"Awakening" A New Perspective

Author: Martin
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2007-01-01
Features: When The Awakening was first published in 1899, it was a controversial book. It was one of the earliest American novels to address themes of adulthood and marital divorce, and was widely attacked as "vulgar" and "unhealthy." In her introduction, Wendy Martin discusses the historical context of the novel and analyzes the protagonist's transformation from a traditional woman to an independent individualist. The essays following the introduction are written by Elin Schwalter, Michael Gilmore, Andrew Delbanco, and Cristina Giocelli, exploring other themes of the novel and discussing the importance of Chopin from the perspective of American women novelists and that of previous writers.