The Awakening

The Awakening, written by American novelist Kate Chopin, revolves around a young wife and mother, Edna Pontellier, who grapples with her burgeoning awareness of self in late 19th century Louisiana. Through a series of encounters with fellow women and a select assortment of men, she finds herself questioning the entirety of her existence at a time when thinking outside the box was something of an anomaly.

Chopin herself explored the theme of feminism in a most pioneering manner, a fact which makes the puissance of the story all the more detectable. Through vivid imagery and remarkably thorough character development and analysis, The Awakening is a portal to another world, another time; serving as a stirring glimpse into one woman's evolution of spirit and the subsequent unraveling of her foundations.