down its whole length, without stopping, without resting. She carried in her hands a thin handkerchief, which she tore into ribbons, rolled into a ball, and flung from her. Once she stopped, and taking off her wedding ring, flung it upon the carpet. When she saw it lying there, she stamped her heel upon it, striving to crush it. But her small boot heel did not make an indenture, not a mark upon the little glittering circlet. In passage 1, highlight at least 10 words or phrases that stand out to you as having a strong connotation. Create categories for those words. In passage 2, highlight at least 10 words or phrases that stand out to you as having a strong connotation. Create categories for those words. Look at the list of mood words. Discuss and choose one mood for of the passages. Prompt - How does Chopin use diction in order to create mood in the passage you chose. Provide at least four examples of diction that work together to create that "one major atmospheric effect" Go back through 1 and 2 and make a list of all the words/images that could be seen as symbolic or metaphoric.

I will provide a few words and phrases from each passage that have strong connotations—that is, the suggestions of meaning beyond the primary meaning of a word. 
In the first passage, there is some parallelism between Chopin's description of the colors of the house and the condition of the yard. The "dazzling white" of the house complements the "[scrupulous neatness] of the yard." One could also argue that whiteness here, has a racial connotation; it would only be whites of the planter class (a category defined by whiteness) who could afford and claim such property. The green shutters mirror the "flowers and plants" in the yard. 
In the second passage, there is, again, some parallelism between Chopin's description of interior and exterior spaces. This is significant because Edna Pontellier—the protagonist—is limited to the domestic sphere, which is constricting. She yearns to understand her true nature and seeks answers in the natural world. "The deep tangle of the garden below" is a phrase that, denotatively, describes plants—probably weeds—that are intertwined, defying the neatness that was described in the first passage. This tangled state is reflective of Edna's own mood and feelings.
She tears apart the handkerchief, a symbol of her dainty femininity and, most surprisingly, pulls off her wedding ring, throws it to the floor, and stomps on it. However, she cannot "crush" it with her "small boot heel" and does not leave the slightest "indenture." Her desire to crush her ring, made of precious metal, is a futile effort, especially when attempted by someone with a "small boot heel." The suggestion here is that she is not powerful enough to destroy the ring or what it symbolizes.
No particular mood is established in the first passage. The author is providing a portrait of the Pontellier home, one that makes it clear that they are wealthy and distinguished even among other wealthy New Orleanian families. The description is impersonal and entirely materialistic. We learn about the family through their objects: their draperies tell us that they are "tasteful" people, while their selection of paintings reveal people of "discrimination."
The second passage is personal and focuses on Edna's internal state, which is unclear to her. Her internal turmoil is reflected in the "tortuous outlines of the flowers and foliage." However, there is still something within her that beckons, not unlike the perfumes from the garden, though she cannot name it. "Voices," call to her, urging her awakening, but she cannot hear them clearly. In other words, there are no clear answers to her questions, which creates restlessness and frustration within her. This frustration is powerfully recreated by the diction, or use of language, in the following passage:

But the voices were not soothing that came to her from the darkness and the sky above and the stars. They jeered and sounded mournful notes without promise, devoid even of hope.

The negativity of "the voices" is evoked by "jeered" (they mock her) and "mournful notes," a phrase that foreshadows the story's tragic ending.
Most of the adjectives in the passages could be seen as metaphoric. In the first passage, there are the following: "dazzling white," "scrupulously neat." In the second passage, the potential metaphoric meaning is richer: "the deep tangle of the garden below," "the mystery and witchery of the night," "tortuous outlines of flowers and foliage," the symbolism of the handkerchief, the "voices," and the wedding band.