Individualism in \"The Notorious Jumping

Individualism in "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" and "The Awakening"

Stephen Crane's, Maggie, a Girl of the Streets,

Charlotte Perkins-Gilman's "The Yellow Wall-paper,"

Bret Harte's "The Luck of Roaring Camp"

Individualism is something in which most Americans take pride. American is a nation built upon the notion of freedom to be an individual. Two stories that explore the various elements of the American identity are Mark Twain's "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County" and Kate Chopin's "The Awakening." Each of these stories captures an essence of America that is distinctive to its time. Twain captures the essence of the American west with satire and humor. He looks at different aspect of the personalities that ventured West and exposes them with humor. The tall tale told over and over is a product of sitting around the fire at night swapping stories. Kate Chopin looks at the American identity from a completely different and somber perspective. In her story, Edna realizes that she is trapped by societal norms and stands no chance of becoming the individual she wishes to become. She is held captive by the traditional roles that are so commonly attached to women. Both authors explore the meaning of what it means to be an American. Twain's look exposes some of the truths behind the humor while Chopin exposes the horrors behind the truth. Each author successfully conveys a slice of American identity in his or her works.

In Twain's short story, "The Notorious Jumping Frog of Calaveras County," we find that Twain explores the American identity in various ways. The setting of the story thoroughly explores the different American identities emerging as some Americans chose to travel east. The historical context of the story is significant in that Twain is drawing upon the clash that existed between the cultures of the East and the West in America in the early 1900s. The West was seen as a new frontier with those heading westward seeming less refined and educated than those who opted to remain in the East. The West was a rough terrain and it was a land filled with adventure while the East was more sophisticated. In addition, the West was full of people that were individualists forging ahead in a new direction. These rugged people spend time in bars when they are not in the mines, they speak colloquially, they tell tall tales, and use words like "feller" and "thish-yer." As a result, Twain captures a segment of Americana not yet explored in American literature with this tale.

Twain also explores the notion of American identity through the tall tale. Twain satirizes the stereotype of the gullibility of those in the West with this tale. The narrator has reason to doubt what he is hearing because he has always known it to be a myth. Simon Wheeler is described as wearing an "expression of winning gentleness and simplicity" (Twain 246). This description allows us to see that the genteel Easterner is not impressed with Wheeler at all and considers him a simpleton. The story of Smiley educated frog is no doubt a great tale. Simons reports, "Smiley said all a frog wanted was education, and he could do 'most anything -- and I believe him" (Twain 248). Simon attempts to add credibility to his tale by adding that "fellers that had traveled and been everywheres, all said he [the frog] laid over any frog that ever they see" (249). The interesting aspect of this tale is the fact that Simon manages to keep his audience captive for the length of the entire story even though he doubts it.

Kate Chopin explores identity and individuality from a different perspective in her short story, "The Awakening." Edna's search for identity emerges from the result of a struggle that stems from the fact that she is living in a loveless marriage and she is suffering from depression as a result of it. Edna's story represents women in the early eighteenth century that were struggling with the notion of discovering themselves apart from the traditional roles of mother and wife. Edna knows that she is not the maternal type and tries to find herself in other ways. In an attempt to find herself, Edna moves out of the house she shares with her husband and children. This is a bold move but it proves to be good for her well being. She looks at the move "with her own eye; to see and to apprehend the deeper undercurrents of life. No longer was she content to 'feed upon opinion' when her own soul had invited her" (Chopin 124). Removed from the circumstances that are smothering her, Edna enjoys a small taste of what being her own woman means. Edna's search for her identity is shocking for most people in her day to accept and while it proves to be good for Edna, it is not good for the rest of her immediate family.

To discover her identity, Edna also takes up painting and boldly takes up with a lover. Through her extreme actions, Chopin is illustrating the struggle that many women faced as they tried to come to terms with the fact that there was more to life than being a man's wife and a child's mother. While Edna is aware of this, society is not. Edna must face this fact when she visits Dr. Mandelot, who tells her, "Youth is given up to illusions . . . A decoy to secure mothers for the race" (Chopin 147). This forces Edna to realize that she will never achieve the dream she has for herself because she is a woman still living in a man's world. She tells the doctor, "The years that are gone seem like a dream . . It is better to wake up after all, even to suffer, rather than to remain a dupe to illusions all one's life" (147). Edna must face the fact that the life of which she dreams she can never have because the world is simply not yet ready to accommodate her on the front. Edna would rather not live than face the life she shared with her family.

There is something uniquely American about individualism. Americans are known around the globe as those that dare to find a sense of identity apart from all others. This sense of Americana is illustrated throughout history in many ways as it takes many types of individuals to populate the nation. Attempts to capture this sense of individualism can be seen throughout literature as authors look at the American character. Twain and Chopin have successfully endeavored to sketch of the American as they see it. Twain utilizes satire and humor to take a look at the individual that set forth to find wealth in the West. The tall tale and the suspecting narrator become butts of humor for Twain. Chopin captures another aspect of American identity through the life of the oppressed Edna. Both stories provide a glimpse into the unique fabric of what it means to be an American.

Naturalism and Realism explore the depths of the human experience. Naturalism tends to be darker than Realism but they share the common effort of exploring the human condition. Realistic characters placed in settings that reveal local color and flavor are trademarks of these movements. In addition, characters often become victims of their environments. Authors that represent the characteristics of these literary movements are Stephen Crane in Maggie, a Girl of the Streets, Charlotte Perkins-Gilman's "The Yellow Wall-paper," and Bret Harte's "The Luck of Roaring Camp."

Stephen Crane's, Maggie, A Girl of the Streets, is an excellent example of Naturalism because the story exposes the plight of Maggie, who becomes a victim of circumstance in that she has no control over her environment. Maggie is at odds with her environment throughout the entire story and finds she is always reacting to some negative experience rather than living her life as if she had freedom from her world. Violence is very real to her and it surrounds her at every moment. She encounters men that fight in the streets daily. Their faces shine the "grins of true assassins," Crane tells us (Crane Maggie 3). Maggie also witnesses abuse in her home as her father abuses Jimmie and Jimmie also abuses Maggie. Violence is fundamental in Naturalistic literature and Maggie, a Girl of the Streets, demonstrates how individuals can become victims of their environment and lose their sense of hope.