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 ...
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Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780140390223ISBN:0140390227
Description: Fine. No dust jacket as issued. F-one cover crease. Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 288 p. Penguin American Library. Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Penguin, New York
Date Published: 2005
ISBN-13:9780451530103ISBN:0451530101
Description: Very good in very good dust jacket. 246 p. Classics of Modern Literature series. Selected Stories are: Emancipation, At the 'Cadian Ball, Desiree's Baby, La Belle Zoraide, At Cheniere Caminada, The Story of an Hour, Lilacs, Athenaise, A Pair of Silk Stockings, Neg Creol, Elizabeth Stock's One Story, and The Storm. Also includes Introduction by Sandra M. Gilbert, Suggestions for Further Reading, A Note on the Text. read more
Binding: Trade paperback
Publisher: Penguin Books
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780140390223ISBN:0140390227
Description: Good. No dust jacket as issued. Diff. cover. Unmarked text, a little tanned, no corner folds. No spine creases. Cover some wear. Ship daily (carefully wrapped + free domestic dc). Trade paperback (US). Glued binding. 288 p. Penguin American Library. Audience: General/trade. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Modern Library, New York
Date Published: 1981
ISBN-13:9780394326672ISBN:0394326679
Description: Very good. lviii, 354 p. ; 19 cm. Modern Library college editions.. Very good Contents: Love on the Bon-Dieu.--Beyond the bayou.--A visit to Avoyelles.--La belle Zorïade [i.e. Zoraïde].--In Sabine.--Ozème's holiday.--A matter of prejudice.--At Chênière Caminada.--A respectable woman.--Regret.--Athénaïse.--A night in Acadie.--The... read more
Description: Good. Light shelf wear and minimal interior marks. Millions of satisfied customers and climbing. Thriftbooks is the name you can trust, guaranteed. Spend Less. Read More. read more
Description: Good. Light shelf wear and minimal interior marks. 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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