"THE ANALYSIS OF WOMEN’S DESIRES IN KATE CHOPIN’S SELECTED SHORT STORIES"

Abstract

"Women are an important factor in the natural development of society. Women are increasingly proving their unlimited abilities and receiving more recognition from society. However, to have the opportunity to develop and assert themselves, women have gone through struggles for equality and freedom over the past decades. In America, the women’s liberation movement took place in the early nineteenth century. The term feminism became popular in the field of literature about women, but there were not many female authors who openly objected to social gender’s norms. Kate Chopin is one of the feminist writers with an open and modern way of writing. Based on feminist perspectives, the study will analyze the desires of Louise Mallard in The Story of an Hour, Mrs. Sommers in A Pair of Silk Stockings, and Edna Pontellier in The Awakening by Kate Chopin. Specifically, the study explores what led to their desires, how they conquered those, and the consequences of their pursuits. Through the findings, each female character had different circumstances, but they all had the same desire for freedom and independence. Nevertheless, all three female characters could not fulfill their aspirations and had unexpected endings. Keywords: Kate Chopin, women’s desires, patriarchal society, female characters, freedom, independence."