kate chopin’s the awakening -...
TRANSCRIPT
“Moon-Landing”
One link between the popular
Modern Family and Chopin’s
novel is the theme of marriage
and motherhood.
Claire, a homemaker, compares
her life as a mom to that of a
previous co-worker, now a Paris
executive.
Keep track of what each
woman has gained as a
result of her lifestyle choice,
and what each has “lost.”
Feminism
Chopin's feminism certainly is a major theme, but be careful not to overstate it.
Chopin seems to have believed that men and women alike have great difficulty
reconciling their need to live as discrete individuals with their need to live in close
relationship with a mate; these conflicting needs lie at the center of her work.
Evelyn de Morgan,
Gilded Cage (1919)
What is the most dominant image?
Why does the painter choose to make certain images
dominant and others marginal?
What might be the significance of the two birds?
Does the painting evoke a certain mood or theme? How?
Why?
How might the title of the painting affect the analysis?
Gilded Cage and The Awakening
Portrays a woman who lives in luxury yet yearns for
freedom from her older husband and her restrictive society
Essentially an allegory for the captivity of women, the
painting’s depiction of birds, children, and sky echoes much
of the symbolism in The Awakening while presenting an
alternative picture of motherhood
The mood and themes evoked by the painting are the same
elements in The Awakening
… characterization of nature as a freeing force, emphasis on
human individuality, and the advocacy of free thought
Harry Von Tilzer,
A Bird in a Gilded Cage (1900)
She’s only a bird In a gilded cage, A beautiful sight to see, You may think she’s happy And free from care, She’s not Tho’ she seems to be, ‘Tis sad when you think Of her wasted life, For youth cannot mate with age, And her beauty was sold For an old man’s gold, She’s a bird in a gilded cage.
Harry Von Tilzer,
A Bird in a Gilded Cage (1900)
She’s only a bird In a gilded cage, A beautiful sight to see, You may think she’s happy And free from care, She’s not Tho’ she seems to be, ‘Tis sad when you think Of her wasted life, For youth cannot mate with age, And her beauty was sold For an old man’s gold, She’s a bird in a gilded cage.
1) Highlight the line from the
song that is most
significant
2) Highlight the phrase
3) Highlight the word that
best portrays the theme
Why is it significant that Chopin’s novel,
Morgan’s painting, and Von Tilzer’s song
were all created in the same era? What does
this imply about the role of artists?
Grand Isle, Louisiana
What is the setting (time and place)?
How does it factor into the interactions of the characters?
What does the introductory
paragraph/page introduce?
Why?
A green and yellow parrot, which hung in a
cage outside the door, kept repeating over
and over:
“Allez vous-en! Allez vous-en! Sapristi! *
That’s all right!”
He could speak a little Spanish, and also a
language which nobody understood, unless
it was a mockingbird that hung on the other
side of the door, whistling his fluty notes out
upon the breeze with maddening persistence.
*[“Go away! Go away! For heaven’s sake!”