Kate Chopin's Little Women

At 15, Jo is a tomboy and loves the outdoors and literature. She spends her time writing plays for she and her sisters to perform in their Pickwick Club, along with Laurie, their neighbor. Jo fights growing up and resents being a girl. "I hate to think I've got to grow up, and be Miss March, and wear long gowns, and look as prim as a China aster! It's bad enough to be a girl, anyway, when I like boys' games and work and manners! I can't get over my disappointment in not being a boy; and it's worse than ever now, for I'm dying to go and fight with Papa, and I can only stay at home and knit, like a poky old woman!" (26) She wants independence and does not

Jane was not only resented but also lacking any kind of love to balance her out. We know this right away when she is reading her book and she notes "there were certain introductory pages I could not pass quite as a blank. They were

In the past many decades the definition of what a marriage means changed dramatically in some areas. For the author of both stories, Kate Chopin, she wanted the reader to get something out of the story. She likes to explore all types of themes in her stories such as, racism, the roles of women, and adultery. With these themes and messages she struggled to have most of her stories published. In many of her stories she passed along these messages through the manner of a marriage. In her short stories “The Story of an Hour” and “Desiree 's Baby” she showed just how different marriages could be as well as how similar they can be. Chopin portrays the lives of the main characters, Louise Mallard from “The Story of An Hour” and Desiree Aubigny

Foster’s How to Read Literature Like a Professor discusses many topics and insights that can be found in literature. Foster explains how each are used and the purposes they serve while providing numerous examples. Many of Foster’s insights can be found in Kate Chopin’s “The Story of An Hour” which was written during a time in history when women were often restricted by society and marriage. The story speaks of a woman who felt freed from the burden of marriage when she thought her husband died, only to die the moment she realized he was actually alive. Foster’s insights about weather, heart disease, and flight that are evident in “The Story of An Hour” greatly influence the story’s interpretation in several ways.

In the beginning, while the main character’s name is unknown to the reader, they quickly learn of his arrogance, insecurity, and lack of self-awareness through the voice he uses when narrating. For example, his arrogance is shown in the beginning when he is concerned with how the visit with Robert will affect him and dismisses the relationship his wife had with him in the past, claiming the audiotapes to be just harmless chit-chat. His self-absorbance is also shown when he states, “She and I began going out, and of course she told her blind man

5. The author further reveals Perry’s character as Mrs. Johnson is interviewed and narrates her present and past relationship as Perry’s sister. Mrs. Johnson approached by detectives Nye and Guthrie is questioned on her standing relationship with Perry. As she is interview she remarks on their relationship saying ‘“Im afraid of him”’ (Capote 108) ‘“he doesn’t know we’ve moved”’ (Capote 109). Mrs. Johnson although not specifically inquiring why, describes Perry’s personality as a child. Saying “‘oh he can fool you. He can make you feel so sorry for him’” (Capote 210). Although Perry’s point of view is directly seen throughout the novel, Mrs. Johnson’s remark on his manipulative qualities gives an altered look on the passages before. Leading

Finally Jane feels as though she is a part of a family. She is now welcomed into the family with open arms and she is accepted for who she is. Once and for all, she is not only appreciated for what she does, she is loved for no other reason than for being herself. She finally has what she has strived for and has always wanted.

Depicted in Chapter 21, the narrator showed her identity at the final stage, with confidence, rather than a “second-rate” identity, which lacks power and control. After beginning the novel with an “underhand” personality and character, the narrator slowly progressed, and is now very confident in herself, showing no fear about what others think of her.

He looks at things from many perspectives but instead of speaking to Sheri, Lane makes up scenario of what he thinks she wants to do at the end of the story. There is a lack of communication between the couple. They do not speak to each other at any point in the story. We get a feeling that the couple have not really sat down and talked through.

“The Story of The Hour” fully answers its title. It is a story about a woman living her last hour. Not so many things happen during that hour, but in contrast, many thoughts fly through main character’s head and a reader can form an accurate portrait of a woman’s life from these thoughts. Somebody tells her that her husband is dead. After that she dives into the whirl of thoughts regarding the impact of husband’s death on her future. Some facts or beliefs make this woman think that her husband’s death is a rather fortunate event. It all ends soon after that, when she sees her husband alive and dies. In “The Story of The Hour” Kate Chopin doubts mere foundation of a thing called “marriage” and suggests an alternative viewpoint based on early examples of a feminist movement.

Jane's growth throughout the novel will reflect back to her childhood. B.F. Skinner, the psychologist, explains that "a person's history of environmental interactions controls his of her behavior." A person's behavior is followed by a consequence. The nature of the consequence modifies the person's tendency to change or repeat the actions in the future (Stanford Encyclopedia). Jane is nurtured by the people around her and the problems she encounters. Jane has lived a secluded life: isolated from family, isolated from luxury, and isolated from love. When Jane enters a new world of unexpected scenarios, she does not yet know how to react.

Although Jo and Laurie had great times together as friends, Jo knew that carrying their relationship to a new level would break it. When she rejects Laurie’s proposal, she acknowledges the fact that their tempers and determination would get in the way of their

Women in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s had specific roles determined by the males who were dominant in their society. Women began to write stories which told their gender roles in that era. The authors of these stories lived in this time period and their stories reflect a lot of the traditional roles that were expected of them. The author’s purposes, were to tell about how marriage imprisoned women in this period of time. Kate Chopin and Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s stories provide examples of the gender roles. Their reasoning of writing these stories was to call on women of this era to learn how to empower themselves in this society.

In this passage from the novel, Jane begins to understand what will become of her if she gives into the consuming passion that she often feels:

This goes well with Jane completely and she is greatly happy to have him calling her rude and playful descriptions once again. Her self-respect is most important to her, and this theme dominates the novel.