How Kate Chopin’s ‘The Awakening’ contributed to the evolution of feminism

Type :

Book review

Pages :

4 pages

Format :

.doc

Published date :

11/25/2008

Category :

Philosophy & literature

Sub category :

Literature

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Summary :

Introduction.
Understanding the feminist theme in The Awakening.
The missing message.
The character of Edna.
1. Participate in frank talk.
2. A warning to women.
3. No sexual urges - except where they would produce a child.
Conclusion.

Abstract

kate chopin was an integral part of the evolution of feminism, providing early 20th century readers with feminist literature that is still highly respected and studied today. Although it is easy to approach her work, and all such work, work with textual evidence supporting a claim of the author's approach and opinions, an often overlooked part of reading an opus is what used to be called "reading between the lines"--or, more academically, reading what is not said to understand better the author's intent. chopin's work shows a metatextual approach to help the reader conceptualize the message in her fiction. Although she addresses many aspects of women's oppression, her attack on patriarchal control over when and how women spoke at fin-de-siecle 19th century is clear and present. Her novel, the awakening, clearly shows this attack on men's domination (and silencing) of women's voices in several layers of the content.