Cheap Awakening and Other Stories (Book) (Kate Chopin) Price

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Customer Reviews of Awakening and Other Stories

Lush!
I read this book several years ago in college, and have to say that being a person of average intelligence, a classroom experience really adds to the enjoyment of it all. Certain types of literature you just need to discuss and have clarification on.. I was surprised at the amount of negative reviews - I was barely 23 when I read it the first time, and loved it so much; how Chopin could pack so much into such a short story. I think it's important to remember that her career was nearly destroyed by this book, and the period of time then (1899) was VERY different than now. You were basically in one of two categories, upper or working class - if I remember correctly, there was no in between. For a woman like Edna, there weren't many options if you didn't see yourself falling into the "mother role", like her close friend in the book who gave birth towards the end. You couldn't stay in school, get divorced, climb the corporate ladder, or have kids "eventually..." If you had a lot of money, that made things easier, you could ship the kids off for a period of time. It wasn't like how it is now, that you could leave your husband, your kids, and get your own place. I thought all of the imagery was so wonderful - Louisiana and Grand Isle are portrayed as lush, warm paradises where she suffocates... her suicide can be seen as both a defeat, and victory. Her fear of the water isn't the only thing she overcomes.

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This is not feminism
When my friend and I ran across a list of 101 books that were recommended to be read before college, we realized we had only read a small percentage of the books and made a vow to read more. One of the books on the list was "The Awakening," and as we had studied Kate Chopin in school and it was readily available online, we decided to both read it. Both of us had read it by the next day, and we both reached the same conclusion: Chopin's protagonist, Edna, was a selfish woman who was not strong at all, as a truly strong woman would have continued on even after the man she loved left her.

The book is written beautifully, hence the two stars. But Edna is completely unidentifiable. She is twenty-eight, yet she seems to do everything on impulse. Yes, maybe she did rush irrationally into an ultimately loveless marriage -- but her husband is not a monster, so doesn't she at least owe him some consideration? Not to mention her children -- she seems to not have the slightest regard for them, only showing affection in fits and starts.

This book should be read, if only to show what strength is not -- strength is not what Edna does in the end of this story. However, you may find yourself struggling to get through it, as Edna is often very frustrating. In conclusion -- this is NOT feminism. In fact, before reading this story I had immense respect for Kate Chopin, respect gained from reading her short stories. I lost some of that respect after seeing what she apparently believed was the solution for Edna's problems.

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an interesting read
I was forced to read this book in AP English my senior year, but I actually found it intriguing once I got into the plot and became familiar with the characters. What I really liked was how Chopin had every setting match the mood that the character felt; everything that surrounded the characters was symbolic of their emotions or what they were feeling, especially when it focused on Edna. Anyone could identify with her situation if they concentrate on the book with an open mind, and it is basically a look at the thoughts/emotions of a Creole woman who finds herself in an affair, but the book has many more elements to it that make it mean much more than a typical love & infidelity story. I would suggest reading it slowly and thinking about the reasons behind the characters' actions and dialogue, everything means something and this way the reader gets more out of the book. :)