Kate Chopin in her short story, “The Story of an Hour” depicts the tale of an ailing woman, and the emotions that manifest upon being told that her husband was believed to be killed in a railroad accident. Chopin demonstrates the theme of oppression of women, and how this forces women to become victims of their own repressed desires. The writer utilizes an omnipresent narrator that identifies the internal thoughts of Louise Mallard. Chopin illustrates her theme with the use of figurative language, setting, and irony. In her story, Chopin utilizes various forms of figurative language to describe the mixed emotions of Mrs. Mallard, in order to support her theme. Mrs. Mallard’s initial feelings towards her husband’s passing are a “storm of grief” which is a metaphor because of the general characteristics of a storm; for example, rain symbolizes tears and represents Mrs. Mallard’s sadness. Shortly after, Mrs. Mallard looks out of her bedroom window …show more content…
and senses that “The delicious breath of rain was in the air” which is a contradictory interpretation of rain. Chopin personifies rain as having a breath to give feeling of peace and release that comes from exhaling and transforms the “storm of grief” into a renewing rain that washes Mrs. Mallard’s grief away. In the beginning, Mrs. Mallard plays her role of a grieving widow in order to conform to the rigid standards of society; however, she secretly experiences relief when she realizes that her husband is truly dead and that she is finally free. Chopin’s depiction of setting helps support her theme oppression as well.
In between Mrs. Mallard’s flailing reactions, Chopin describes the scene outside the bedroom window. Mrs. Mallard observes “the tops of trees that were all aquiver with new spring life.” This window is significant because it represents the feeling of being on the inside looking out. Outside of her window, there was the possibility of a fulfilling life she could only imagine while being a spectator, whereas, now that her husband is no longer bound to her, those opportunities are within her grasp. It is a new season for her or a rebirth of spring, in contrast to the death of Mr. Mallard. With the passing of her husband, Mrs. Mallard was “drinking in the very elixir of life through that open window.” Chopin’s use of a bedroom window setting helps the reader understand Mrs. Mallard’s feeling of being in a situation where she feels trapped, yet through that window, she experiences a revelation that her stifled hopes and dreams may actually be
attainable. Chopin’s ends her story with the literary element of irony. After all the feelings of bliss Mrs. Mallard experienced when she accepted that her husband, whom “she had loved… –sometimes,” was gone forever, she soon discovers that in fact he had survived and was nowhere near the site of the railroad accident. Out of surprise and desolation that her freedom had swiftly gone out the window again, she succumbs to her ailment of heart disease and the doctors diagnosed it as “the joy that kills.” Everyone had assumed she was severely overwhelmed when in reality; she was delighted with Mr. Mallard’s supposed death. Mrs. Mallard’s death is the essence of irony because it is immoral and cold-hearted to rejoice in a spouse’s death, thus making Mrs. Mallard’s demise well deserved. Alternatively, perhaps Mr. Mallard’s control over her was excessively powerful, that the emotions that she expressed with his death were justified. Chopin’s ironic ending further enforces her theme of woman’s oppression and concludes that only in death can a woman no longer be subjugated by their significant other.
Both Chopin and Deneau put major emphasis on the passage of the story where Mrs. Mallard is alone in her room and makes the transition from heartbroken housewife to joyful, independent and free widower. Chopin says “There was something coming to her and she was waiting for it, fearfully. What was it? She did not know; it was too subtle and elusive to name. But she felt it, creeping out of the sky, reaching toward her through the sounds, the scents, the color that filled
The symbols and imagery used by Kate Chopin's in “The Story of an Hour” give the reader a sense of Mrs. Mallard’s new life appearing before her through her view of an “open window” (para. 4). Louise Mallard experiences what most individuals long for throughout their lives; freedom and happiness. By spending an hour in a “comfortable, roomy armchair” (para.4) in front of an open window, she undergoes a transformation that makes her understand the importance of her freedom. The author's use of Spring time imagery also creates a sense of renewal that captures the author's idea that Mrs. Mallard was set free after the news of her husband's death.
Mallard felt restricted in her marriage and displays the need for independence. Symbolism is used to exemplify the transformation from Mrs. Mallard’s unconscious, numb existence to Louise’s new founded freedom. Chopin uses the seasons to symbolize the new life taking place within Louise. This new world appears before her through the world displayed through her bedroom window. The reader views her as motionless with her dull stare transformed into a gaze focus off yonder, symbolizing her future. The unknown feeling of freedom grew closer to Louise. Mrs. Mallard gains this “possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being.” This alludes to Mrs. Mallard’s desire for independence.
Mrs. Mallard is the example of a typical housewife of the mid 1800’s. At the time, most women were not allowed to go to school and were usually anticipated to marry and do housework. During that time, the only way women could get out of a marriage was if they were to die or their husbands was to die. In that time period, the husband had control of all of the money, so it would not be wise if the wife were to leave the financial freedom that was provided by the husband. This is most likely why Mrs. Mallard never leaves her husband’s death, she is sad at first but then experiences an overwhelming sense of joy. This shows that she is not in a fulfilling marriage as his death means she will finally have own individual freedom, as well as financial freedom being the grieving widow who will inherit her husband’s wealth. In the words of Lawrence I. Berkove he states, “On the other hand, Chopin did not regard marriage as a state of pure and unbroken bliss, but on the other, she could not intelligently believe that it was desirable, healthy, or even possible for anyone to live as Louise, in the grip of her feverish delusion, wishes: to be absolutely free and to live totally and solely for oneself.” (3) Mrs. Mallard’s reaction to her husband’s death is Chopin’s way of expressin...
Kate Chopin wrote a short piece called “The Story of an Hour” about a woman’s dynamic emotional shift who believes she has just learned her husband has died. The theme of Chopin’s piece is essentially a longing for more freedom for women.
Kate Chopin's The Story of an Hour. Kate Chopin was a Victorian writer whose writing manifests her life experiences. She was not happy with the principles of the time, because women had fewer rights, and they were not considered equal to men. Afraid of segregation from society, people lived in a hypocritical world full of lies; moreover, Kate Chopin was not afraid of segregation, and used her writing as a weapon against oppression of the soul.
... This woman suffers a tremendous amount from the commitment of her marriage, and the death of her husband does not affect her for long. A marriage such as this seems so unbelievable, yet a reader can see the realistic elements incorporated into the story. This begs the question of how undesirable marriage was during Chopin’s life. The unhappiness felt by Mrs. Mallard seems to be very extreme, but Chopin creates a beautiful story that reflects upon the idea of marriage as an undesired relationship and bond to some women in the nineteenth century.
Another example of how Mrs. Mallard was more uplifted than brought down by the news of her husband?s death is the description of the window. As Mrs. Mallard looks out, Chopin explains?she could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all a quiver with new life?. This is telling the reader about the new life that Mrs. Mallard can see in the distance, that symbolizes the new life she saw that lay ahead of her now that she was free of her husband. This thought was supported by Hicks in saying "The revelation of freedom occurs in the bedroom"
Analysis of “The Story of an Hour”. In her story “The Story of an Hour,” Kate Chopin (1894) uses imagery and descriptive detail to contrast the rich possibilities for which Mrs. Mallard yearns, given the drab reality of her everyday life. Chopin utilizes explicit words to provide the reader with a background on Mrs. Mallard’s position. Chopin uses “She wept at once,” to describe Mrs. Mallard’s emotional reaction once she was told her husband had been “Killed.”
Mallard, even in her new found love for life, knew that she would miss her husband. She had even wept in “wild abandonment” when she found out the news at first. The Mallards were not a perfect match for each other, “she had loved him… often she had not” (Chopin16) she had only loved him sometimes. Mr. Mallard had loved her and was very good to his wife, he had only “looked at her with love in his eyes”, but unfortunately Mrs. Mallard never felt exactly the same way.
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
Kate Chopin is able to illuminate her stories with clever language and meaning. As well as an immense criticism as to how society oppresses the individual in the glorified institution of marriage. Through language, she is able to introduce the thought of deeper meanings. “The Story of an Hour” being a prime example of the individual that has a need for freedom for herself. Through symbolism and straightforward comments, the freedom that Mrs. Louisa Mallard is notable just as her marriage is oppressive.
In “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, the main character of the story, Mrs. Louise Mallard, is oppressed by her husband. Chopin’s works focus mainly on feminism, the relationships between classes, and the relationships between men and women, specifically between husband and wife in “The Story of an Hour” (“The Story of an Hour” 264). Mrs. Louise Mallard lives under her husband for her whole marriage. Mrs. Mallard gets news through her two best friends that Mr. Mallard was in a railroad accident and did not survive. Mrs. Mallard was hit with waves of guilt, agony, sorrow, fear, and grief. Mr. Mallard later comes back home, as he was mistakenly not involved in the accident. Throughout “The Story of an Hour,” Chopin demonstrates how the repression
Kate Chopin's story, "The Story of an Hour", focuses on an 1890's young woman, Louise Mallard. She experienced a profound emotional change after she hears her husband's "death" and her life ends with her tragic discovery that he is actually alive. In this story, the author uses various techniques-settings, symbolism and irony- to demonstrate and develop the theme: Freedom is more important than love. Chopin uses settings to convey particular moods, character qualities and features of theme. Firstly, the author uses time setting to reveal Louise' inner desire and her restrictions.
After Mrs. Mallard’s husband's death she was confused on how to feel and despite the grief she feels so much joy that she is finally free. Mrs. Mallards states, “”Free! Body and soul free””(2) showing how despite his death she is full of joy and happy that she can finally be a free woman without him. Despite knowing that she would spend the oncoming years all alone that didn't matter to her, in fact that brought her such joy(2). The thought that she would finally have no man around that would be there everyday of her life meant so much to her. Even though “she had loved him”(2) she looked forward to everything that his death would bring. However, that didn't last very long as she passed away due to her weak heart not being able to sustain so much emotion. Chopin here showed how a woman's happiness can not last at all without a man by their side. To think that women can be so joyful over such tragedy shows the effects that this bring to women whom are living in this lifestyle. It is crucial to think that someone can have such joy over someone else's death, but many women rather lose their husbands and spend the rest of their life alone instead of having a man by their side who controls their