Kate Chopin 185018511904

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Kate Chopin 1850(1851)-1904

• Ben Marshall
• Bobby Clower
• Chelsea Jones
• Corina Oltean

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Dates of Life

• 1885- Her mother passed away. (due the to
  emotional stress/deep sorrow her doctor suggested
  that she take up writing in order to deal with
  her sorrow by expressing her emotions. So she
  began to write.)
• 1904- contracts a cerebral hemorrhage after
  spending a day at the St. Louis World's fair and
  she died two days later on Aug. 24, 1904   

• July 12, 1850- Born in St.Louis, Missouri
• 1868- Graduated St.Louis Academy of the Sacred
  Heart
• June 9, 1870- Marries Oscar Chopin. They moved to
  New Orleans after their Honeymoon.
• May 22, 1871- First son, Jean Chopin, was born.
• 1883- Her husband died. One year later she moved
  to St.Louis

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Literary Period

• She was active during 1889-1904
• Victorian Era
• Bolder statements
• More nationality in authors writing
• More debate about political and social issues
  (more publicized)

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Famous Works

• First work was a piano polka for her daughter
  called Lilias Polka
• The Awakening- The piece she is best known for.
• Bayou Folk- Short story collection.
• The Storm- short story published in 1898
• At Fault- First Novel 1890
• Her second novel was Young Doctor Gosse, which
  she later destroyed. It was unsuccessfully
  submitted to the publisher.

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Famous Peers

• Susan B. Anthony
• Elizabeth Cady Stanton Wrote speeches for Susan
  B. Anthony
• Lucy Stone
• Sojourner Truth

Anthony Stanton
Stanton
Stone
Sojourner Truth
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Famous First

• The Great Awakening- It realistically depicts
  Creole life in Louisiana as tells story of young
  woman in stultifying marriage who discovers a new
  sense of self when she takes a lover.
• Her writing was unique in the sense that she
  wrote about real issues that faced women during
  this time and that many of the community leaders
  denied.

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Influenced by

• She was influenced by her mother and grandmother
  from who she learned French and strength.
• Sarah Orne Jewett
• Catholicism and Christianity
• Hawthorne, Whitman, and Henry James

Hawthorne
Jewett
Whitman
Henry James
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Influence on

• Future society- The Awakening is studied
  throughout the nation in many colleges and
  universities.
• Feminist leaders- she changed the view on womens
  rights.

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Significant Quotations

• There are some people who leave impressions not
  so lasting as the imprint of an oar upon the
  water.
• She missed him the day when some pretext served
  to take him away from her just as one misses the
  sun on a cloudy day without having thought much
  about the sun when it was shining.

• The bird that would soar above the plain of
  tradition and prejudice must have strong wings
• The voice of the sea speaks to the soul. The
  touch of the sea is sensuous, enfolding the body
  in its soft, close embrace.

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Most Famous Character

• Edna Pontellier- the heroine of The Awakening.
• She is the protagonist of the novel.
• Woman that struggles to find independence.
• Edna Pontelliers life and Chopins were
  ironically parallel.

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Literary Terms/Elements

• Themes- Love and passion, marriage and
  independence, freedom and restrain.
• She wrote a lot about the public needs of women
  (ex. Voting rights and education)
• Down to earth
• Her stories were fictional but based on real life
  from her own and others experiences she had
  witnessed.

• Irony- use of words to express something
  different from and opposite to their literal
  meaning. Ex. The Awakening

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Family Facts

• Her father was an Irish Catholic and her mother
  was a French Catholic.
• Her father was the founder of the Pacific
  Railroad
• 1855- Thomas O'Flaherty, her father passed away.
  She was 4/5 years old.
• After her father's death she was taken out of
  public school and home schooled by her mother,
  grandmother, and great-grandmother.

• Kate was the 3rd of 5 children.
• Kate and Oscar had 6 kids.
• Her husband was a cotton trader in Louisiana.

Oscar and Kate
Her Parents
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Fun Facts

• Her home is now a national historic landmark and
  the home of the Bayou Folk Museum.
• The Awakening was out of print for several
  decades.
• She graduated from Sacred Heart Academy in 1868
  but did not achieve any particular
  distinction--except as a master storyteller.

• She was unable to live off profits from writing
  so she earned extra money from real estate in
  Missouri and Louisiana.
• Oscar left her a 12,000 debt when he passed
  away, which is approximately 200,000.
• Kate Chopin was infamous for having an affair
  with a local resident, Albert Sampite, apparently
  after Oscar died