Exploration Of Different Fates Between Edna And Delia From Feminist Perspective

Kate Chopin has long been recognized as a herald of feminists. Her novel The Awakening has become the highlight of discussion for years home and abroad due to the inspiration of its protagonist Edna’s awakening of women identity and her pursuit of her own dream. Edna is generally considered as a forerunner of feminism though she ended up with a tragic suicide in despair. Meanwhile, Anne Tyler is one of America’s most famous novelists. She won a Pulitzer Prize-winning American novelist in1989. Her work is generally concerned with women’s everyday life and their adventure, thus she is generally believed to be a modern pioneer of feminist writer. Ladder of Years tells a story about a40year-old housewife Delia Grinstead who ran away from her family during a family vacation and lived independently in a new town as a new being. Delia found her own self-identity and renewed her own life and her relationship with her family.In fact the two feminist novels share many things in common, with the two protagonists both trying to get rid of their life after their realization of women identity and eager to live a new life with a new identity at their own favor rather than being dominated or constrained by their families or the society custom. This thesis makes a systematical comparison between Edna’s and Delia’s pursuit of feminism and tries to analyze the causes for their different feministic fates, hoping to further the study of comparison between feminist writers and to show some enlightenment for the development of feminism.As to the structure of the thesis, it is divided into five chapters. Chapter one is the general introduction of the thesis and its significance. Chapter two is literature review about feminism, Kate Chopin’s feminism and Anne Tyler’s feminism. Chapter three analyzes Edna’s life experience, her pursuit of freedom and her utopian feminism. Chapter four analyzes Delia’s life experience, her pursuit of freedom and her new feminist identity. Chapter five is the conclusion of the causes of Edna and Delia’s different fates and the enlightenment it revels for the feministic development.