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Essay On Symbolism And Irony In The Story Of An Hour

Decent Essays

One of the particular features of “The Story of an Hour” that was very captivating is the fact that Mrs. Mallard was very pleased to know that her husband, Mr. Mallard, had been killed in a train accident. Mrs. Mallard believed that she would be able to live for herself now, rather than being controlled by her husband. Instead of judging Mrs. Mallard’s attitude on the bad news, readers can actually understand her sense of happiness. Even from reading the story, Mr. Mallard does not seem to be aggressive or insulting towards his wife but the reader can understand that Mrs. Mallard felt forced in her marriage. Chopin uses symbolism and irony within the story to exemplify the forceful and unhappy nature of marriages during that time period and the possible opportunity of freedom of Mrs. Mallard’s future. The heart is a symbol of emotions, we learned that …show more content…

The surprise that Mr. Mallard is alive and the death of Mrs. Mallard is a form of situational irony. The readers are lead to believe that Mrs. Mallard will leave the room taking in the fact that she’s now independent and free. The use of the open window to symbolize her future independence confirmed that the reader never expected Mrs. Mallard’s death.
Dramatic irony is established when the readers are aware of Mrs. Mallard’s feelings towards her husband’s death, everyone, especially Josephine, believed that Mrs. Mallard is upset by the news. Josephine, who is separated from her sister by a door believed that Mrs. Mallard is going to make herself ill over the news of her husband, when in reality Mrs. Mallard is actually full of joy and looking forward to the “long years” ahead.
The doctor’s diagnosis that Mrs. Mallard “had died of heart disease- of joy that kills” (Chopin 58) is an illustration of verbal irony. Without the knowledge of everyone, Mrs. Mallard in fact dies from the saddening news that Mr. Mallard is still

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