Slavery in America Gateway
Kate Chopin Web Resources

Web site Reviewer and Compiler
Donna Hendry - Educational Consultant, Connecticut

Site Ratings
1 = Poor 2 = Fair 3 = Good 4 = Excellent

Kate Chopin: A ReAwakening
http://www.pbs.org/katechopin/
This is authoritative web site on Kate Chopin was created by the Public Broadcasting Company (PBS). Well organized, cleanly presented and researched, this site includes interviews on Chopin, chronology of key events in her life a large online library of her work. This site is excellent for student research, and good for basic overview as well. However, most of the links in their additional resources area are dead links.
Overall Rating: 3

SwissEduc: Kate Chopin
http://www.SwissEduc.ch/english/readinglist/chopink/
This site includes online texts, lessons to accompany "The Awakening" as well as a short biography. The site includes about half a dozen compositions, as well as an audio file of a discussion on "A Story of an Hour". The site is based in Germany.
Overall Rating: 3

Kate Chopin: from Domestic Goddess
http://www.womenwriters.net/domesticgoddess/chopin1.htm
Domestic Goddesses aka Scribbling Mobs of Women, is a moderated E-journal dedicated to pioneers in women’s fiction. The site includes biography, links and criticisms of Chopin’s work, mainly focusing on "The Awakening" and "The Story of an Hour" (which they erroneously title "A Portrait of an Hour"). Nearly all information supplied is unique.
Overall Rating: 3

French Creoles in Louisiana: An American Tale
http://www.yale.edu/ynhti/curriculum/units/1992/2/92.02.02.x.html
This is a highly detailed essay on the Creoles in Louisiana. Sections include language, habits, marriage customs among many others. Race issues are covered in some detail as well. A lesson at the end of the essay is available. This would be highly useful to understanding the background culture of many of Chopin’s stories.
Overall Rating: 3

PAL: Perspectives in American Literature - A Research and Reference Guide
http://www.csustan.edu/english/reuben/pal/chap6/chopin.html
This web site is set up like an anthology; links are included to a number of Chopin texts. What is unique to this site is a very extensive bibliography of printed information, papers and critiques on Chopin’s work. There are a few study questions included for "The Awakening".
Overall Rating: 2.5

Kate Chopin Enhancements
http://www.lpb.org/programs/enhanced_kc/index.html
This web site had been done by Louisiana Public Broadcasting in adjunct to PBS’s program "Kate Chopin: A Re Awakening". The site is comprised of video clips and transcripts from the program. There are a number of clips related specifically to race and African Americans that deal with Chopin’s real life, rather than her work.
Overall Rating: 2.5

Exploring Kate Chopin’s "The Awakening"
http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/eng384/awake.htm
When researching Kate Chopin, one cannot miss seeing her novella "The Awakening". While steeped in feminist issues, reading criticism of this work leads to a better understanding of Chopin’s work in general. The site includes a number of scholarly papers on different issues in Chopin’s work that are well written and insightful.
Overall Rating: 2

Changing Places: Women and the Old South; or, What Happens When Local Color Becomes Regionalism
http://www.georgetown.edu/crossroads/conversations/cases/ewell/Ewelless.html
This is an excellent essay on Local Color written by Barbara Ewell. She addresses Chopin’s dealing of race in the Deep South, as well as expectations and social strata. The information found in this essay would be useful for anyone wishing to gain a deeper understanding of Chopin’s style, work and environment.
Overall Rating: 2


Online Published Works by Kate Chopin:

Night in the Acadie (1897)
http://docsouth.unc.edu/chopinnight/menu.html
Stories included were: "Athènaise", "Regret", "A Matter of Prejudice", "The Lilies", "Nèg Crèole", and many others including the title piece.

Bayou Folk (1894)
http://docsouth.unc.edu/chopinbayou/menu.html
Stories included were: "Desirèe’s Baby", "La Belle Zoriade", "The Bênitous' Slave", "At The 'Cadian Ball"

The Awakening (1899)
http://docsouth.unc.edu/chopinawake/menu.html

Many of her other famous (and infamous) stories were published singly, in magazines and papers of the time. PBS offers one of the most complete listings of her stories.
http://www.pbs.org/katechopin/library/