The Awakening
by Kate Chopin
The Awakening by Kate Chopin is assigned in US schools at grades 11–12, with a Lexile measure of 960L. Every citation below links to the primary source.
This page shows where The Awakening is assigned in US schools — curricula, states, grades, and the primary-source citations behind each placement. Not a summary or study guide.
- Lexile
- 960L
- Grade range
- Grades 11–12
- Difficulty for grade
- Below the grade 11–CCR band (1185–1385L)
- Age range
- Ages 16–18
- Pages
- 128
- Reading time
- about 2h 20m (est.)
- First published
- 1899
- Genre
- Literary Fiction
- ISBN-13
- 9780486277868
Reading difficulty: At 960L, The Awakening reads below the typical 1185–1385L text-complexity range for 11th grade (Common Core Appendix A). It is an accessible read for the grade — often assigned for its themes and discussion value rather than for reading challenge.
Where to find this book
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About this book
Edna Pontellier, a wife and mother in turn-of-the-century New Orleans Creole society, gradually awakens to her own desires for independence, art, and selfhood — and finds no place for them in the life prescribed for her. Kate Chopin's controversial 1899 novel was condemned in its day and is now a fixture of grades 11-12 and AP Literature for its early feminist themes and its unresolved, tragic ending.
Why widely assigned
This Literary Fiction title, reads at young-adult to upper-middle-grade complexity, typically at grades 11–12. Written in the 1890s; pairs with curriculum units on women's independence and identity.
Themes
women's independence · identity · marriage and class · society
Content notes
suicide · infidelity
Where this book is assigned
No curriculum assignments on file yet.
Similar grade-level books
Lord of the FliesWilliam Golding · 770L
The Great GatsbyF. Scott Fitzgerald · 1070L
1984George Orwell · 1090L
Fahrenheit 451Ray Bradbury · 890L
See all books like The Awakening→ — matched on theme + reading level.
Common questions
- What grade level is The Awakening?
- The Awakening is most commonly assigned in US schools in grades 11–12, with a Lexile measure of 960L. Specific grade placement varies by curriculum — AP Literature and IB English Literature typically use it in grades 11-12.
- What is the Lexile level of The Awakening?
- The Awakening has a Lexile measure of 960L according to MetaMetrics. Lexile measures text complexity, not content maturity — check the grade range and content notes separately for age-appropriateness.
- How long does it take to read The Awakening?
- It takes about 2h 20m to read The Awakening (128 pages) at an average adult reading pace of about 250 words per minute — roughly 140 minutes. Faster or slower readers will vary; the estimate is a planning guide for assigning the book.
- Is The Awakening hard to read for 11th grade?
- At 960L, The Awakening reads below the typical 1185–1385L text-complexity range for 11th grade (Common Core Appendix A). It is an accessible read for the grade — often assigned for its themes and discussion value rather than for reading challenge. Lexile measures text complexity, not thematic maturity — check the content notes for age-appropriateness separately.
- Is The Awakening banned in schools?
- The Awakening does not appear in PEN America's Index of School Book Bans 2022-2024. No documented multi-district removals on record, but individual districts may challenge titles locally.
Why this book is on this list
Each dimension below is sourced from a public reference. The full framework is documented on the classification standard page.
- Lexile measure
- 960L — sourced from MetaMetrics’ Lexile Hub.
- Grade band
- Grades 11–12 — drawn from state ELA frameworks and AP/IB syllabi citing this book.
- Curriculum alignment
- Not yet documented in any tracked curriculum.
- State-level evidence
- Not yet documented in a state-level framework on this site.
- Removal / banning records
- No tracked removal or challenge records in cited sources.
- Seasonal / contextual tags
- No seasonal or program-specific tags on this book.