Kate Chopin 's The Awakening

Kate Chopin was born Katherine O’Flaherty on February 8, 1850 in St. Louis Missouri (213). Chopin had grown up in comfortable circumstances and began her life as a contemporary young woman (213). In 1888, six years after the death of her husband, Oscar Chopin, Kate subsequently became seriously committed to furthering her literary career (214). Chopin is oftentimes noted to be “a women who lived before her time, whose stories might be seen as a vindication of the rights of women, and an author whose literary works were controversial and unappreciated until many years later” (TheStorm&FeministPhilosophy.com). This description of Chopin’s work is distinctly evident in two of her most distinguished short stories, At The ‘Cadian Ball and its sequel The Storm. Both short stories embody a common theme; women challenging their confining gender roles. Although both works embody this theme, Chopin takes differing approaches in fulfilling this explicit theme; At The ‘Cadian Ball takes a “softer” approach in exposing this already controversial theme while The Storm takes a shockingly erotic approach in revealing the theme.

Sexual transgression and sexual exploration is one of the most highly talked about topics in today’s society. The path to sexual liberation within society begins with experimentation and exploration, followed by personal acceptance, and finally, although not always, societal acceptance. Although we have come a long way on the path of acceptance of different sexual transgressions, the stories of Kate Chopin’s The Awakening, Tennessee Williams’ “Vieux Carre,” and Lyle Saxon’s “The Centaur Plays Croquet” show that this type of acceptance has not always been the case. Each story plays an integral role when looking at the steps on the path to societal acceptance. Chopin 's story dives deep into the area of experimentation and exploration, whereas Saxon 's story looks more at the areas of personal acceptance, and Williams ' story lies more along the area of societal acceptance, and whether or not acceptance is always the end result.

In the article, “Kate Chopin’s The Awakening: Struggle against Society and Nature, Megan P. Kaplon criticizes the outspoken fiction novel, The Awakening by expressing and analyzing the Protagonist, Edna Pontellier’s actions towards her role in society. Throughout the novel Edna pursues to fulfill herself thus causing tension between family and friends. The novel takes place in the nineteenth century and disappointed many women because women were expected to obtain social roles during this time period. Women were to attain chores and take care of their families at home but instead Edna was different. She was only caught up in her own desire to make herself happy. Edna was a wife of Leonce Pontellier and mother of Raoul and Etienne Pontellier

When The Awakening was published by Kate Chopin, feminist movement was being expended. According to Dobie, the growing strength of the feminist movement has also led to the establishment of women’s studies programs…which question the qualities of femininity and masculinity, and in feminist literary criticism. (Dobie 108) However, the society was still male centered system, and women were considered as subordination of men. The society intentionally worshiped constructed notion, like ‘true womanhood’, to keep hierarchy between man and woman. Motherhood was the fundamental virtue that women should have, and ideal woman was described as being chaste and submissive. Unfortunately, motherhood enforced women to secure their inner desire. The protagonist in the story finds herself having her identity apart from those norms. Despite various attempts to analyze Edna’s sexual desire, her rebellion against social norms has not been focused, which plays significant role in her awakening. Edna Pontellier protests against several norms that American society in late nineteenth century conformed to women. In this regard, this paper suggests norms oppressing Edna. Motherhood and marriage ideology did not allow woman to have individuality, but while resisting against the norms, she figures out her self-esteem. This paper analyzes the discourses which would be deepened by finding some significances of her non-conformity.

The author of the book is Kate Chopin, the title is The Awakening and the main focus point of this essay is to talk about Eden’s interaction and relationships with men throughout the novel. It is important to figure out how these relationships affected Edna and her ‘awakening’ and realization of herself. Edna Pontellier is the main character in this reading and her devotion to her family is questioned when her husband Leonce Pontellier starts to make demands that she can not meet. Throughout her story, she encounters men which shape her personality in different ways. Robert Leburn is the man that Edna falls in love with and plans to run away with leaving behind her family, and Alcee Arobin is the playboy who she goes to in

Through the writings of Kate Chopin, such as in “The Story of an Hour,” the readers, especially in modern times learn of the height that the women’s right movement has reached since the 19th century. In addition, modern readers also obtain the knowledge and understand the perspective that women in the 19th century have and what freedom meant for them. As people compare and contrast the differences of the rights women had in the 19th century to the present 21st century, there has definitely been a massive change. Women certainly lost much more freedom in the past rather than today, when they start a marriage and marriage was conceived in a different manner in the past.

Kate Chopin is just one of the authors featured in the realism time period. She has published multiple works of literature, but the novel that shocked critics the most was The Awakening. Published in 1899, the novel surprised critics with the protagonist, Edna Pontellier, questioning her role in society. With Chopin’s main focus being on the true roles of women, she shocked the literature world, she brought a whole new game to the realism movement of writing about the true feelings and desires of females. Chopin wrote about the truth of women’s roles in society, which brought a whole new feminism view to the literary world.

Ever wondered if gender equality is reflected to how the government treats its citizens? The similarities between the two are almost identical, and in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening, Edna Pontellier is faced with the same restraining lifestyle that inhibits her independence as politician William Jennings Bryan notices with how imperialized nations like the Philippine Islands in 1900 went through. Edna expresses the same reaction as many imperialist nations have, such as the Philippine Islands: the habitual need to revolt for their freedom and no longer there being a “King.” Bryan states that commercial interests make it a major reason to hold on to the citizens’ land, and the same goes to how Edna has been held back because of her children that need her. One of Edna’s close friends, Mademoiselle Reisz, exhibits Bryan’s vision

The life of Kate Chopin started in a world of women. Following the tragic death of her father, the author lived with her mother, grandmother and great grandmother. Perhaps this upbringing influenced her writing style. The late 1800’s was a boisterous time in the United States. The cultural scene of the country was changing quickly, and for the first time, women brought private and personal issues into the public domain. This writer portrays the lives of women in a world controlled by male dominance while developing their own individual personalities. Her characters were usually socially accepted, but rebelled against the social codes of the day. The Victorian time period that shaped Chopin’s life, was the subject matter used in many of her

“A woman is not an object of convenience; but a creation of Gods purpose, ” said Wayne Chirisa (Akara). This quote exemplifies that in our society today, women are being treated as commodities and useless individuals that men use to fulfill their needs. Moreover, women have always been in a position of less power and authority. This is exceptionally evident in marriages. In today’s society, marriage is something that allows the men to control the women and it serves the needs of a patriarchal society. Overtime, women continue to struggle to voice their opinions and be independent in this male dominated environment as seen through the books The Color Purple by Alice Walker and The Awakening by Kate Chopin. The lack of freedom and individuality women face in a phallocentric society, as seen through the characters Celie and Edna, leads directly to them being seen as the weaker sex.

Kate Chopin is best known to focus on sensitive women and “accept passion as a legitimate subject for serious, outspoken fiction”. Most of her work makes herself known as one of the well-known feminists because most of her main characters being women. In most of the writing, the main character usually falls hopelessly in love and it ends with a tragedy. In the “The Story of the Hour,” the theme is no different causing most of her writing to go unnoticed due to the fact that her work was “revolting against tradition and authority”. These writings earn her the title of “pioneer in the amoral treatment of sexuality, of divorce, and of woman’s urge for an existential authenticity.”

During the late of the nineteenth century, the American society had witnessed the abolishment of slavery, but still women had no right to vote until 1920. It makes sense, then, that freedom and feminine selfhood would be of great concern to the forerunners of modern feminism. Kate Chopin’s The Story of an Hour was written in April 1894. In this story, initiated by the false news of Louise Mallard’s husband’s death in a train accident, Chopin presents us with a picture of a subjugated female protagonist feeling a powerful joy for the death of her husband that will give a promising path of freedom. Chopin’s exploration of the themes of feminine selfhood, the yearning for freedom, independence and new life and of what she calls the “possession of self-assertion” is vividly displayed in a rich and colorful

During this time, many women were dependent on their husband and Kate Chopin successfully magnifies the period of how women’s right

    Kate Chopin is one of the most important authors in American Literature. Her works revolve around strong women that long for freedom. Her stories provide readers with insights on female life in different time periods, and ultimately enlighten the reader from a different perspective. This short story shows readers the difficulty of maintaining stability between family and personal life. Not only does Chopin encourage personal freedom and luxury, she shows readers decisions based only on impulse, which makes the story relatable. Chopin’s application of literary techniques such as imagery, irony, and symbolism help readers interpret the meaning of this story.

In the 19th century, a group of people launched the suffrage movement, and they not only cared about women’s political rights, women’s property and body autonomy. Born in that age, Kate Chopin was aware of the importance of setting an example for those who were taken in by the reality to be an inspiration. So we call her a forerunner of the feminist author for every effort she put in advocating women’s sexual liberty, their self-identity and women’s own strength.