Unveiling Kate Chopin

Chronicles the life of American author Kate Chopin and discusses how her novel "The Awakening" was viewed by society when it was first published, why she is considered a feminist, how her personal life influenced her writing, and other related topics.

"Toth and Seyersted's well-organized, carefully edited volume makes available all manuscripts and related items from all archival collections.... This volume is essential for American literature collections." -- Choice An edition of the primarily unpublished papers of Kate Chopin, author of the feminist classic The Awakening. These papers illuminate the growth of Chopin as a writer, reveal the reactions of critics to her work, and settle a number of controversies in Chopin studies.

Moving chronologically from the colonial period to the present, this collection of seventeen biographical essays provides a window into the social, cultural, and geographic milieu of women's lives in the state. Within the context of the historical forces that have shaped Louisiana, the contributors look at ways in which the women they profile either abided by prevailing gender norms or negotiated new models of behavior for themselves and other women.Louisiana Womenconcludes with an essay that examines women's active responses to problems that emerged in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. The women whose absorbing life stories are collected here include Marie Therese Coincoin, who was born a slave but later became a successful entrepreneur, and Oretha Castle Haley, civil rights activist and leader of the New Orleans chapter of CORE. From such well-known figures as author Kate Chopin and Voudou priestess Marie Laveau, to lesser known women such as Cajun musician Cleoma Breaux Falcon, this volume reveals a compelling cross section of historical figures. The women profiled vary by race, class, political affiliation, and religious persuasion, but they all share an unusual grit and determination that allowed them to turn trying circumstances into opportunity. Lively yet rigorous, these essays introduce readers to the courageous, dedicated, and inventive women who have been an essential part of Louisiana's history. Historical figures included: Marie Th?r?se Coincoin The Baroness Pontalba Marie Laveau Sarah Katherine (Kate) Stone Eliza Jane Nicholson Kate Chopin Grace King Louisa Williams Robinson, Her Daughters, and Her Granddaughters Clementine Hunter Dorothy Dix True Methodist Women Cleoma Breaux Falcon Caroline Dormon Mary Land Rowena Spencer Oretha Castle Haley Louisiana Women and Hurricane Katrina

Kate Chopin was a nationally acclaimed short story artist of the local color school when she in 1899 shocked the American reading public with The Awakening, a novel which much resembles Madame Bovary. Though the critics praised the artistic excellence of the book, it was generally condemned for its objective treatment of the sensuous, independent heroine. Deeply hurt by the censure, Mrs. Chopin wrote little more, and she was soon forgotten. For decades the few critics who remembered her concentrated on the regional aspects of her work. In the Literary History of the United States, where Kate Chopin is highly praised as a local colorist, The Awakening is not even mentioned. In recent years, however, a few critics have given new attention to the novel, emphasizing its courageous realism. In the present book, Mr. Seyersted carries out an extensive re-examination of both the life and work of the author, basing it on her total oeuvre. Much new Kate Chopin material, such as previously unknown stories, letters, and a diary, has recently come to light. We can now see that she was a much more ambitious and purposeful writer than we have hitherto known. From the beginning, her special theme was female self-assertion. As each new success increased her self-confidence, she grew more and more daring in her descriptions of emancipated woman who wants to dictate her own life. Mr. Seyersted traces the author’s growth as an artist and as a penetrating interpreter of the female condition, and shows how her career culminated in The Awakening and the unknown story ‘The Storm.’ With these works, which were decades ahead of their time, Kate Chopin takes her place among the important American realist writers of the 1890’s.

"Grace refused to be confined by the fifties' notion of a woman's place. In her struggle to find herself, she lifted the lid off sex and violence, power and powerlessness, truth and hypocrisy, and became known as the Pandora in Blue Jeans.".

In late 19th-century New Orleans, social constraints are strict, especially for a married woman. Edna Pontellier leads a secure life with her husband and two children, but her restlessness grows within the confined societal norms, and the expectations placed upon her – from her husband and the world around her – create increasing pressure. During a trip to Grand Isle, an island off the coast of Louisiana, her life is turned upside down by an intense love affair, and passion forces her to question the foundations of her – and every woman’s – existence. Kate Chopin's novel The Awakening caused a scandal with its outspokenness when it was published in 1899. The novel’s openly sexual themes and disregard for marital and societal conventions led to it not being reprinted for fifty years. It wasn't until the 1950s that Chopin’s work was rediscovered, and The Awakening received significant acclaim. Today, it is not only seen as an early feminist milestone but also as a classic. KATE CHOPIN [1851–1904] was born in St Louis. She had six children during her marriage, and it wasn't until after her husband's death in 1882 that she emerged as a writer. She published short stories in magazines such as Vogue and The Atlantic, gaining appreciation and recognition for her depictions of the American South. However, she was also criticized for her disregard for social traditions and racial barriers.

Mrs. Louise Mallard, afflicted with a heart condition, reflects on the death of her husband from the safety of her locked room. Originally published in Vogue magazine, “The Story of an Hour” was retitled as “The Dream of an Hour,” when it was published amid much controversy under its new title a year later in St. Louis Life. “The Story of an Hour” was adapted to film in The Joy That Kills by director Tina Rathbone, which was part of a PBS anthology called American Playhouse. HarperPerennial Classics brings great works of literature to life in digital format, upholding the highest standards in ebook production and celebrating reading in all its forms. Look for more titles in the HarperPerennial Classics collection to build your digital library.

Women and Autonomy in Kate Chopin's Short Fiction offers close readings of some thirty stories - Chopin's most significant short works - the majority of which have never received analytical scrutiny. These works, predominantly grim, portray the difficulties women confront as they seek autonomy in a social framework that typically constrains them whether they are married, in the midst of courtship, or seeking to live independently. This groundbreaking book makes it apparent that Chopin's short fiction is no less significant than her famous novel, The Awakening, and that her stories also provide a valuable context for that work.