The Awakening

by Kate Chopin

Paperback, 324 pages

English language

Published Nov. 19, 1994 by W. W. Norton & Company.

ISBN:: 978-0-393-96057-0
OCLC Number:: 1051312059

The Second Edition of a perennial favorite in the Norton Critical Edition series represents an extensive revision of its predecessor.

The text is that of the first edition of the novel, published by Herbert S. Stone in 1899. The annotations, provided by the editor, include translations of French phrases and explanations of references to the New Orleans locales, customs, and lore, the Bayou region, and Creole culture.

The expanded "Biographical and Historical Contexts" section, introduced by a new Editor's Note, presents biographical, historical, and cultural documents; many are contemporary with the novel's publication. Among the new inclusions are an essay by the acclaimed Chopin biographer Emily Toth, "An Etiquette/Advice Book Sampler" with selections from the conduct books of the late nineteenth century, and period fashion plates from Harper's Bazar.

A comprehensive "Criticism" section, introduced by a new Editor's Note, contains expanded sections from the hard-to-find contemporary reviews …

The Second Edition of a perennial favorite in the Norton Critical Edition series represents an extensive revision of its predecessor.

A comprehensive "Criticism" section, introduced by a new Editor's Note, contains expanded sections from the hard-to-find contemporary reviews of the novel: two letters of mysterious origin written in response to the novel; and Chopin's "Retraction" following The Awakening's negative reception. These are followed by twenty-seven interpretive essays, twelve of them new, that provide a variety of perspectives on The Awakening, including pieces by Cynthia Griffin Wolff, Nancy Walker, Elizabeth Fox-Genovese, Paula A. Treichler, Sandra M. Gilbert, Lee R. Edwards, Patricia S. Yaeger, Elizabeth Ammons, and Elaine Showalter,

A Chronology of Chopin's life and a thoroughly updated Bibliography are included. --back cover

64 editions

Miriam Robern reviewed The Awakening by Kate Chopin by Kate Chopin

No The Ending Is Not Good, Actually

2 stars

Content warning Spoileriffic!

Look, I know. I understand. I am an English major. I get the historical background and the publishing realities and blah de blah de blah-blah. I understand why the story ends the way it does. That doesn't make it a good ending or even the right ending.

I loved this book from the start right up to the penultimate chapter. The titular awakening is complex, grounded, and masterfully articulated. Edna becomes a real person! It's amazing! And then she throws it all away in what can only be described as a fit of pique. The last chapter blows.

This book should be taught, and it should be taught as a tragedy. Not that the story itself is a tragedy, but the story's conception, context, and publication as a tragedy. We all deserve better than Chopin and The Awakening got, and this novel can serve as a very depressing signpost along the way to getting to that better world.

Anthony reviewed L’éveil by Kate Chopin

L’éveil

4 stars

L'Éveil (The Awakening), c'est le récit d'une libération. Une libération qui amène son lot de souffrances, mais qui entraîne dans son sillon d'innombrables sensations qui n'avaient jamais été ressenties (ou acceptées). Dans un style sobre, très moderne, Kate Chopin décrit merveilleusement le cheminement d'une femme qui, dans la Louisiane du XIXe siècle, se refuse à appartenir à quiconque : ni à un homme, ni à ses enfants. Nous sommes ici dans un cheminement personnel, individuel, dans ce qu'on imagine comme l'étape précédant le féminisme (la volonté que toute femme le partage, et ce quelle que soit sa couleur de peau ou sa condition sociale). Mais à quelques reprises le personnage d'Edna élargit son questionnement et l'étend à l'ensemble des femmes, avec par exemple ce passage : « peut-être est-il préférable de se réveiller après tout, même pour souffrir, au lieu de rester dupe de ses illusions toute sa vie. »