Kate Chopin

Kate Chopin was an American author who

lived during the nineteenth century, but because of The

Awakening, a novel which was considered scandalous at

the time, she has just recently been "…accepted into the

canon of major American writers"(Trosky 105). Through

Kate Chopin's main character of The Awakening, Edna

Pontellier, she is able to portray her feelings and desires

that were otherwise suppressed by the ideals of American

society at that time. Kate Chopin was born on February 8,

1851 in St. Louis, Missouri. She was brought up in a family

that was a member of the prominent French- Creole

community. During her childhood she possessed a love for

reading. Her favorite types of literature were fairy tales,

poetry and novels. She secluded herself for almost two

years, away from her family and school in her attic,

spending the majority of her time reading (Trosky 102).

After her schooling, Chopin spent her days as a belle in St.

Louis' high society. She was greatly admired for both her

beauty and wit. She continued her readings, becoming

more interested in contemporary works. In 1869, she

traveled to New Orleans where she met Oscar Chopin,

whom she married. Though married, Chopin remained

fairly independent, practicing habits such as smoking and

walking alone in the city, two things unheard of from

women at that time.(Trosky 102) In 1883, Oscar Chopin

died of swamp fever. By 1884, Kate moved with her six

children back to St. Louis. Around this time, Chopin began

her writing career, writing in periodicals and publishing

collections of short stories. She received good reviews and

continued to write at an impressive rate. Her acclaim was

short lived though, following the publication of The

Awakening. "This work, which would eventually be

recognized as her masterpiece and a seminal work in

American feminist fiction, first proved her most notorious

publication and her literary undoing."(Trosky 103) At the

time, Chopin's novel was... [continues]

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