The protagonists of The Story of an Hour are Mrs. Mallard and Josephine. Mrs. Mallard “was afflicted with a heart trouble, and great care was taken to break to her as gently as possible” (1), as she heard the news of her husband’s death. When it happens, Mrs. Mallard seems genuinely sad, but then the reader figures out she is happy about being able to start a new life. Mrs. Mallard is the main protagonist because all of the attention is on her.
Josephine plays another important role in The Story of an Hour. “it was her sister, Josephine who had told her, in broken sentences; veiled hints that revealed in half concealing” (1). Throughout the story, Josephine is there to help her sister get through a hard time. Josephine seems like a loving person
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Technically, there is a conflict between Mr. and Mrs. Mallard. Near the end of the story, you find out that “she had fought with a shudder that life might be long” (2). Mr. Mallard and Mrs. Mallard could have had relationship problems before the story started
This story shows a great example of internal conflicts. When Mrs. Mallard hears about her husband’s death, she feels terrible. But shortly after, she begins to feel that the problem has a good side to it. Mr. Mallard not being around anymore could mean that she can start a new life for herself. But when Mr. Mallard walks in, she drops dead.“When the doctors came in they said she had died of a heart disease--of the joy that kills” (2).
The Story of an Hour has a lot of symbols. After being sad, Mrs. Mallard looks out of her window and sees “trees that were all aquiver with the new spring life” (1) and hears “countless sparrows were twittering in eaves” (1). Both of these symbolize a start of a new beginning. She sees the clear skies through the clouds. Later in the story Chopin writes “she was drinking in a very elixir of life through that open window” (2). Mrs. Mallard was not drinking any potions; she was just so happy about this new
They hear the key turning in the front door and Mr. Mallard walks in the door. He was not on the train that he was always on, so he did not die, and it was only speculation from Richards that he had died. Mrs. Mallard was in shock when she saw her ‘dead’ husband walk through the door, and she died right then and there. The doctors said that she died from the “joy that kills”(Pg. 280). But it seems that is not true because she became glad that her husband had passed
The Story of an Hour is a short story of Ms. Mallard, a woman with a heart condition who receives short term good news. Chopin uses contrast between independence, marriage, and gender to show how hidden emotions can effect a woman’s actions in the time period where women did not have much power or right to speak what came to their mind.
is also oppressed by the circumstances within her marriage. Mrs. Mallard however suppressed her feelings and of unhappiness and in which the story implies puts stress on her heart. The announcement of her husband death brings on conflicting feelings of grief and joy. Mrs. Mallard paradoxical statement about the death of her husband changes her perception about life. “She breathed a quick prayer that life might be long. It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long.
Mallard is excitable. This trait allows Mrs. Mallard to focus on what is good regardless of how bad things may initially appear. Although being easily excitable may not always be the best trait to have, it certainly came in handy when Mrs. Mallard has needed to cheer herself up. The following is an excerpt that surely describes the role Mrs. Mallards excitability plays in the story, “When she abandoned herself a little whispered word...and the coursing blood warmed and relaxed every inch of her body” (Chopin 2). Mrs. Mallard responds suddenly to her realization. She has little control as she whispers the word “free”. Mrs. Mallard is brought aback by her own words and yet she suddenly begins to pep up. Mrs. Mallard’s excitability is what ultimately turns the situation around. She begins to focus on the good even though she knows the bad. Although in a horrendous situation, Mrs. Mallard was able to cheer herself up due to how easily excitable she
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.
Key Elements:The story of an hour · Plot: Standard plot. A woman who receive the notice of her husband's death, and when she begins to felt freedom her husband appear again and she can't accept it and fall died. · Characterization: Few characters a. Mrs. Mallard or Louise: Mallard's wife. Was afflicted with hearth trouble.
Written by Kate Chopin, the short story “The Story of an Hour” follows Louise Mallard, a woman from the nineteenth century who has just received the news that her husband, Brently Mallard, has passed away in a horrific train accident. Immediately Mrs. Mallard is overcome with grief and sorrow, but her mood quickly shifts when she realizes the independence and free-will she will now have. At the climax of her elation for the future, her husband walks through the door. Mrs. Mallard, shocked and speechless, dies of a heart attack. In the short story, "The Story of an Hour," author Kate Chopin utilizes symbolism, diction, and irony to emphasize the effects of Mrs. Mallard's newfound sense of freedom, and how that ultimately results in her death.
In Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour," Josephine and Mrs. Mallard are foil characters. The behaviors and values of one contrast with the other. Josephine is presented as a content woman in the nineteenth century. Mrs. Mallard is struggling for freedom. The differences in these women are seen in their reactions to Mr. Mallard's death and return. Chopin uses this story to point out the importance of being an individual and developing oneself.
Mallard’s decision of being happy about her husband’s death was very wise and correct because that was a window of opportunity to gain her freedom back. Now she realizes that she will be able to make her own decisions and choices. Even though great care was given to her due to her heart problem, her husband still has controlled upon her life.
Mrs. Mallard was at first overjoyed with freedom because her husband was supposedly “dead,” yet at the end of the story, Mrs. Mallard comes face to face with Mr. Mallard. A whole new wave of emotions overcame Mrs. Mallard as she laid eyes on her husband instantly killing her from “a heart disease-of joy that kills.” It is ironic how Mrs. Mallard is overjoyed about her husband’s death, and she ended up dying because she found out he was alive instead. Her joy literally was killed, killing her on the inside as
Mallard shows a major sign of grief just before leaving her room, that of denial and a confused melancholic joy. This is observed in a number of cases involving grieving people, it is a trance of false joy fueled by denial of their loved one's passing. It is a confusion of brain signals that are induced by extreme stress and anxiety which is directly tied to the sudden death of a person close to them, and can also lead to other side effects. Effects can include a risk of heart attack in Mrs. Mallard s case, cardiovascular instability, extreme depression, extreme anxiety, and often suicidal thoughts. The thought of proceeding on with their life without someone so important is seemingly a fruitless effort.
Mallard’s emotions over the presumed death of her husband. The author used both dramatic and situational irony to mislead the reader and surprise them with a plot twist ending. By utilizing both external and internal conflict the author expresses the internal debate of Mrs. Mallard’s true feelings and those of the people around her. The author used symbolism to display Mrs. Mallard’s desire for freedom from her marriage. In the end it was not joy that killed Mrs. Mallard but the realization that she lost her
Most women in Mrs Mallard’s situation were expected to be upset at the news of her husbands death, and they would worry more about her heart trouble, since the news could worsen her condition. However, her reaction is very different. At first she gets emotional and cries in front of her sister and her husbands friend, Richard. A little after, Mrs. Mallard finally sees an opportunity of freedom from her husbands death. She is crying in her bedroom, but then she starts to think of the freedom that she now has in her hands. “When she abandoned herse...
Mrs. Mallard and Ulrich von Gradwitz both had a triumphant over the different events that were placed in there lives. But they do have different stories, Mrs Mallard had a tragedy with the death of her husband and Ulrich had a tragedy with the death of her husband and Ulrich had a disagreement with another individual invading his private property.
Kate Chopin’s short story "The Story of an Hour," utilizes superb symbolism and elucidating points of interest with a specific end goal to differentiation Mrs. Mallard 's everyday and dreary life. Chopin utilizes symbolism and expressive subtle elements to differentiate the rich conceivable outcomes for which Mrs. Mallard longs with the dull reality of her regular life. The main theme of this story is “the quest for identity” because Louise’s sudden self-discovery shows that she had been seeking her own identity in a male-dominated world at the time. Kate Chopin wrote this in the 19th century when males were “dominate” and females were “passive.” Mr. Brently’s "death" was what initiated her “quest for Identity” without him “dying” she would have never thought about how