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Analyze the use of irony in "the story of an hour
The Story of an Hour Analysis
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Kate Chopin is one of earliest modernist writers in United States. She is renowned for short stories where she experimented with point of view, multiple perspectives, imageries etc. Because of using multiple perspectives in ‘The Story of an Hour’, the readers either will be sympathetic to Mrs. Mallard or will incriminate her. Kate Chopin wrote the story in such a vivid way that all the readers will not observe in the same way. The usage of words, sentences, paragraphs and narration altogether enabled the author to invite the readers to think impartially to support or to impute Mrs. Mallard. Despite of having a melancholy tone, a reader cannot just remain as a spectator but has to compare the story with his or her personal life, visualize the incidents, predict and interpret them.
With the progress of the story the readers find out that Mrs. Mallard’s heart trouble may have originated due to her ordinary status as the wife of Brently Mallard in a male- dominated society. In the story Chopin mentions about the “bespoke repression” of young Mrs. Mallard’s face which reflects her determination to experience her own curiosity (Chopin 2). Such words that Chopin used are symbolic to the emotional world of life. “A powerful will” is “bending” Mrs. Mallard’s life which is manipulating her freedom and future (Chopin 2). These words eventually inform the readers about the impedance of traditional marriage.
Kate Chopin used definitive words to show the exact situation around Mrs. Mallard. The word “hour” at the title of the story suggests the ultimate life scenario of a woman in the nineteenth century (Chopin 1). Not only it says that the tenure of the story is an hour, also makes the readers realize that the happiness and freedom of contemp...
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...nd happy. In this way, Chopin made the readers think about the gender of the narrator. The readers may believe the narrator as female and claim that the only thing Louise wanted was ultimate freedom from a male dominated marriage and she gained it by death. On the other hand, it can be argued that the narrator is male and Louise was punished because of her despicable pleasure on Brently’s death. But from whatever perspective the story was written, Chopin tried to make the readers perceive that it was a common story of the women in nineteenth century by using “The story” in the title instead of “A Story”.
Because of its nature, readers may need to reread the story for finding the gist. The readers instinctively have to support either Louise or Brently as Kate Chopin kept the point of argument very open and confirmed the likelihood of any reason behind Louise’s death.
After reading The Story of An Hour by Kate Chopin, Daniel Deneau remarkably breaks down and analyzes the most intense aspects of the short story. Deneau acknowledges simple things such as “the significance of the open window and the spring setting” along with more complex questions including what Mrs. Mallard went through to achieve her freedom. He also throws in a few of his own ideas which may or may not be true. Almost entirely agreeing with the interpretation Deneau has on The Story of An Hour, he brings stimulating questions to the surface which makes his analysis much more intricate.
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.
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.
Kate Chopin’s short story, “The Story of an Hour”, is about a woman, named Louise Mallard, in the late 1800s who is told that her husband, Brently, has died in a railroad accident. Initially, Louise is surprised, distressed, and drowned in sorrow. After mourning the loss, the woman realizes that she is finally free and independent, and that the only person she has to live for is herself. She becomes overwhelmed with joy about her new discovery of freedom, and dreams of all of the wonderful events in life that lie ahead of her. Louise’s sister finally convinces her to leave her room and come back into reality. While Louise is walking down her steps, her husband surprisingly enters through the door because he was actually not killed in the accident. At the same moment, Louise collapses and dies, supposedly from “heart disease-of joy that kills” (Chopin 706).
Kate Chopin's "Story of an Hour" proves to be a timeless short story. Although this story was written in the nineteenth century, it is still reflective and relevant of today's society. It is still popular in many high schools and college classrooms. A critical examination of this piece of literature can be done using character analysis. This is an important tool in analyzing the meanings "between the lines" in this story. Mrs. Mallard is the main character and therefore plays the most important role in the story. This makes it necessary to examine her character in order to gain insights into the story's meaning. Several key elements relating to her personality surface in the story. These elements give insights into her feelings and her thoughts. The character analysis shows Mrs. Mallard is portrayed as insensitive, selfish and a wishful thinker.
Mallard’s excitement towards her recent discovery of her deeply embedded desire for freedom accentuates the importance of women’s freedom in society. During the 1890’s, the time period in which this piece was written, most women experienced limited amounts of freedom in their lives, as they were bound to their husbands and other loved ones, and many of them were never truly able to extinguish their inner flame to pursue their dreams and live an unconstricted life. Luckily, today, many women are exceptionally independent, and very few struggle to realize their desire to live freely. Throughout the short story, “The Story of An Hour” by Kate Chopin, Mrs. Murray’s unhappiness towards her husband’s return and her realization for her longing for freedom exhibit Chopin’s desire to change women’s limited freedom in their relationships and general lives. As Tennessee Williams wisely noted, “Caged birds accept each other, but flight is what they long
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...
Chopin depicts marriage as a prison institution that confines women to life. In the story, there is no possibility of divorce and death seems to be the only way out. Evidently, since marriage is dictated by society, women do not seem bothered by their lack of freedom since they feel it is their obligation to run their homes without complaining. From the story, Mrs. Mallard does not seem perturbed by her present situation until she gets a taste of freedom after receiving the news about her husband's death. Precisely, we are told that she was beginning to recognize this thing that was approaching her, and she was striving to beat it back with her will--as powerless as her two white slender hands would have been.
In "The Story of an Hour" Kate Chopin meticulously chooses diction that encourages a defined view of the female characters. The role Mrs. Mallard plays, as well as Josephine's, displays positive examples of feminine characterization in the story. Notably, it is important for the reader to recognize differences between the antagonist's opinion of Mrs. Mallard and the way she sees herself. Although the author in many ways displays both females as weak, she does so in order to provoke thoughts within the onlooker. Throughout the entirety of the writing, Chopin alludes to the need women have for others. Both positions played by women in this story initially exhibit women as weak, but a closer look demonstrates to readers their strength during tribulations.
Louise is trapped in her marriage. The lines of her face "bespoke repression" (paragraph 8). When Louise acknowledges that her husband is dead, she knows that there will "be no powerful will bending her" (paragraph 14). There will be no husband who believes he has the "right to impose a private will upon a fellow creature" (paragraph 14). Louise knows that her husband loved her. Brently had only ever looked at Louise with love (paragraph 13). This tells the reader that Brently is not a horrible ma...
Several symbols in Kate Chopin's "Story of an Hour" create a feeling of comfort, wellness, and wonderfulness within the reader's mind. The first symbol I will speak of is the "comfortable chair" which she sinks into after the news of her husbands' death. Then, I will speak of the open window, which she sits in front of through which she sees many symbols of things that are good. Finally, I will speak of the description of Mrs. Mallard herself and her comfortable situation, which will tie together all the symbols that create the feelings of comfort and wellness in the reader.
Kate Chopin provides her reader with an enormous amount of information in just a few short pages through her short story, “The Story of an Hour.” The protagonist, Louise Mallard, realizes the many faults in romantic relationships and marriages in her epiphany. “Great care [is] taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband’s death” (Chopin 168). Little do Josephine and Richards know, the news will have a profoundly positive effect on Louise, rather than a negative one. “When she abandoned herself,” Mrs. Mallard opened her mind to a new way of life.
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.
The descriptions in the story foreshadow the tragedy that ends the story. The author believed unexpected things happen often. In the case of this story, Louise Mallard believed her husband to be dead, having been told this by her sister, Josephine. However, when it is revealed that her husband had been alive the whole time, she is unhappy to see him and suffers a fatal heart attack. While she did have heart trouble, Richards and Josephine thought that the news of her husband’s death, not her seeing him again would be detrimental to her health, possibly even fatal. Chopin succeeded in getting this message across.
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.”