Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Search - The Awakening

The Awakening
The Awakening
Author: Kate Chopin
When first published in 1899, The Awakening shocked readers with its honest treatment of female marital infidelity. Audiences accustomed to the pieties of late Victorian romantic fiction were taken aback by Chopin's daring portrayal of a woman trapped in a stifling marriage, who seeks and finds passionate physical love outside the straitened...  more »
Info icon
ISBN-13: 9780486277868
ISBN-10: 0486277860
Publication Date: 1993
Pages: 128
Rating:
  • Currently 3.6/5 Stars.
 116

3.6 stars, based on 116 ratings
Publisher: Dover Publications
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover, Audio Cassette, Audio CD
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

reviewed The Awakening on + 79 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
For this subject to be written about when it was, was an absolute scandal. No one had ever heard of a woman standing up to her husband, let alone breaking it off. This is just one of those novels that I'm proud to say I've read.
StephanieW avatar reviewed The Awakening on + 34 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
Wonderful novel which explores the connection between gender roles, marriage, and self-fulfillment. Chopin catches the reader with her beautiful prose and never lets go. The surface story is memorable, yet the underlying themes are what makes this novel a true classic.

I highly recommend this book to those seeking a novel which keeps them on the edge of their seat...and allows them to ponder complexities about the roles of women and society.

Simply stunning.
therubycanary avatar reviewed The Awakening on + 44 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 4
I'm not a huge fan of required reading, but this was one of my favorites. The original women's fiction it looks at one woman's life and how she feels trapped in her times, and the dark way that she deals with it.
reviewed The Awakening on + 166 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 3
First published in 1899, this novel broke new ground in its depiction of women's passions and moral relativism. Scandalous in its day, the story is another of those whose authors seemed unable to imagine that a woman might break with her husband and society's expectations and yet find a happier life. As usual, she ends badly.
reviewed The Awakening on
Helpful Score: 3
I was surprised how well this story kept my interest. I tend to find novels written during this time period tedious, but I finished The Awakening within 4 days. The lead character, Edna, is someone every woman can relate to in one way or another. She is real and flawed.
Read All 47 Book Reviews of "The Awakening"

Please Log in to Rate these Book Reviews

reviewed The Awakening on + 125 more book reviews
Great book for high school or college students reading Kate Chopin. Great critical articles for reference.
reviewed The Awakening on + 12 more book reviews
"Meeting initially with widespread hostile criticism, the novel went out of print for a half a century in [the U.S.] Now widely read, especially in college courses, this novel has established itself as one of a few classic novels written by a woman at the turn of the century...."
paigu avatar reviewed The Awakening on + 120 more book reviews
One book which grew on me after several readings. This was considered a "scandal" back when it was written but today, the heroine would be called a "liberated woman." I didn't agree entirely with her actions, but I did love the imagery of the sea and the music.
marebear143 avatar reviewed The Awakening on + 75 more book reviews
One of my absolute favorite novels ever, great story of a woman coming to terms with her life!
Highlandheart44 avatar reviewed The Awakening on
My oldest daughter recommended this, she teaches college litature. This book will give you a look into the life of a wealthy woman from the late 1800's. Chopin proves that thinking about ourselves seperate from our husbands and children is a yearning that all woman have, and have had for eternity. The question is will we be brave enough to answer that awakening that happens to all women, or will we bury it?
dgreader avatar reviewed The Awakening on + 3 more book reviews
This is the story, written over a hundred years ago, of a surprisingly modern woman trapped in a dehumanizing marriage and struggling to establish herself as an individual.
reviewed The Awakening on
I had to read this as a class assignment and didn't really enjoy it.
wantonvolunteer avatar reviewed The Awakening on + 84 more book reviews
It was amazing to watch the unraveling of Edna Pontellier's well-to-do, refined existence in Louisiana. Despite her privileged upbringing, youth, beauty, wealth, status and creativity, this 28-year old wife and mother is stifled by the social norms of the day (this was published in 1899) and begins uncharacteristically to act out. After taking out her initial frustrations on her busy husband, she refuses to attend her sister's wedding, and then things go bananas.

I took off a star for the short stories at the end, I liked Desiree's Baby and Ma'ame Pelagie but not so much the rest of them. I'd recommend getting them out of the way first, so you can savor The Awakening on its own.
ladysarina avatar reviewed The Awakening on + 38 more book reviews
Chopin's last novel, The Awakening published in 1899, aroused a storm of controversy. The fact that this story was written back then shows where women were.... NOT where they are now. I find the 1-star reviews absolutely negative to this writer. Can you imagine living back when women didn't work? Their only job to please the husband that they may, or may not have chosen and care for their children? With barely any choices in their own life. I found this story compelling in the simple truths that it showed of marriage and sexuality back then.

Re-open your eyes and read this story. Take it for what it is, what it was, and gather strength in how far WE as women have come. Remember that Kate Chopin was socially ostracized for writing something that we now consider "real life"
reviewed The Awakening on + 224 more book reviews
This book was first published in 1898. Interesting story, a bit sad. Well-written.
readingjesusfreak avatar reviewed The Awakening on + 10 more book reviews
Awesome!
paradisemommy05 avatar reviewed The Awakening on + 63 more book reviews
Very beautiful story....saddening and so true to the modern day woman also.
mrswiggs avatar reviewed The Awakening on + 51 more book reviews
The Awakening is essentially heartbreak in book form. I love this story! This is a great read for anyone who has even been faced with a choice to stay with the safe and familiar or head out into the unknown.


Genres: