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The story of an hour kate chopin analysis
The story of an hour kate chopin analysis
The story of an hour kate chopin analysis
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Kate Chopin’s “Story of an Hour” and John Collier’s “The Chaser”, utilize characterization, setting, and symbolism to demonstrate the misunderstanding of love.
Both “The Chaser” and “Story of an Hour” utilize characterization of Alan and the Mallards to show ignorance and possession within a relationship. In “The Chaser”, the old man is talking about the love potion and the power and influence it can have on a person. The old man describes the effects the love potion will have on Diana, “‘She will want to know all you do,’ said the old man. ‘All that has happened to you during the day. Every word of it. She will want to know what you are thinking about, why you smile suddenly, why you are looking sad’…….‘That is love!’ cried Alan” ( Collier
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In “The Chaser” the old man describes the magical power of the love potion to Alan. Alan amazed by what he is hearing, “‘Give one tiny measure of this to the young lady-its flavour is imperceptible in orange juice, soup, or cocktails-and however gay and giddy she is, she will change altogether’” (Collier 24). In “The Story of an Hour,” Mrs. Mallard has locked herself in a room and her sister wants to talk and comfort her, “Josephine was kneeling before the closed door with her lips to the keyhold, imploring for admission. ‘Louise, open the door! I beg; open the door--you will make yourself ill.’” (Chopin 15). The love potion and the closed door directly represent to misunderstanding of love. The closed door is like a barrier between Mrs. Mallard’s perception of love and everybody else's perception. Like the closed door the love potion represents Alan’s spin on love. Alan wants to be controlling and everything to Diana. While, the glove cleaner represents the truth. The glove cleaner’s approach to love is that love can not be bought, no matter the price. Every time Alan brings up the love potion, the old man brings up the glove cleaner. In other words, the clash between the love potion and the glove cleaner represents a clash between young (Alan) vs. old (old man). Young as in inexperienced and old as in …show more content…
In “The Chaser”, Alan, seeking for the love potion, visits the old man in a “tiny room, which contained no furniture but a plain kitchen table, a rocking chair, and an ordinary chair.” and “opening the drawer in the kitchen table, and taking out a tiny, rather dirty-looking phial.” ( Collier 2/41). Relating to “The Chaser”, in “The Story of an Hour”, “There stood, facing the open window, a comfortable, roomy armchair………. She could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with new spring life. The delicious breath of rain was in the air…… The notes of a distant song which some one was singing reached her faintly” ( Chopin 4). Mrs. Mallard finds that her husband is supposedly dead and she is grieving in a room. The enclosed rooms represent the vague idea of love. The idea of the enclosed rooms, essentially binds love to a single, unexpandable idea. This unexpandable idea means love has one exact definition. In this case, the idea of love within in a relationship is dominance. In “The Story of an Hour” and “The Chaser”, love is seen as a possessive relationship with the possessed unable to express their idea of love. Alan and Mr. Mallard want control in their relationships, while Mrs. Mallards and Diana feel that a relationship should have equality. Furthermore, the window in “The Story of
In Shakespeare’s play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, love appears to be the common theme of several storylines being played out simultaneously. Although these stories intersect on occasion, their storylines are relatively independent of one another; however, they all revolve around the marriage of Theseus, the Duke of Athens, and Hippolyta, the Queen of the Amazons. If love is a common theme among these stories, then it is apparent that love makes people act irrationally.
Afterwards, she understood why he hated her after she prevented him from playing the stock market when their stock would increase on stanza 3, additionally demonstrating the equity between them. Moreover, proof of their equity is further shown through their dedication. “I put on eyeliner and a concerto and make pungent observations about the great / issues of the day / Even when there’s no one here but him,” shows the wife’s efforts for the husband. The husband’s dedication is revealed on stanza 2 when she asks “If his mother and I was drowning and / he had to choose one of us to save, / He says he’d save me.” A relationship deprived of equity would be illustrated in “The Chaser”. The love potion described by John Collier will cause the drinker to “want to know all you do” (Page 200) and “want to be everything to you” (Page 200). “Then the customers come back, later in life, when they are better off, and want more expensive things” (Page 201) imply many of his customer’s return for the poison. This suggests that many of the relationships will be unable to develop beyond a certain point after buying the “love
The issue of betrayed expectations in love from is confronted in both The Prince’s Progress and Goblin Market. In both stories the topic of the power of temptation to entice man from the worthy and earnest work of life is common. In Goblin Market the temptations are both resisted and overcome; in The Prince’s Progress they succeed over the main characters. Also, in the case of Goblin Market the main temptations taking over Laura were sensory and in the end were equated with sexual pleasures. She allowed the goblin men to ravage and soil her with the juices of their fruits with the end objective as Lizzie breaking away from her spell. Only one of the two central temptations, lust, in The Prince's Progress prevents the understanding of the implied ideal that married bliss is not only...
From the beginning of fiction, authors have constantly exploited the one topic that is sure to secure an audience: love. From the tragic romance of Tristan and Isolde to the satirical misadventures in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, literature seems obsessed with deciphering the mysteries of affection. The concept most debated is the question of where the line falls between lust and love and what occurs when the two are combined, and few portray it more clearly than Edmund Rostand in his French drama Cyrano de Bergerac. The influence of fickle physical attraction and deep romantic love on each other are explored by the interactions of the four main characters: De Guiche, Christian, Roxane, and Cyrano.
The “Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin and ‘”The Hand” by Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette are similar in theme and setting. Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette and Kate Chopin create the theme of obligatory love and the unhappiness it entails. Both stories illustrate the concealed emotions many women feel in their marriage yet fail to express them. The two stories take place in a sacred room of the house and both transpire in a brief amount of time. The differences between the two stories are seen through the author’s choice of characters in each story. In “The story of an Hour” Kate Chopin involves other characters in Mrs. Mallard’s life, whereas, “The Hand” deals with marriage and togetherness and only involves the husband and wife. Symbolism is seen all throughout “The Hand” not so in ‘The Story of an Hour.” The similarities in “The Story of an Hour” and “The Hand” is portrayed in theme and setting. The differences are illustrated in the choice of characters involved in each story and the amount of symbolism depicted in the different stories.
In the short story, “The Story of an Hour,” author Kate Chopin presents the character of Mrs. Louis Mallard. She is an unhappy woman trapped in her discontented marriage. Unable to assert herself or extricate herself from the relationship, she endures it. The news of the presumed death of her husband comes as a great relief to her, and for a brief moment she experiences the joys of a liberated life from the repressed relationship with her husband. The relief, however, is short lived. The shock of seeing him alive is too much for her bear and she dies. The meaning of life and death take on opposite meaning for Mrs. Mallard in her marriage because she lacked the courage to stand up for herself.
Love is a powerful emotion, capable of turning reasonable people into fools. Out of love, ridiculous emotions arise, like jealousy and desperation. Love can shield us from the truth, narrowing a perspective to solely what the lover wants to see. Though beautiful and inspiring when requited, a love unreturned can be devastating and maddening. In his play, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, William Shakespeare comically explores the flaws and suffering of lovers. Four young Athenians: Demetrius, Lysander, Hermia, and Helena, are confronted by love’s challenge, one that becomes increasingly difficult with the interference of the fairy world. Through specific word choice and word order, a struggle between lovers is revealed throughout the play. In A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Shakespeare uses descriptive diction to emphasize the impact love has on reality and one’s own rationality, and how society’s desperate pursuit to find love can turn even strong individuals into fools.
Alan Austen simply wants someone Diana to fall in love with him. He wants a companion and someone to enjoy life with. Austen does not want to work for it. He wants it to just appear for him. True love takes time and two people perfect for each other. Austen wants to force love so he buys the potion. He does not listen to the old man and buys the potion. The old man knows its only a matter of time before he is back .Aan returns to purchase the expensive glove-cleaner. Alan Austen desire for love ends up killing him because he will understand that it is impossible to find true love and will use the glove cleaner as his escape.
Kate Chopin’s story “The Story of an Hour” focuses on a married woman who does not find happiness in her marriage. When she hears of her husband’s death, the woman does not grieve for long before relishing the idea of freedom. Chopin’s story is an example of realism because it describes a life that is not controlled by extreme forces. Her story is about a married nineteenth-century woman with no “startling accomplishments or immense abilities” (1271). Chopin stays true to reality and depicts a life that seems as though it could happen to any person.
Shakespeare’s play Twelfth Night revolves around a love triangle that continually makes twists and turns like a rollercoaster, throwing emotions here and there. The characters love each another, but the common love is absent throughout the play. Then, another character enters the scene and not only confuses everyone, bringing with him chaos that presents many different themes throughout the play. Along, with the emotional turmoil, each character has their own issues and difficulties that they must take care of, but that also affect other characters at same time. Richard Henze refers to the play as a “vindication of romance, a depreciation of romance…a ‘subtle portrayal of the psychology of love,’ a play about ‘unrequital in love’…a moral comedy about the surfeiting of the appetite…” (Henze 4) On the other hand, L. G. Salingar questions all of the remarks about Twelfth Night, asking if the remarks about the play are actually true. Shakespeare touches on the theme of love, but emphases the pain and suffering it causes a person, showing a dark and dismal side to a usually happy thought.
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 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.” Mrs. Mallard cared for and loved her husband; being married was the only way of life that she knew.
For many, marriage is the most important steps in life because it doesn’t just represent two people taking a vow to be with each other. But marriage also exemplifies purity and singularity because it gives people the strength to overcome any temptations by engaging in a love that can be given and received physically, emotionally, and spiritually. However, in The Story of an Hour, Chopin also displays how all marriages can be oppressive, even the “kindest and loving” ones, which implies that people just want to be free physically, emotionally, and spiritually. She does this by having Louise Mallard react to her husband’s death with joy and also not having any sort of bitterness or contempt over his passing either.
“There is no perfect relationship. The idea that there is gets us into so much trouble.”-Maggie Reyes. Kate Chopin reacts to this certain idea that relationships in a marriage during the late 1800’s were a prison for women. Through the main protagonist of her story, Mrs. Mallard, the audience clearly exemplifies with what feelings she had during the process of her husbands assumed death. Chopin demonstrates in “The Story of an Hour” the oppression that women faced in marriage through the understandings of: forbidden joy of independence, the inherent burdens of marriage between men and women and how these two points help the audience to further understand the norms of this time.
In “The Story of an Hour” Mrs. Mallard has a heart trouble. People think she will have a heart attack if they just tell her the truth. But after they tell her that her husband is dead, she unlike many women that with a paralyzed inability to accept its significance, she just weeps once and goes back to her own room and locks the door. But after she meditates for a while, she realizes that the death of her husband can bring her freedom. And a monstrous joy appears, she knew that there would be no powerful will bending her and she could be free no matter in body and in soul. Kate Chopin wanted to show us a long term marriage can “kill” the romance. For example, in “The Story of an Hour”, Mrs. and Mr. Mallard loved each other before they married. But after their marriage, Mrs. Mallard didn’t love Mr. Mallard anymore, maybe sometimes she did. But in most of the time, their marriage became a trap of Mrs. Mallard. She thought she lived for her husband but not herself in this marriage and she was young, with a hair and calm face before they were married, after his death, she can live for herself, this is the “freedom” that Mrs. Mallard thought of.
The use of a love-potion to complicate things in the play might have been a representation of intense love, and the fact that one would immediately fall in love with the first thing one lays their eyes on,