- Published: November 16, 2021
- Updated: November 16, 2021
- University / College: University of Washington
- Level: Masters
- Language: English
- Downloads: 21
Your full full July 30, A Woman in the Late 19th Century Kate Chopin was a great American author who wrote many short stories and novels for children and adults. In many of her stories, she revealed the reality of the women’s lives of the late 19th century. Basu states, “ Kate Chopin is often considered the first literary voice of the feminist movement”. Let us discuss the themes of three of the most popular stories of Chopin in order to know what she thought about the women living in the late 19th century.
The Awakening
In the novel, Chopin has depicted how women of the late 19th century were supposed to play the role of perfect mothers while being prevented from seeking their own needs and desires. Chopin has also shown in the novel that women of that time had strong desires of autonomy and individuality but they were hardly able to fulfill those desires.
The Storm
In this short story, Chopin raised some important issues, which play their roles in the life of a woman. Some of those issues include importance of love and sex in marriage, factors of guilt and honesty, and sexual desires of women. Chopin revealed that women of that time had less freedom and they used to fulfill their desires using unconventional means.
A Respectable Woman
In this story, Chopin revealed that women of the late 19th century although had sexual desires but they used to keep their desires hidden because of the respect and esteem they had for themselves. In the view of Chopin, lives of the women in the late 19th century were focused towards their maternal roles and they had less freedom of expressing their sexual desires.
Works Cited
Basu, Harsha. “ Kate Chopins The Awakening: Role of Mademoiselle Reisz in Edna Pontelliers Awakening.” Ezinearticles. com, 21 Jan. 2011. Web. 30 Jul. 2011.