The Awakening - Softcover

Chopin, Kate

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1772261386 ISBN 13: 9781772261387

Publisher: Ostrich Books, 2015

Synopsis

Edna Pontellier struggles with her role as a housewife, and yearns for social freedom. Her increasingly unorthodox views on femininity and motherhood fuel her desires and passion, despite the prevailing social attitudes of the South. On a quest of self discovery, Edna flees her domestic role in search of love and spiritual freedom in a world that isn’t ready for her. The Awakening is one of the earliest novels that focuses on women’s issues without condescension. The novel was particularly controversial upon publication because Chopin didn’t condemn Edna’s desire for an affair. Instead, Chopin focused on human behaviour and the complexities of social structures while exploring the banalities of everyday life and the consequences of social norms.

About this title

Book Description

Kate Chopin's classic, an American Anna Karenina, joins Canongate's Canons series.

With an introduction by Barbara Kingsolver

From the Publisher

Edna Pontellier is a young woman living comfortably in the beautiful city of New Orleans. She is fond of her husband and proud of her sons but finds it impossible to accept that “for women it is a holy privilege to efface themselves as individuals.” She fights back in the only way she knows, and her solution is extreme. Infamous in its time, The Awakening is now recognized as a radical work of fiction—sensuous, arresting, and clear–eyed in its commitment to freedom and independence. Kate Chopin was born in St. Louis, Missouri in 1850; The Awakening was her third novel.

Edition details

• Publisher: Ostrich Books
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 1772261386
• ISBN 13: 9781772261387
• Binding: Paperback
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 136