Katherine "Kate" O'Flaherty, or better known as Kate Chopin, was born in Missouri but claims to be a Louisiana native. To our generation she is known for being a “regionalist and leader in the effort to emancipate woman's voices” and one of the 1st successful women writers (Barney). Kate was born in St. Louis to her Irish father and her French Creole mother. At the age of 5 she lost her father in an accident and she was raised by a wealthy and educated household that included her mother, grandmother and great grandmother. In 1868 she graduated from “the St. Louis Academy of the Sacred Heart in 1868” shortly after she met and married Oscar Chopin (Snodgrass). They moved to Louisiana, where she had 5 sons in 9 years. Kate became incredibly knowledgeable and intrigued with the Creole and Cajun culture. This is reflected in her later works of literature. They were forced to move from Crescent City, Louisiana when Oscar’s family cotton farming business failed. They moved to Natchitoches, Louisiana and ran a local store and shortly after Kate gave birth to a little girl. After her husband died in 1883 from yellow fever, Kate and her 6 children relocated back to St. Louis to live with her mother. While living in St. Louis Kate began writing about her adventures in Louisiana. Her first novel, At Fault, was not a success. It was believed that “her first literary successes were children's stories, published in Youth's Companion and Harper's Young People” (Barney). During Kate’s career as a writer she had many ups and downs; most of her stories are based on her experiences in Louisiana. She had a way of capturing the life of the Creole and Cajun culture, which made her a well-known and talented writer of the realism period in literature. The Awakening, her 2nd novel and what is now her most popular ended her career and stirred up controversy among of critics. At the young age of 54 Kate died due to a hemorrhage in the brain, without seeing the impact and success of all her hard work.
Barney, Brett, and Lisa Paddock, eds. "Chopin, Kate." Encyclopedia of American Literature: The Age of Romanticism and Realism, 1816–1895, vol. 2, Revised Edition. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2008. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, May 3, 2010. Inc.http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID
=5&iPin= EAmL0452&SingleRecord=True.
Snodgrass, Mary Ellen. "Chopin, Kate." Encyclopedia of Feminist Literature. New York: Facts On File, Inc., 2006. Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. May 1,2010. http://www.fofweb.com/activelink2.asp?ItemID=WE54&SID= 5&iPin= EFL099&SingleRecord=True.
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