Abstract
In Kate Chopin's view of the human condition, three basic needs for a place where one feels he belongs, for love, and for selfhood must be dealt with if a person is to arrive at a satisfactory sense of his own identity. These needs Mrs. Chopin regards as universal, and she portrays all sorts of characters as they attempt to deal with these human concerns. But being a woman, she perceives these needs most acutely from the feminine point of view, and her works reflect this fact. At Fault is Kate Chopin's first intensive exploration of female identity problems: in it she portrays a number of women, each searching in her own way for a satisfactory identity. Bayou Folk reveals Mrs. Chopin's interest in all three of the related needs, but it centers on the need to belong. A Night in Acadie emphasizes the need for human love. And although Mrs. Chopin never treats these concerns as unrelated drives, the projected but never published volume "A Vocation and a Voice" insists on the importance of selfhood. ...
Skaggs, Peggy Dechert (1972). A woman's place: The search for identity in Kate Chopin's female characters. Texas A&M University. Texas A&M University. Libraries. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /DISSERTATIONS -186158.