Story Of An Hour Critical Analysis

     Relationships seem to be the favorite subject of Kate Chopin’s stories. As Margaret Bauer suggests that Chopin is concerned with exploring the “dynamic interrelation between women and men, women and patriarchy, even women and women” (Bauer 146). In “The Story of an Hour” Chopin deals with the subject of marriage. She illustrates the influence of family alliance on individual freedom. According to Wohlpart,“The Story of an Hour” describes the journey of Mrs. Mallard against the Cult of True Womanhood as she slowly becomes aware of her own desires and thus of a feminine self that has long been suppressed”(Wohlpart 2). The Cult of True Womanhood in the XIX century included “purity” and “domesticity”. The former suggested that women must maintain their virtue. The latter – denied them their intellectual and professional capabilities (Papke 12). Being the victim of this Cult, Louise Mallard was a good example of a wife without “her own desires and feminine self”.

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 Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin is an immaculate illustration of how a short story can have the ability to make a considerable impact on an entire nation. Chopin manipulates her writing effectively with her outstanding applications of certain literary techniques. Moreover, these techniques such as pathos, irony and symbolism, amplify the intensity and overall impact women oppression had on Chopin and many other women during the late nineteenth century. In addition, the story overshadows the protagonist, Mrs. Mallard, and her persevering fight to overcome the mournful news regarding the death of her husband. She was informed about her husband's death by her sister Josephine, who told her in a rather gentle fashion which ultimately caused Mrs. Mallard to go to the hospital with an unfortunate affliction of heart trouble. Initially, Mrs. Mallard rhapsodically struggled in trying to cope with this news as it left her in a paralyzed state of sorrow but she then realized that she gained a great deal of freedom due to to her husband's death. Furthermore, Chopin leaves out many details within her text, which obligates the reader to fill in the gaps within Chopin’s iceberg imagery like writing and gain a perception of women’s mistreatment during the mid 1800’s.

In “The Story of an Hour,” the author, Kate Chopin, places several literary writing elements into her short story. However, one of the most prominent would be the character analysis of Louise Mallard, the story’s protagonist. Kate Chopin uses situations and events throughout the story to mold the emotions and thoughts of Mrs. Louise Mallard. Despite the eighteenth century’s idea that women should willingly give up their lives for their husbands, Louise’s mindset after hearing of her husband’s passing shows otherwise. Moreover, Mavis Chia-Chieh Tseng wrote an analysis of Mrs. Louise and concluded, “after hearing the news of her husband’s untimely passing, the protagonist, Mrs. Louise Mallard, is grief-stricken at first, but soon other thoughts creep into her mind” (29). This statement validates the belief that Louise Mallard responds differently than people, such as her sister Josephine, would expect her to react in the unfortunate situation that has been placed upon her. Kate Chopin portrays Louise Mallard’s character as a strong and independent, yet deeply troubled woman struggling to live in an unhappy and restricting marriage during the late eighteenth century, when women had little to no personal freedom.

Kate Chopin, the author of “The Story of the Hour”, writes about Louise Mallard’s mental and emotional suppression during her marriage in 1894 and her overwhelming excitement of her husband’s death. Following the traditional role of wifehood, upheld for centuries, Louise Mallard conforms to her husband’s wishes and desires with no regard to her own personal life. The stress of life and her marriage has caused her to have a weakened heart. Her health is further compromised by the constant conforming to her husband. Louise Mallard steadily falls into a depressive state and questions her love for her husband.

Mrs. Louise Mallard, the main character from Kate Chopin’s short story “The Story of an Hour,” is not the housewife that those around her assume. Although she loves her husband, she is shocked and overwhelmed by the sense of new-found freedom that accompanies her husband’s alleged death. Mrs. Mallard represents the patriarchal control over women of her time, as well as the postulation that a woman could not maintain her independence. Chopin uses Louise Mallard’s reactions to her husband’s supposed death, her subsequent untimely death, and the speculations of those around her to personify the dependent nature that was imposed on women of the turn-of-the-century.

Kate Chopin’s 1894 short-story “The Story of an Hour” demonstrates a negative view on marriage in the nineteenth century. This narrative illustrated a woman that was an awe over the death of beloved husband by describing her overjoyed emotions as she ascends from mourning numbness to elation through brilliant use of word choice. Throughout the writer’s story, it is introduced that the main character has an inner desire for independence and self-identity. The word choice used to account the outside world was given at minimal, however her inner thought was greatly noted. Mrs. Mallard’s recognition of her own unhappiness gives her a “burst of liberation” from male oppression.

Kate Chopin wrote the short story “The Story of an Hour” in the late nineteenth century. The main character, Mrs. Mallard, is a representation of all of the women of that time. Although they may be in relationships where their husbands treat them well, it is not enough. All most women want is their freedom and independence. They want to do as they please and not be dependent on their husband or their family. Women in that time were simply not allowed to be independent or have their own freedom. Before a woman is married she is known to belong to her family, and when she is married, she belongs to her husband. This is why Mrs. Mallard was actually more delighted than devastated when she heard the news of her husband being killed in a train accident. The news of her husband’s death “brings tears of release rather than of grief” (Harris). The theme of this short story is freedom and independence but at a cost. There are many shocking turns of events throughout Kate Chopin’s short story which leads to Mrs. Mallard gaining her freedom, gaining her independence, and then losing them both.

Kate Chopin’s The Story of an Hour was first published in 1894 (The Story of An Hour). The main theme of this story is oppression and loss of freedom for people, especially when they are married. In the Era this story was written marriage bound a couple together in a union that could not be undone except through death. The oppression happens to both women and men. This theme is demonstrated many times throughout the story. Chopin keeps us in Mrs. Mallard’s head through the entire duration of the story, letting us listen to her thoughts. Chopin uses character actions and imagery to further illustrate the emotions that Mrs. Mallard is feeling.

The Story of an Hour," by Kate Chopin is the tragic story of a woman whose newfound position as a widow gives her strength. She develops a sense of freedom as she embraces her husband's death as an opportunity to establish her own identity. The tragedy is when her newfound identity gets stripped away as the appearance of her husband reveals that he is still alive. The disappointment from this tragedy kills her with a heart attack symbolizing the many conflicts that she faced throughout the story. The conflicts the character faces within herself and society show that the social norms for women were suppressing to their strength and individuality as human beings.

Kate Chopin `s “Story of an Hour” looks into the oppression of women in marriages. Mrs. Mallard`s fragile condition of her heart is taken in great consideration when her sister breaks the tragic news of her husband`s death. She went away to her room and stubbornly requested to be alone. She flopped onto an armchair by a window and sunk into the deep cushion of the seat to analyze the haunting reality of abandonment. Out the window, Mrs. Mallard saw what appears to be a new spring life.

Kate Chopin notifies the reader in the beginning of the story that Mrs. Mallard has heart problems and will need to be told of her husband’s death; Brently Mallard “as gently as possible” (Chopin 278). Mrs. Mallard represent women of her time period who were unable to find happiness in marriage and motherhood, not because it's not found there, but because their freedoms within marriage are restricted” (Bright Hub Education). “The idea of a new found independence for Mrs. Mallard is also noticeable (symbolically) while she is upstairs sitting in the room crying” (The Sitting Bee). Once told Mrs. Mallard escapes into a room

Many authors write short stories to let the story have many different perspectives. In “The Story of an Hour” Kate Chopin wants the reader to feel as though, Louise is genuinely upset that her husband had died. In this short story Chopin focuses on the 19th century American woman’s dramatic hour of awakening into selfhood. She makes the character out to be a woman of either selfishness, or a woman that has been through an unhappy marriage. In the end it enables Louise to live the last moments of her life with an acute consciousness of life’s immeasurable beauty.

At the end of the 19th century, American society presented an ideology of patriarchy. Feminists struggled for equality and against discrimination against women. As the feminist movement started, lots of female writers were explored. One of the most famous writers is Kate Chopin. Her works mostly present a theme of women pursuing freedom and equality. “The Story Of An Hour” is one of her representative works. In this short story, Kate Chopin reveals how women lived under the oppression of male-dominated society, especially for women who got married. They were not financially independent and their freedom and rights were deprived. Therefore female were forced to be an “angle in the home”. The literature piece challenges the preconception that women can only be a housekeeper and marriage is the only way out.

[Chopin] wants her readers to know that Mrs.Mallard has a very specific condition that interferes with the workings of her heart. Later, when we see Mrs.Mallrd “warmed and relaxed”, we realize that the problem with her heart is that her marriage has not allowed her to “live for herself.”