Realsim in Writing

After reading some of Kate Chopin’s work, the difference between American Romanticism and American Realism is clear. Chopin spends much less time explaining the beauty of nature or the importance of respecting it, and looks deeper into the way people live their lives and their motives for doing so. She is much more invested in taking a look at Adrienne Farival’s opposing lifestyles and Mrs. Sommer’s newfound recklessness than taking time to smell the flowers. Ironically enough, that cliché of “smelling the flowers” is the only sign of progress from Romanticism to Realism that Chopin shows in her writing. In “Lilacs”, the story opens and closes with the blooming of lilacs playing a central part to the story. The smell of the flower is the driving force behind Farival visiting her convent, as it has come to be a tradition for her. Other than this instance, Chopin strayed from the principles of Romanticism and barely strayed from being a Realist writer.

In Chopin’s writing she explores the themes of people wanting to be someone they aren’t, and also of a world where people put themselves first to accomplish this sought after lifestyle. In “Lilacs”, Farival takes an annual trip to visit a convent of nuns, although she admits to not relying on the lord when she is away from the convent. Her life away from the convent is completely different, punctuated by a bad temper, impatience, and an indifference to religion. She also makes this trip a secret, knowing full well that Monsieur Henri is madly in love with her and spirals into depression whenever she leaves. In the case of “A Pair of Silk Stockings”, Mrs. Sommers indulges herself into an extravagant lifestyle for a day after finding some money. She is a poor woman who could have used that money for many other things, but decided to use her newfound money to treat herself in a way she had never experienced before. She did this despite knowing that there are much more useful ways she could use the money, such as spending it on her kids to make their lives more comfortable. I think Chopin is using her writing as a way to tell the world that people are becoming too self-centered, and she is trying to change that.

In writing, I think Chopin is trying to reach everyone, especially those comparable to her main characters. She is trying to show people the errors in the way the live their lives and wants to help them become what she would view as a better person. In that way she might be compared to a Romanticist, because she seemed to be urging people to be more considerate to their surroundings, although she focused mainly on the people that were being wronged by her main characters. Chopin is either writing for the women during her time period, those she perceived as being wronged by self-centered individuals, or both. The women of her time were still much oppressed and didn’t have many rights, so she would want to use her position of power to represent and uplift them. At the same time, as a Realist, she was expressing her views on the world and was trying to fix in the world what she saw was wrong.

Although the oppression of women that existed in her time is long over and would not have affected me, her stories still hit home to me due to the latter of possible audiences I had mentioned. We live in a very materialistic time where it seems people will do anything to get ahead, no matter who they hurt or what relationships they may sever. In that way, her stories are still very relevant and it is important that we all keep in mind her message that she portrayed through her stories. She seemed very bothered by the climate of society and I find it hard to believe she would be pleased at the turn it has taken in the 21st century.

“The play was over, the music ceased, the crowd filed out. It was like a dream ended. People scattered in all directions. Mrs. Sommers went to the corner and waited for the cable car.
A man with keen eyes, who sat opposite to her, seemed to like the study of her small, pale face. It puzzled him to decipher what he saw there. In truth, he saw nothing – unless he were wizard enough to detect a poignant wish, a powerful longing that the cable car would never stop anywhere, but go on and on with her forever.”
The ending of “A Pair of Silk Stockings” was a driving factor in me choosing Chopin for my analysis. The way Chopin shows Mrs. Sommers’ immediate doubt of her own judgement, and her self-pondering, drew me to her writing more than anything else did. It is also a great ending considering she was a Realist showing that people can realize their mistakes and change their ways if they get the chance.