Mrs Mallard's Independence The Story Of An Hour

Kate Chopin is known for being criticized for empowering the subject of female sexuality and independence. In Chopin’s short story, “The Story of an Hour”, it is placed in a time where men were known as being the head of the household while women were only in charge of raising the children and caring for the home. In the 1890s, women didn’t have so much power to themselves compared to today’s society where female empowerment is frequently encouraged. Chopin’s story narrates a sequence of Mrs. Mallard’s emotions that goes within the motion of the story. As she overcomes the sudden death of her husband, her emotion of grief soon turns into the sudden feeling of freedom, later on emerging into a strong independent woman.

The short stories, “The Story of An Hour”, by Kate Chopin and “The Jury of Her Peers”, by Susan Glaspell compare two married women who live under the shadow of their husbands. Both of these stories were written in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries during the time when women were treated unequally. Women had limited rights. For example, they could not vote, voice their opinion or work outside the home. Glaspell and Chopin were considered feminist writers who focus their writing on the struggle of women during the time when the Women’s Suffrage Movement was beginning; these short stories reflect women’s struggles under the control of men. Married women were responsible for taking care of the household, children and wifely duties while the husbands were responsible for consistently managing the title of “the breadwinner.” Married women were expected to be discreet and obedient to their husbands, which meant that the wives could not express their opinions because of society’s expectations of women. In the short stories, “The Story of An Hour”, by Kate Chopin and “The Jury of Her Peers”, by Susan Glaspell, Mrs. Mallard and Mrs. Wright share a prominent similarity concerning the loss of their individual identity during marriage and realize that the death of their husbands allow them to regain their self-identity.-

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.

Traditionally, women have been known as the less dominant sex. They have been stereotyped as being only housewives and bearers of the children. Many interesting characters in literature are conceived from the tension women have faced with men. This tension is derived from men; society, in general; and within a woman herself. Kate Chopin‘s short story, “The Story of an Hour”, focus on a woman’s dilemma near the turn of the 19th century. Contradicting the “normal” or sad assumption of death, “The Story of an Hour” illustrates the significance of death representing freedom. The Story narrates about an hour of Louise Mallard’s life, as she tries to understand, and deal with her feelings of her husbands death.

Kate Chopin’s “The Story of An Hour” was published in 1894 in Vogue, during a time when women do not have any legal rights. They have low education level and have no opportunity to work; what they can do is stay at home and manage the family. All their lives, they rely on their husband. Women at that time do not think about why they should be treated this way; they were being silenced by society. Kate Chopin uses the character Mrs. Mallard as the representative of all women who wants freedom at that time, and she criticizes the way society treats them, yet the difference of Mrs. Mallard’s values compared to society’s makes her become egotistic and her death end up not changing people’s mind of how to treat women properly.

In the 1900s, women were restricted to home and family duties, living a life with low expectations and no encouragement to pursue an education or careers. Women were also deprived of their individual and social life. The short story published in 1894 “The Story of An Hour” by Kate Chopin demonstrates oppression, which can be defined as “the exercise of authority or power in a burdensome, cruel, or unjust manner. Ms.Mallard (the main character) is overwhelmed by a sense of freedom after finding out of a railroad accident, with her husband being one of the victims. Throughout the plot, the feeling of oppression and repression are subtle, as Louise Mallard has a short glance of independence before her heart gets the best of her.

Mrs. Mallard looks out of her window and notices “…tops of trees that were aquiver with the new spring of life. The delicious breath of rain was in the air…and countless sparrows twittered in the eaves.” The language in this excerpt contains lively language, as opposed to the earlier sadness of death and grief. The tone portrays a sense of liveliness and life, even in the wake of death. The personification of the breath of rain especially points out new life. This affects Mrs. Mallard; she knows something is changing in her, but she doesn’t quite know what it is

In “The Story of An Hour” Mrs. Mallard is told of her husbands “demise” and she had that of a considerably odd reaction. One that seemed unprecedented by her sister, who had delivered the news, who is obviously severely worried by this reaction. She, no doubt, thought Mrs. Mallard had gone mad with the news of her husband’s death. Proclaiming about how free and liberated she felt after hearing this “oh so devastating” news. This was all due to the fact that Mrs. Mallard did not all together love her husband. Instead of feeling dread and sorrow at the news she was overcome with a sense of immense liberation. She could finally live for herself. She could make her own decisions in her own best interest instead of what her husband would like. She had finally been

Isolation is a slow death, as it abruptly kills any positive emotions in its way to achieve its need to drain the happiness out of its victim. Feminist writer, Kate Chopin, in her short story, “The Story of an Hour, defines a Mrs. Mallard reaction towards her husband’s death. Chopin’s purpose is to stress the importance, towards suppressed women that they are not alone. She adopt a depressed yet optimistic tone in order to clarify that women should take any chance they have to escape to freedom. Through the use of irony and point of view, Chopin conveys towards her audience that Mrs. Mallard is characterized by her time period being the rise of women rights and her actions of escaping to freedom.

“The Story of An Hour” focuses on sixty minutes in the life of a young nineteenth-century woman, Mrs. Mallard. Upon learning of her husband’s death, Mrs. Mallard experiences an epiphany about her future without a husband. Her life, due to heart problems, suddenly ends after she unexpectedly finds out her husband is actually alive. Mrs. Mallard’s actions cause the reader to cogitate a hidden meaning weaved into Kate‘s short story. Chopin had an idea that women felt confined in their marriages, and the idea is brought out through the protagonist’s initial reaction, excessive joy, and new perspective of the world following the upsetting news.

Kate Chopin’s short tale, “The Story of an Hour”, is a writing of irony. It tells of a young women, who’s husband has just died and who seems to be in a state of grief, when she is truly embracing her new found freedom, where she is no longer repressed by her husband. This short story shares similar themes with the article, “Enfranchisement of Women” written by Harriet Mills. An article about the subjection of women in society, and how civilization is afflicted because of it.

Patriarchal ideals in “Story of an Hour” enforce the inferiority of women, and breaking the patriarchy liberates womankind. Kate Chopin sheds light on the deadly results that patriarchy can bring. From the very first line, patriarchal ideals are expressed by letting the reader know that “Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble, [and] great care was taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband’s death” (Chopin). Mrs. Mallard is too feeble to hear of her husband’s death, and keeping this news from her means that her truth is being withheld. While not explicit, this is an example of patriarchy at work. Mrs. Mallard is not strong enough for her truth, so a man must tell her sister, who then tells Mrs. Mallard. This extensive filtration supports the notion that women are inferior because they cannot handle the stress of bad news. In a turn of expectations, Mrs. Mallard sees the news of her husband’s death as a beacon of liberation. By her lonesome, Mrs. Mallard assures herself that “there would be no one to live for during those coming years [after her husband’s death]; she would live for herself.” (Chopin). Patriarchy laid down upon Mrs. Mallard so much that the breaking of it frees her. She discovers her truth for herself, not a filtered truth by a man, which is a result of the patriarchal forces in her life being dissolved.

The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin is a short yet complex story, describing Mrs Mallard’s feelings. It focuses on the unfolding emotional state of Mrs Mallard after the news of her husbands death, and has overflowing symbolism and imagery. It is an impressive literary piece that touches the readers’ feelings and mind and allows the reader to have a connection to Mrs Mallard’s emotional process. Although the story is short, it is complete with each word carrying deep sense and meaning. It is written in the 19th century, a time that had highly restrictive gender roles that forbade women to live as they saw fit. Mrs Mallard experiences something not everyone during this time has the luck to have; the happiness of freedom that the reader only

In Chopin’s short story “The Story of an Hour” focuses on the character Mrs. Mallard and how she comes to terms with the death of her husband. But the story also subtly suggests how woman were labelled as these domesticated creatures and controlled by societies principles in that time and age. This can be interpreted in the setting of the story and the characterization of the individuals within the story.

“The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin describes an hour in the life of an oppressed woman bound by marriage in the nineteenth century. It is only when Mrs. Mallard’s husband dies in a sudden railroad accident that she realizes she is no longer tied together by the ropes of man. At first she is shocked and horrified by the tragedy, for she did say “she had loved him – sometimes” (Chopin). However, once the tears were wept, a new bountiful life of freedom was now in the eyes of Mrs. Mallard. Chopin uses imagery, third person omniscient point of view, and concepts of relief and joy in “The Story of an Hour” to convey the true feelings of Mrs. Mallard as she is freed from the strenuous and unjust oppression of women due to society’s expectation of gender roles.