Kate Chopin's Private Papers [Hardcover]

Emily Toth (Editor), Per Seyersted (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 22, 1998

"Toth and Seyersted's well-organized, carefully edited volume makes available all manuscripts and related items from all archival collections.... This volume is essential for American literature collections." —Choice

An edition of the primarily unpublished papers of Kate Chopin, author of the feminist classic The Awakening. These papers illuminate the growth of Chopin as a writer, reveal the reactions of critics to her work, and settle a number of controversies in Chopin studies.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Toth and Seyersted, both biographers of Chopin, have categorized this wealth of mostly unpublished material according to Chopin's three identities: the unmarried Kate O'Flaherty (1850-70), the wife and mother (1871?84), and the widow and professional writer (1885-1904). However, disappointment awaits anyone looking to these varied papers?including notebooks, diaries, poems, and illustrations?for a clear psychological picture of the spirit behind the masterpiece The Awakening (1899). A private person with a strong sense of Victorian propriety, Chopin reveals little of her inner life; even her 1894 diary is guarded and unenlightening. Only her manuscript account books?with word counts, publication place and date, and payment?indicate how seriously she took her profession as a writer. The insights Toth provides into Chopin's life surely did not come from these morsels. Recommended for large academic libraries only.?Charles C. Nash, Cottey Coll., Nevada, MO
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Emily Toth, Professor of English at Louisiana State University, is the author of _Kate Chopin: A Life_; editor of Chopin's _A Vocation and a
Voice_:and creator of _Ms. Mentor's Impeccable Advice for Women in Academia._

Per Seyersted, Professor Emeritus at the University of Oslo, is the author of _Kate Chopin: a Critical Biography_ and editor of _The Complete Works of Kate Chopin_.

Cheyenne Bonnell, who has taught at universities in Pennsylvania and Wyoming, writes on Victorian Literature.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 360 pages
• Publisher: Indiana University Press (October 22, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0253331129
• ISBN-13: 978-0253331120
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.3 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,389,421 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Complete collection of Chopin's journals and private papers., March 31, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Kate Chopin's Private Papers (Hardcover)

i really enjoyed reading chopin's private papers -

although what we have left of chopin's personal documets are minimal, this book contains all of it.

still, we can continue to infer and speculate on her life. chopin can be seen as a young and budding woman while she schooled at the sacred heart. and, then travel with her on her eye-opening honeymoon to europe.

this book lends us a more closer look at one of the great female writers of the 19th century.