Kate Chopins The Awakening Womens Role In Society Essay

Have you ever wondered what the lifestyles of Nineteenth Century women were like? Were they independent, career women or were they typical housewives that cooked, clean, watched the children, and catered to their husbands. Did the women of this era express themselves freely or did they just do what society expected of them? Kate Chopin was a female author who wrote several stories and two novels about women. One of her renowned works of art is The Awakening. This novel created great controversy and received negative criticism from literary critics due to Chopins portrayal of women by Edna throughout the book. The Awakening is a novel about a woman, Edna Pontellier, who is a confused soul. She is a typical housewife that is looking to†¦show more content†¦In The Awakening, Kate Chopin portrays women as being loving wives and mothers that live their life to care for their family and worship their husbands. According to literary critic, Dana Kinninson, this story indicates two types of women, which are expressed by Adele Ratigndle and Mademoiselle Reisz. Adele Ratigndle is the ideal wife and mother who never experiences an impulse that deters her from the sole concern of caring for her family. She also embodies every womanly grace and charm. Then you have Mademoiselle Reisz, which is the complete opposite of Adele. She has devoted her time and energy to the development of her own abilities instead of a husband and home. Reisz is a pianist older woman who lives alone and is depicted as homely and disagreeable. (Kinnison, 22) Adele and Mademoiselles lifestyles seem to be the only two options for Edna. Kinninson believes that Ednas options are the reward of complete self-sacrifice versus the reproof of female self-assertion. No middle ground exist, just these extreme contradictions. Edna is a mother of two children but being a mother or mother-woman doesnt satisfy her soul and her desire for self-hood. This is all part of her awakening and finding herself. ( Kinninson, 23-24) James Justus, who is also a critic of American literature, questions what Edna awakens to and if in fact her awakening is atShow MoreRelatedKate Chopin s Life And Feminism1281 Words   |  6 PagesKate Chopin’s Life and Works- Feminism Kate Chopin, born on February 8th, 1850, was a progressive writer in the midst of a conservative and unequal time. She exposed the unfair undertones of society in such a way that made people outrage and condemn some of her works. However, in the early 1900s, her works were examined again and people started to listen to her ideas. One of these main motifs that Chopin’s works kept bringing up were feminism and equality. 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