CHOPIN, Kate.

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The Awakening. First edition, a classic proto-feminist novel. From the 1970s, The Awakening was heralded as a powerful early portrayal of a woman seeking sexual and spiritual freedom. On publication, it was received as a well-written but morally dangerous book; one critic described the heroine as "rare in fiction, but common enough in life" (St Louis Republic, 25 March 1899).Beginning in 1889, Chopin (1850-1904) published poetry, short stories, and occasional novels, typically set in her native Louisiana. Her 1894 collection of short stories, Bayou Folk, was an immediate critical success, and she "was catapulted from virtual anonymity to celebrity" (ANB). However, she was frustrated by trivial interpretations of her work, and her output over the next years increasingly featured bold, independent female characters. This trajectory reached its peak with The Awakening. Centred on a woman seeking sexual fulfilment and freedom from her societal roles, including motherhood, the novel was shocking to late Victorian sensibilities. Chopin found the ensuing negative reviews demoralizing and published little else for the remainder of her life.For the next 50 years, Chopin and her work faded into obscurity. However, with the rise of second-wave feminism, The Awakening found a new audience: "No other American book was so maligned, neglected for so long, and then embraced so quickly and with such enthusiasm" (Koloski, p. 1). Chopin is now associated with the New Woman movement, and is cons

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