Weblog 9

Précis Assignment

Showalter, Elaine. “Tradition and the Female Talent: The Awakening as a Solitary Book.” New Essays on The Awakening. Ed. Wendy Martin. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, 1988. 33-55.

In this essay, Elaine Showalter discusses Kate Chopin’s novel, The Awakening, in the context of literary traditions and movements prevalent among female writers during the late nineteenth century. Showalter presents a study as much of Chopin herself as of her novel. Beginning with some of Chopin’s influences, such as Maupassant, and then exploring the history of the women writers proceeding Chopin, the author argues that though she admired these writers, she did not try to conform to their standards of writing (35). Showalter continuously makes the comparison that, just as Edna in The Awakening stood alone in the novel, Chopin stood alone rejecting to write under any literary traditions. Though she is often labeled as a local colorist, the author argues that The Awakening is not an example of local color fiction because Chopin does not express “nostalgia” for the past (42). Likewise, despite the common elements between the novel and other pieces written by females during this time, such as the ideas of the conflict between art and love, close relationships between women—the “Boston marriage”—and the “literary domesticity” of the sentimentalist novel, Showalter presents the suicide at the end of the book as a way for Chopin to present these themes but resist deciding between any of them (34-39). Because Chopin associated with New Fiction, a movement that experimented with female sexuality, the author writes that Chopin’s novel was often included among others in “the overworked field of sex fiction” rather than being noted for its innovation (40). Finally the author suggests that The Awakening, which lost its place in literature due to its revolutionary ideas and the risks taken by Chopin, should be replaced and given the attention it deserved and be considered as part of the evolution of women’s fiction (34, 54-55).

This article, though interesting, did not seem to present a focused argument. Rather than choosing one topic to discuss in depth, the author scratched the surface of many points worth consideration. For example, the essay included many comparisons between the life of Edna in The Awakening and the artistic style of Chopin. The author seems to suggest that this was a way for Chopin to express herself as a “solitary” figure through her writing (33). This could have been especially insightful, but Showalter fails to explain this creative idea any further. Another example is that Showalter alternates between evaluating Chopin’s personal involvement within literary circles and the novel’s adherence to literary tradition without showing the connection between the two or explaining why she chose not to simply focus on one aspect over the other. Also, one of the author’s main arguments is that Chopin’s work was extremely revolutionary in the way that it cannot be categorized under any specific literary movement. However, Showalter only in rare instances, such as her explanation of New Fiction, gives readers examples of the claims that The Awakening is, in fact, labeled under these traditions. Had she presented specific instances of what she feels are these misconception, readers would have been better able to understand exactly what she was refuting. This essay could be considered appealing to read out of personal interest, but is not particularly helpful as a research aid.