Resistance to the norms : the careers and lives of Mary Cassatt and Kate Chopin

Abstract

This thesis focuses on the careers and lives of two remarkable women during the late nineteenth century who followed their creative ambitions: Mary Cassatt (1844-1926), an artist, and Kate Chopin (1850-1904), a writer. Cassatt and Chopin worked hard to establish themselves as artists and followed similar paths: first, to gain recognition and establish themselves as professionals and later to develop their own styles. Cassatt and Chopin helped to alter what was and is expected and acceptable for women artists through their resistance to the norms. The main emphasize is on the parallel choices Cassatt and Chopin made about their careers, their feelings toward society, and the development of their women subjects and characters. At the beginning of Cassatt and Chopin's careers, they went along with the norms. The section "Establishing a Name" explains why they originally went along with the art forms that were the most acceptable for . artists. The section "Encountering New Possibilities" discusses the middle part of their careers when they began to resist the norms. Their resistance came with the help oftheir new mentors and their growing confidence in their ability as artists. Their final development as artists is discussed in "Finding One's Niche." At this point in their careers, they had found a balance between what society expected of them and what they wanted as artists.