New Approaches to Kate Chopin’s Fiction

Chair: John Staunton, Eastern Michigan University

“Onomatopoeia, Idolatry, and The Awakening,” Jack Kerkering, Loyola University Chicago

“Implicit Circles of Connection in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening,” Jennifer Pliego, Empire State College

“Moving Beyond Spinsterhood: The Social Reality of a Spinster and Walking Towards a New Feminine Identity in Chopin’s ‘A Sentimental Soul,’” Heidi Podlasli-Labrenz, Universität Bremen, Germany

2021 Kate Chopin at ALA in Boston

Because of the Covid pandemic the 2020 ALA conference had been cancelled.

Approaches to Teaching Kate Chopin Round Table

Chair:  David Z. Wehner, Mount St. Mary’s University

“A Philosophical Approach to Teaching Kate Chopin’s ‘The Storm,’” Linda Crenshaw, Austin Peay State University (Virtual presentation)

“’Never again to belong to another then herself’: Teaching The Awakening as an Introduction to Feminist Theory in Literature Classrooms,” Chelsea Fabian, University of Missouri-Columbia and Britt Wilson, Salisbury University

“Explaining the Concept of ‘Window’ in Chopin’s Works as a Literary Vehicle,” Sonika Islam, Eastern University-Bangladesh (Virtual presentation)

“Reimagining the End of Kate Chopin’s The Awakening as Critical, Creative Practice,” Christina Katopodis, City University of New York (Virtual presentation)

Exploring and Comparing Kate Chopin’s Writing Through Food and Family

Chair:  Kathryn O’Donoghue, Suffolk County Community College-Grant  

“Eating Their Words: The Connection Between Food and Speech in The Awakening,” Ann V. Bliss, Texas A&M University-San Antonio

“Edna’s ‘Uneven, Impulsive’ Relationship to Childhood, Motherhood, and the American Family’s Structure in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening,” Madeline Gottlieb, Binghampton University (Virtual presentation)

“Her Life, Her Letters: A Reading of Chopin and Tagore,” Kaberi Chatterjee, Scottish Church College

2019 Kate Chopin at ALA in Boston

Roundtable on Teaching Kate Chopin

Chair: Bernard Koloski, Mansfield University

“‘A Palace of Gems’: How to Introduce Literary Analysis Using ‘The Storm,’” Amy Branam Armiento, Frostburg State University

“’The Story of a Class’: Using KateChopin.org in American Literature Classrooms,” Anna Elfenbein, West Virginia University

“Kate Chopin’s Great Awakenings: Sex, Secularism, and the American Literature Survey in Western Kentucky,” Ray Horton, Murray State University

“Solitude and Empowerment Through Music and Swimming: Teaching Kate Chopin’s The Awakening in Malaysia,” Regina Yoong Yui Jien, Ohio University

New Perspectives on Kate Chopin’s Short Fiction

Chair: Heather Ostman, SUNY Westchester Community College

“Animate Things in Kate Chiopn’s ‘A Very Fine Fiddle,” Susan Moldow, Florida Atlantic University

“Recapturing the Orient – Ida von Hahn-Hanh’s Countess Faustina and Letters From the Orient: New Insights about Kate Chopin’s ‘An Egyptian Cigarette,’” Heidi M. Podlasi-Labrenz, University of Bremen, Germany

2018 Kate Chopin at ALA in San Francisco

Roundtable on Teaching Kate Chopin

Chair: Christina G. Bucher, Berry College

“Bird Songs: Teaching the ‘Soundtrack’ of The Awakening,” Mark Schiebe, Queensborough Community College, the City University of New York

“Passing for ‘Normal’: Edna Pontellier’s Universal Struggle,” Chris Gilmer, Alcorn State University Vicksburg

“Enriching Kate’s Stories with Stories of Kate’s Life,” Gerri Chopin Wendel, Independent Scholar and Chopin descendant

“CRISPing the Classroom: Renewing Chopin through Evolving Pedagogy,” Kathleen Butterly Nigro, University of Missouri–St. Louis

“Students’ Creative Responses to Chopin’s Works,” Kelli Purcell O’Brien, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff

Exploring Kate Chopin’s Writing Through Theoretical and Legal Lenses

Chair: Kelli Purcell O’Brien, University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff

“The Right of Repose: Time as Unit of Justice in Kate Chopin’s At Fault, Trinyan Mariano, Florida State University

“Shedding Cultural Capital: Why Edna Pontellier Can’t Just Walk Away From It,” Claudia Milstead, University of Northern Colorado

“Re-reading Kate Chopin’s Ignored Story ‘A Morning Walk’ as a Key to Her Oeuvre,” David Wehner, Mount St. Mary’s University

Also at ALA: “Elemental Bodies: Mapping the Materialist Cartographies of Margaret Fuller’s ‘Leila’ and Kate Chopin’s The Awakening in a Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Classroom,” Lesli Vollrath, University of Houston

At ALA at the Round Table of Digital Americanists, “Digital Sleuthing and Lost Texts: Reading in the Age of Expanding Archives,” Bonnie James Shaker (Kent State University at Geauga) and Angela Pettitt (Penn State University at Shenango) will be talking about why they think recovering Chopin’s “Her First Party” matters (see Shaker, Bonnie James, et al. “Recovering Kate Chopin’s ‘Her First Party’: Media, Mediation, Message.” American Periodicals: A Journal of History and Criticism, vol. 27, no. 1, 2017, pp. 21–24).

Mapping and Translating Kate Chopin’s Fiction in New Contexts
Chair: Kelli Purcell O’Brien, University of Memphis

“Mapping Memory Boundaries at the Site of the Plantation Home in Kate Chopin’s Bayou Folk Stories,” Heather Fox, University of South Florida

“The Art of Contingency in Kate Chopin’s Fiction: a Bioregional Approach to American Regionalism,” Jessica Bridget George, Indiana University

“Translating Gender in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening: A Transformance Approach,” Eulalia Piñero Gil, Universidad Autónoma of Madrid, Spain

Roundtable: Teaching Kate Chopin in Different Contexts

Moderator: Heather Ostman, SUNY Westchester Community College

“The I Hate Edna Club,” Emily Toth, Louisiana State University

“Mrs. Mallard Doesn’t Know Jack About Prison! Teaching ‘The Story of an Hour’ in a Prison-Themed Seminar,” Marlowe Daly-Galeano, Lewis-Clark State College

“A Truly American Experience? German Views on Kate Chopin’s ‘The Story of an Hour’ and ‘A Pair of Silk Stockings’,” Heidi Podlasli-Labrenz, University of Bremen, Germany

“Acadians and Canadians: Teaching Chopin and Atwood in the Lit Survey Classroom,” J. Christopher O’Brien, University of Memphis

Special Session: Three of Kate Chopin’s Great Granddaughters and Three Chopin Scholars Discuss Chopin’s Legacy

Moderator, Bernard Koloski, Mansfield University
Susie Chopin
Annette Chopin Lare
Gerri Chopin Wendel
Thomas Bonner Jr., Xavier University of Louisiana
Barbara C. Ewell, Loyola University of New Orleans
Emily Toth, Louisiana State University

Teaching Kate Chopin in Different Contexts
Chair: Heather Ostman, Westchester Community College

“The Color Line and Character Motivations in Chopin’s ‘Désirée’s Baby,’” Amy C. Branam, Frostburg State University

“The Generation Gap in Teaching The Awakening,” Emily Toth, Louisiana State University

“Multimedia Approaches to Teaching Kate Chopin’s Short Fiction,” Kate O’Donoghue, CUNY Graduate Center

Challenging Characterizations, Categorizations, and Canonicity: Chopin Today
Chair: Kate O’Donoghue, CUNY Graduate Center

“Fashion as Characterization in The Awakening,” Kelli Purcell O’Brien, University of Memphis

“There Was Something Coming to Her,” Aparecido Donizete Rossi, Sao Paulo State University, Brazil (UNESP)

“Kate Chopin’s Rejection of Individualism,” Rafael Walker, University of Pennsylvania

2012 Kate Chopin at ALA in San Francisco

Kate Chopin: New Information, New Readings
Chair: Christina G. Bucher, Berry College

“New Information about Kate Chopin and American Public Libraries,” Charles Johanningsmeier, University of Nebraska at Omaha

“Lingerie and Labor: Georgie McEnder’s Realistic Education,” Kathryn O’Donoghue, CUNY Graduate Center

“Guo Xi’s ‘Three Distances’ and Three Women in The Awakening,” Xuemei Wan, Jiangsu University, China

Teaching Kate Chopin in Different Contexts: A Roundtable
Chair: Bernard Koloski, Mansfield University

Emily Toth, Louisiana State University

Christina G. Bucher, Berry College

Kelli Purcell O’Brien, The University of Memphis

Madoka Kishi, Louisiana State University

2011 Kate Chopin at ALA in Boston

The Awakening, At Fault, and Chopin’s Early Work
Chair: Emily Toth, Louisiana State University

“Edna Pontellier‘s Platonic Wings,” William Moss, Wake Forest University

“At Fault: Térèse Goes West,” Gary MacDonald, Virginia State University

“‘Something Dearer Than Life’: Art and (Re)production in Chopin’s Early Work,” Arielle Zibrak, Boston University

The Awakening: Its Influence, its Food, and its iPhone

Chair: Emily Toth, Louisiana State University

“The Influence of The Awakening on Edith Summers Kelley‘s Weeds: Biographical Connections?” Linda Kornasky, Angelo State University

“By Way of the Mouth: The Delicious Taste of Edna Pontellier‘s Delirium.” Julia P. McLeod, University of Tennessee, Knoxville

“Hacking Edna’s iPhone: Teaching and Reading Kate Chopin with 21st-century Digital Natives,” John A. Staunton, Eastern Michigan University

Also at Film and Literature session:

“Adaptations of The Awakening and Other Faux Pas,” Barbara Ewell, Loyola University

At Roundtable–Websites of American Author Societies: What Are Their Goals? Who Are They For?

Bernard Koloski, Mansfield University

2010 Kate Chopin at ALA in San Francisco

Kate Chopin in Other Media
Chair: Kathleen Butterly Nigro, University of Missouri–St. Louis

“Kate Chopin Slew the Loch Ness Monster–and Other Farcical Notes from the Internet.” Emily Toth, Louisiana State University

“Kate Chopin in Brazil.” Aparecido Donizete Rossi, São Paulo State University (UNESP), Brazil

“A Network and a Bridge: The ‘KateChopin.org’ Website.” Bernard Koloski, Mansfield University

Also, at 2010 Society for the Study of Southern Literature Conference in New Orleans:

Racial and Cultural “Otherness” in the Work of Kate Chopin 

Moderator: Christina G. Bucher, Berry College

“Limits of Representation of Racial ‘Otherness’: Grotesque Portrayal of the Mammy Stereotype in Kate Chopin’s Fiction.” Dagmar Pegues, Metropolitan University, Prague

“‘With an Inward Agony . . . She Witnessed the Scene of Torture’: Childbirth and Class in The Awakening.” Correna Catlett Merricks, University of Mississippi

“Kate Chopin’s Louisiana Writing as Travel Literature.” Thomas Bonner, Jr., Xavier University of Louisiana

At Popular Culture & American Culture Associations Conference in  St. Louis:

Kate Chopin Resurrected! The Story of the Kate Chopin Revival

Chair: Kathleen Butterly Nigro, University of Missouri–St. Louis

“My Part in Reviving Kate Chopin.” Emily Toth, Louisiana State University

“So Long As We Read Chopin.” Mary Papke, University of Tennessee

“Feeling the Countercurrent.” Bernard Koloski, Mansfield University

At Midwest Popular Culture Association Conference in Minneapolis:

“‘A Pair of Silk Stockings’ and Pop Culture,” Kelli O’Brien, University of Memphis

2009 Kate Chopin at ALA in  Boston

Kate Chopin, Pedagogy, and the Secondary Classroom: Problems and Possibilities
Moderator: John May, Louisiana State University

“Well Rounding: A Multitheoretical Approach for Teaching The Awakening,” Kyllikki Persson, Belmont University

”‘She is not like us’: Edna Pontellier in the Inner City,” Kate S. Flynn, Roosevelt High School, St. Louis, Missouri

“Chopin’s Fatal Awakening,” Xueling Wu, China University of Geosciences (Beijing) & Texas A&M-Commerce; Rukiya Muhanmmad, China University of Geosciences (Beijing) & Texas A&M-Commerce

“Pedagogical Prospects at the Edge of Certainty: Teaching and Learning to Teach Chopin in the Pre-service Classroom,” John A. Staunton, Eastern Michigan University

Subversive Narratives: Reinterpretations by Kate Chopin
Moderator: Kathleen Butterly Nigro, University of Missouri–St. Louis

“Kate Chopin and Visual Art,” Judith H. Bonner, The Historic New Orleans Collection; Thomas Bonner, Jr., Xavier University of New Orleans

“Crossing the Line: Physical Boundaries in Kate Chopin’s ‘In and Out of Old Natchitoches,’ ” Meredith Frederich, Northern Illinois University

“Motherhood and Kate Chopin’s ‘Regret,’ ” Heather Ostman, Westchester Community College, SUNY

“Dead Women Talking: The Transgressive Manuscripts of ‘Her Letters’ and ‘Elizabeth Stock’s One Story,’ ” Margot Sempreora, Webster University

Also, at 2009 Society for the Study of American Women Writers Conference in Philadelphia:

Philosophy and Characterization in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening and Short Fiction

Chair: Kelli Purcell O’Brien, The University of Memphis

Kimberly Greenfield, The University of Memphis, “‘Désirée’s Baby’: A Linguistic Look at the Intersection of Desire With Reality”

John Staunton, Eastern Michigan University, “Unsettling Readers: Kate Chopin, Pedagogy, and the Discourses of Knowing”

Joseph George, University of North Carolina-Greensboro, “Antagonists for Her to Overcome: A Phenomenological Approach to The Awakening”

Kelli Purcell O’Brien, The University of Memphis, “Tonie: A Unique Look at the Recurring Character in Kate Chopin”

At 8th Biennial Berry College Southern Women Writers Conference at Mount Berry, Georgia

Miranda Livingston from Texas Woman’s University presented “The Male Characters in Selected Fiction of Kate Chopin” in a session on Southern Women Writers and Masculinity.

Kate Chopin’s South

Corrie Catlett Merricks, University of Mississippi, “‘Where is my little one?’: Race, Power, and Motherhood in Kate Chopin’s Fiction”

Ma Zuqiong, University of Louisville, “New South, New China: How New Were They for Kate Chopin and Zhang Ailing?”

Kelli Purcell O’Brien, University of Memphis, “Sex Outside Marriage, Inside of Love in Kate Chopin”

2008 Kate Chopin at ALA in San Francisco

Kate Chopin: New Perspectives on Race and Ethnicity
Moderator: Tom Morgan, University of Dayton

“Failed Hybridity: Creole Identity in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening and Jean Rhys’s Wide Sargasso Sea,” JoSann Lien, Idaho State University

“When Désirée’s Baby Grows Up: ‘Passing’ and Erasure in Kate Chopin’s ‘Désirée’s Baby’ and Fannie Flagg’s Welcome to the World, Baby Girl!” Abigail L. Montgomery, Blue Ridge Community College

“Rethinking the Myth of the Black Rapist: Kate Chopin and the Erasure of the Black Male,” Delores Amorelli, University of Florida

Theoretical Approaches to Kate Chopin
Moderator: Christina Bucher, Berry College

“Regional Aesthetics: The Role of Region in Construction of Gender- and Race-Based Identities and Stereotypes in the Work of Kate Chopin and Grace King,” Dagmar Junkova, Charles University, Prague / Loyola University

“Kate Chopin’s ‘Juanita’: Sexual Magnet or Grotesque?” Susan
Koppelman, Independent Scholar

“Chopin’s Stories from the Deluzian Perspective: ‘The Storm,’ ‘Story
of an Hour,’ and ‘A Respectable Woman,’” Ailee Cho, KAIST (Korean Advanced Institute of Science and Technology)

Roundtable: You Ought to Be In the Canon: How We Helped Kate Chopin In
Moderator: Bernard Koloski, Mansfield University, editor of Approaches to Teaching Chopin’s The Awakening, 1988

Thomas Bonner Jr., Xavier University of New Orleans, editor of The Kate Chopin Companion, 1986

Anna Elfenbein, West Virginia University, author of Women on the Color Line, 1989

Barbara C. Ewell, Loyola University of New Orleans, author of the critical study Kate Chopin, 1986

Mary E. Papke, University of Tennessee, author of Verging on the Abyss, 1990

Helen Taylor, Exeter University, United Kingdom, author of Kate Chopin Portraits, 1979

Emily Toth, Louisiana State University, author of the biography Kate Chopin, 1990

2007 Kate Chopin at ALA in Boston

Reading Kate Chopin in the Town and the Country
Chair: Mary E. Papke, The University of Tennessee

“Reading for Realism in the Land of Local Color,” Thomas L. Morgan, University of Dayton

“So What Does That Kiss Really Mean? Teaching Chopin and Lesbian Moments in the Bible Belt,” Christina Bucher, Berry College, Rome, GA

“Kate Chopin and New Orleans, Past and Present,” Heather Ostman, Empire State College, State University of New York

Kate Chopin: Writing in the World
Chair: Heather Ostman, Empire State College, State University of New York

“Kate Chopin’s Reputation,” Bernard Koloski, Mansfield University of Pennsylvania

“Kate Chopin, Free Love, and ‘Super’-spiritual Influences,” Kathleen Nigro, University of Missouri, St. Louis

“Servitude and ‘A Solitary Soul’: Who Works in Kate Chopin’s The Awakening?” Avis Hewitt, Grand Valley State University

2006 Kate Chopin at ALA in San Francisco

“Chopin’s Male Characters and ‘the joy that kills’,” Lizbeth Pereira, Latrobe University, Australia

“Nodding Over Emerson: Kate Chopin and the Relevance of Emersonian Transcendentalism in a Post-Romantic Age,” William Moss, Wake Forest University

The Better-Known Chopin: Making It New
Chair: Barbara Ewell, Loyola University, New Orleans

“Mr. Emerson Comes to St. Louis: ‘Inspiration’ and Kate Chopin,” Kathleen Butterly Nigro, University of Missouri, St. Louis

“Situated Knowledge in Kate Chopin’s ‘Desiree’s Baby,’” Martha Sledge, Marymount Manhattan College

“From Gilded Cage to Pigeonièrre: Race, Sexuality, and Architecture in The Awakening,” Catherine Michna, Boston College

The Lesser-Known Chopin: What We’ve Missed
Chair: Bernard Koloski, Mansfield University of Pennsylvania

“The way they ‘really talked to each other’: Kate Chopin’s Translations,” Veronica Kirk-Clausen, University of California, Santa Cruz

“Chopin’s Lyrical Anodyne for the Modern Soul,” Jane F. Thrailkill, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

“What Kate Chopin Knew About Domestic Violence: ‘In Sabine,’” Emily Toth, Louisiana State University

2005 Kate Chopin at ALA in Boston

The New Kate Chopin: Explicating “Sexy” in the Twenty-First Century: A Roundtable Discussion

Moderator: Avis Hewitt, Grand Valley State University

Emily Toth, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge

John May, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge

Bernard Koloski, Mansfield University of Pennsylvania

Anne Goodwyn Jones, University of Missouri at Rolla

Suzanne Disheroon-Green, Northwestern State University of Louisiana