Kate Chopin

　　Kate Chopin (1850 - 1904), born Katherine O'Flaherty in St. Louis, Missouri onFebruary 8, 1850, is considered one of the first feminist authors of the 20th century. She is often credited forintroducing the modern feminist literary movement. Chopin was following a rather conventional path as a housewifeuntil an unfortunate tragedy-- the untimely death of her husband-- altered the course of her life. She became atalented and prolific short story writer, influenced primarily by the French short story author, Guy de Maupassant. She is best known for her novel The Awakening (1899), ahauntingly prescient tale of a woman unfulfilled by the mundane yet highly celebrated "feminine role," and herpainful realization that the constraints of her gender blocked her ability to seek a more fulfilling life. Many ofher works are featured in our Feminist Literature - Study Guide

　　Commenting on the influence of Maupassant on her writing, Chopin wrote:

　　"...I read his stories and marveled at them. Here was life, not fiction; for where were the plots, the oldfashioned mechanism and stage trapping that in a vague, unthinkable way I had fancied were essential to the artof story making. Here was a man who had escaped from tradition and authority, who had entered into himself andlooked out upon life through his own being and with his own eyes; and who, in a direct and simple way, told uswhat he saw.." [source: Jane Le Marquand, Deep South (1996)] Chopin's settings for many of herstories is in north central Louisiana, many in Natchitoches. She published two significant short story collections;Bayou Folk in 1894, and then A Night in Acadie in 1897.She remains one of our favorite authors for her exceptional gift with words, use of irony, and range of evocativewriting themes. Reader will find gems of her work in both collections, most of which are offered as links on theleft of this page.

　　Some argue that modern feminism was borne on her pages, and one needs to look no further than her 1894 short story