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Symbolism in kate chopin story of an hour
How literature has changed over time
Symbolism in kate chopin story of an hour
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In The story of an hour by Kate Chopin she is able to manipulate suspense, shock, and surprise in such an extraordinarily small story. The setting which is the time and place which a story’s action takes place. It was based in the late nineteen hundreds in Louise and Brentley Mallard’s home. The internal conflict was the result of the supposed death of Mr. Mallard is presented as a complication. Louise actually feels a weight lifted as a result of Brentley Mallard's death. She is very Far from experiencing pain, she starts to feel "Free! Body and soul free!" (Chopin 204). The external conflict would that Mrs. Mallard is unhappy in the marriage. Louise Mallard felt trapped, because in those times it was the husband who left the home, and worked from with the outside world. She belonged to a Victorian …show more content…
Louise had a sudden change in heart about the situation at hand. “There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself” (Choppin 204). Which meant she has to depend on herself. His death gave her the independence that she had been longing for. This story had two of the three versions of irony: dramatic and situational. Mrs. Mallard died from the shock of seeing her husband while she was under the impression that he had died. The doctors said she died from "the joy that kills." Mrs. Mallard was nowhere near full of joy. This is called dramatic irony. Mr. Mallard was alive the whole time and Mrs. Mallard dies from shock and disbelief. This one is called situational irony.
The denouement of the story, occurs when Brentley Mallard comes home after Mrs. Mallard and I both figure that the news of Mr. Mallard’s death had been false information. “Someone was opening the front door with a latchkey. It was Brentley Mallard” (Chopin 204). It ends with Louise dying from the same horrible condition that had been the problem in the story from the
Louise, the unfortunate spouse of Brently Mallard dies of a supposed “heart disease.” Upon the doctor’s diagnosis, it is the death of a “joy that kills.” This is a paradox of happiness resulting into a dreadful ending. Nevertheless, in reality it is actually the other way around. Of which, is the irony of Louise dying due to her suffering from a massive amount of depression knowing her husband is not dead, but alive. This is the prime example to show how women are unfairly treated. If it is logical enough for a wife to be this jovial about her husband’s mournful state of life then she must be in a marriage of never-ending nightmares. This shows how terribly the wife is being exploited due her gender in the relationship. As a result of a female being treated or perceived in such a manner, she will often times lose herself like the “girl
There are so many examples of situational irony that is clear throughout these stories Mr. Mallard being dead, Mama finally realizes that Maggie deserves the quilts because she understands her heritage better than Dee, Mathilde finding out she worked her whole life for nothing, and when Mr. Graves tells Tessie that Eva draws with her husband's family, Tessie is angry. Dramatic irony is everywhere as well. Louise dies from the shock of seeing her husband who is supposed to be dead and when Dee never wanted anything to do with her heritage until somebody was impressed by it.
A situational irony happens when a wicked man, The Misfit, causes the old woman to become sympathetic. Her enlightenment allows her to redeem herself by casting off her selfishness and reaching out to the serial killer. The Misfit's felony led to the old woman's redemption.
Throughout the whole short story “The Story of an Hour” the reader sees’ irony but the best usage of irony occurs toward the end of the story in the last few paragraphs. As the reader reads the story they notice that Mrs. Mallard’s husband Brently Mallard died in a railroad disaster. The reader also finds out that Mrs. Mallard has a heart trouble, and great care was taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband’s death. (157) There ar...
The use of irony is integral to the plot of "The Story of and Hour" by Kate Chopin. Situational irony is used to surprise the reader and add an interesting twist to Mrs. Mallard's discovery of her husband's death. Dramatic irony is used to give the reader insight into Mrs. Mallard's situation. The use of irony serves to make the story more interesting and the ending becomes a complete surprise to the reader.
As the title puts it, “The Story of an Hour” takes place in the span of an hour. The title of the story also shows the possibility of occurrences within a single hour. This story is mostly centered around one woman, Louis Mallard. In conventional circumstances, death brings sorrow, grief, seclusion, guilt, regrets, along with other feeling depending on the cause of death. In “The Story of an Hour”, sorrow and grief are a product of the recent happenings, however, these feelings are coupled with joy and independence. Kate Chopin uses this story to convey death as a joyful circumstance whereas conventionally it is portrayed as sorrowful.
Upon seeing her husband alive and well Louise realizes that the life she has imagined is not to be. The return of Brently signals a return of the patriarchal oppression in her life, and after imagining herself as an individual and then to be denied the chance to live freely is a punishment far worse than the crime. Louise loses her identity and once again becomes "his wife." Richards once more tries to protect her, a helpless woman, by attempting to block her view from her husband, because of the fragile state of her heart. Mrs. Mallard's strengths are gone, never to be acknowledged by the men in her life. For one, brief hour she was an individual. Now she finds herself bound by masculine oppression with no end in sight, and the result is death.
Setting exists in every form of fiction, representing elements of time, place, and social context throughout the work. These elements can create particular moods, character qualities, or features of theme. Throughout Kate Chopin's short story "The Story of an Hour," differing amounts and types of the setting are revealed as the plot develops. This story deals with a young woman's emotional state as she discovers her own independence in her husband's death, then her "tragic" discovery that he is actually alive. The constituents of setting reveal certain characteristics about the main character, Louise Mallard, and are functionally important to the story structure. The entire action takes place in the springtime of a year in the 1890s, in the timeframe of about an hour, in a house belonging to the Mallards. All of these aspects of setting become extremely relevant and significant as the meaning of the story unfolds.
“When the doctors came they said she had died of heart disease--of the joy that kills.” This is the most ironic and final line in Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin. Story of an Hour tells the story of Mrs. Mallard, a woman who recently found her husband died in a train accident, final hour alive. After hearing the news of her husband death, Mrs. Mallard goes to her bedroom to grieve, but realizes the freedom she now has from his death. This new found freedom is shortly lived when she finally realizes her husband is not actually dead. I am going to demonstrate the literary devices irony and symbolism is used in this story.
Kate Chopin’s “The Story of An Hour” focuses on a woman named Louise Mallard and her reaction to finding out about her husband’s death. The descriptions that the author uses in the story have significance in the plot because they foreshadow the ending.
She has now found a new desire for life. However, without warning, the tone abruptly reverts back to its grief stricken “ horror.” As Mr. Mallard walks in the door, her thoughts, dreams, and aspirations, quickly fade away. Louise’s heart, so weak, simply stops and all bliss transfers into extreme heartache. The drastic changes of tone reveals that freedom can be given and taken from someone in a heartbeat and the heartache will always remain.
Brently was dead, that her sister referred to her as just Louise. She suddenly became a person who has control over her own life rather than her husband controlling her. Initially, Mrs. Mallard felt a “storm of grief,” symbolizing the inward sentiments that were seething through her; in any case, as she sits in her room she watches “patches of blue sky showing here and there through the clouds,” symbolizing a steady move in her feelings. Mrs. Mallard’s “heart trouble” that is mentioned in the beginning can be a form of symbolism. It can give the reader some sort of foreshadowing of what is to come later on. The ironic ending is where her “heart” condition is mentioned again. When the doctor deliver’s the line “the joy that kills” because he is not aware of Mrs. Mallard’s true disappointment and despise towards the man that she thought was dead. The limitation helps better express the themes of the story because being such a short story requires a limited description of Mrs. Mallard’s surroundings. This makes her life seem truly empty and isolated on the inside. The limited setting better represents her emotional distress that she is experiencing with her
Kate Chopin’s The Story of an Hour is a brilliant short story of irony and emotion. The story demonstrates conflicts that take us through the character’s emotions as she finds out about the death of her husband. Without the well written series of conflicts and events this story, the reader would not understand the depth of Mrs. Mallard’s inner conflict and the resolution at the end of the story. The conflict allows us to follow the emotions and unfold the irony of the situation in “The Story of an Hour.”
The definition of situational irony is “irony involving a situation in which actions have an effect that is opposite from what was intended, so that the outcome is contrary to what was expected” (situational irony”). This irony plays on what the reader thinks will happen, although it is not what actually happens. One of the first instances where situational irony is found in “The Story of an Hour” is as Mrs. Mallard finds out Mr. Brently Mallard has died. She grieves and then proceeds to want to be alone, locking herself in her room. Later she emerges euphoric and blissful. (Chopin 199-201). The anticipation is that Mrs. Mallard will be completely distressed over the passing of her husband, instead she is content with his death. The most pronounced form of situational irony in “The Story of an Hour” comes at the closure of the story when Mrs. Mallard leaves her room with Josephine full of life, lightness, and ready to take on the world. Only seconds later as she descends the stairs, Mr. Brently Mallard walks through the door killing her instantly (Chopin 201). The expectation is that Mr. Brently Mallard is dead and will not walk through the door. The irony is he does. Additionally the sudden death of Mrs. Mallard just from seeing her husband, is not
Irony is the most significant technique that the author uses in this story. It shows the contrast between Louise's expectation and her limited reality. It also gives the story more twists and turns. The reader knows Louise's desire. However, her sister and her friend do not know.