About this title: Kate Chopin's novel is a probing psychological study of a woman who, oppressed by family life and her romantic difficulties, drowns herself in the ocean. It is also an examination of a particular culture at the end of the 19th century: the aristocratic society of southern Louisiana. Condemned at the time it was written, THE AWAKENING has been valued in later years for its unflinching honesty and sexual frankness.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9781853265563ISBN:185326556X
Description: Fair. No dust jacket as issued. Creased spine, some wear to cover, clean text, still a good reading copy! Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Dorset Press
Date Published: 1995
ISBN-13:9781566195676ISBN:1566195675
Description: Very good. No dust jacket as issued. Spine NOT creased. NO tears, stains, writing, etc. Mass market (rack) paperback. Glued binding. Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9781853265563ISBN:185326556X
Description: Fine. No dust jacket as issued. NEW CONDITIONI-CLEAN AND TIGHT SOFT COVER. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. Audience: General/trade. NEW CONDITIONI-CLEAN AND TIGHT SOFT COVER. WORDSWORTH AMERICAN CLASSICS BOOK. F-Chopin, Kate, NTC/Contemporary Publishing Company, 1998. Arts & Humanities; Classics; Deep South; Education; Feminine; Fiction; Louisiana; Short Stories (single author); Social life and customs; Teaching Methods & Materials. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Wordsworth Editions, London, UK
Date Published: 1998
ISBN-13:9781853265563ISBN:185326556X
Description: Very Good. 8vo-over 7¾"-9¾" tall. Wordsworth Trade paperback edition. 228pp. Pictorial card covers. Signs of reading wear but still a nice-looking used trade paperback copy with NO library stamps or markings. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Modern Library
Date Published: 2000
ISBN-13:9780679783336ISBN:0679783334
Description: Good. A copy that has been read, but remains in clean condition. All pages are intact, and the cover is intact (including dustcover, if applicable). The spine may show signs of wear. Pages can include limited notes and highlighting, and the copy can include "from the library of" labels. read more
Description: Good. Former Library book. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Description: Very good. Book has appearance of light use with no easily noticeable wear. Millions of satisfied customers and climbing. Thriftbooks is the name you can trust, guaranteed. Spend Less. Read More. read more
"Although she wrote over 100 years ago, there is something very modern in her writing. She wrote about racial issues and women's sexuality at a time when neither was really acknowledged or discussed in literature. This is a collection I come back to over and over."
""The Awakening" is a beautiful, tragic novella that was way ahead of its time. It highlights one woman's struggle against the traditional paradigm of marriage and children. Fabulous and well worth reading. Sadly, and not surprisingly, it was not well received when she first published it in 1899.
The short stories in the collection are also quite powerful and worth reading, especially "Desiree's Baby.""
"This is one of the books I was assigned to read in HS and just plain old never did. This time around, I was sucked in immediately. I thought they story itself was wonderful, although I didn't really like Edna. I had sympathy for her until her husband tried to understand what was going on and all she had to say was, "I don't know, you're bothering me. Go away." She was very immature to the end, more a teenager than 28 year old. Still, I did end up feeling bad for her again and it must have been hell to wake up to things that weren't right for her and not know how to deal. Edna reminded me a lot of Betty Draper on Mad Men, they're even the same age as they deal with very similar lives, but I like Betty better. I overall have more sympathy for her.
The other stories were all right, but few really interested me. She seemed to have a theme of death and unhappiness going on in her writing."
"Edna married Mr.Pontellier to escape her father, family, and home. Unfortunately several years and two children later, Edna realizes there is no passion or romance in her marriage or her life. There is only convenience and maybe some fondness for her husband and children. She is bored and dissatisfied with her life.
Edna spends her summer vacation falling in passionate love with a young man named Robert. She doesn't realize it immediately, but this affair is everything she has been missing. Her soul, her inner self and feelings are awakened by this love affair. An affair that's not necessarily spoken about, but doesn't need to be, because Edna and Robert know it's there. They also know the complications of this affair could be catastrophic.
Once Edna is back home, she becomes increasingly dissatisfied with her life and her home. When her two boys go off and visit their Grandmother for several weeks, Edna feels at peace. The children's absence is a relief to her. Edna loves her children, but her children do not define her, especially in an era where children and a happy home were supposedly all that a woman needed in her life. And as for Mr. Pontellier, he thinks this is just a phase that Edna is experiencing, and that by leaving her alone it will pass. That could not be further from the truth.
This was a great story. Chopin was a brilliant writer. Her ability to make you sympathize and feel what her characters are going through is remarkable. Chopin also represents her era quite well with respect to the social conventions and mannerisms of the time.
There was one quote in the story which I think represents what the Awakening is about:
"The bird that would soar to see if the level plain of tradition and prejudice must have strong wings. It is a sad spectacle to see the weaklings bruised, exhausted, and fluttering back to earth." pg. 112.
Edna tries to fly in the face of social convention, but unfortunately she is not strong enough. Edna could have dealt with her situation differently, but since she was awakened to her true self, compromise probably would not have worked for her."
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