First published in 1899, this beautiful, briefÿÿnovel so disturbed critics and the public that itÿÿwas banished for decades afterward. Now widely readÿÿand admired, The Awakening hasÿÿbeen hailed as an early vision of woman'sÿÿemancipation. This sensuous book tells of a woman'sÿÿabandonment of her family, her seduction, and herÿÿawakening to desires and passions that threated toÿÿconsumer her. Originally entitled "A SolitaryÿÿSoul," this portrait of twenty-eight-year-oldÿÿEdna Pontellier is a landmark in American fiction,ÿÿrooted firmly in the romantic tradition of HermanÿÿMelville and Emily Dickinson. Here, a woman inÿÿsearch of self-discovery turns away from convention andÿÿsociety, and toward the primal, from conventionÿÿand society, and toward the primal, irresistiblyÿÿattracted to nature and the sensesTheÿÿAwakening, Kate Chopin's last novel, has beenÿÿpraised by Edmund Wilson as "beautifullyÿÿwritten." And Willa Cather described its style asÿÿ"exquisite," "sensitive," andÿÿ"iridescent." This edition of TheÿÿAwakening also includes a selection ofÿÿshort stories by Kate Chopin.
"This seems to me aÿÿhigher order of feminism than repeating the storyÿÿof woman as victim... Kate Chopin gives her femaleÿÿprotagonist the central role, normally reservedÿÿfor Man, in a meditation on identity and culture,ÿÿconsciousness and art." -- From theÿÿintroduction by Marilynne Robinson.
