exercise 17 p. 177

The Awakening is a novel by Kate Chopin and it was first published in 1899. The novel is set in New Orleans at the end of the 19th century. The plot centers around Edna Pontellier, the main character, and the contrast between her own views on motherhood and the common social attitudes in the South back then. It is one of the earliest American novels that focuses on women's issues. It is also widely seen as a landmark work of early feminism. It caused a mixed reaction from contemporary readers and critics. The novel blends realistic narrative and social commentary. The Awakening is a/the forerunner of American modernist literature. It echoes the works of her contemporaries such as Edith Wharton and Henry James. It can also be considered among the first Southern works in a/the tradition that has been carried on to our day in the modern works of Faulkner and Tennessee Williams, for example.