The Creoles
Roni Guerrero
English 2329
April 20, 2011
THE CREOLES
The images above are of pictures of a Creole man and woman of the 19th century.
The Awakening by Kate Chopin portrays the Creole culture of Louisiana as something visually
distinctive. Creoles are defined as individuals who are generally of French, African, Spanish
and Native American descent. In The Awakening, the protagonist Edna Pontellier is a southern
Protestant from Kentucky is considered an outsider from the Creole culture. The Creoles see
themselves totally different from Anglo-Americans. The Creoles are well known for their
cultural traditions passed down from their French and Spanish ancestors. They are known to
enjoy gambling, entertainment and social gatherings . In the novella The Awakening the
Creole’s don’t really except people from the outside of their social circle and expect them
to accept the way they live. Edna Pontellier is an outsider of the Creole culture who has trouble
understanding their unspoken rules. The rules of the Creole are that the men dominant their
household and the women take care of the house and children. The Creole women kept well-run
houses and perfected their accomplishments in music art and conversation. As written by Helen
Bush Carver and Mary Williams; “The term Creole can create some difficulty in determining
one’s actual race due to the origin of the word and different uses it has to describe race. The
earliest recollection of the word Creole comes in the early 16th century from Garcilaso de la
Vega.” As one can see by the pictures above it is hard to determine if one was white or black.
Works Cited
http://www.loyno.edu/~kchopin/Creoles.htm
http://www.creolehistory.com/history2.html