Story Of An Hour Critical Analysis

Written in 1894, “The Story of an Hour” is a story of a woman who, through the erroneously reported death of her husband, experienced true freedom. Both tragic and ironic, the story deals with the boundaries imposed on women by society in the nineteenth century. The author Kate Chopin, like the character in her story, had first-hand experience with the male-dominated society of that time and had experienced the death of her husband at a young age (Internet). The similarity between Kate Chopin and her heroine can only leave us to wonder how much of this story is fiction and how much is personal experience.

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 unviels its theme at this point: Mrs. Mallard, for the first time in her life, experiences a new-found freedom. Instead of dreading the future without her husband, "she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely". She could now live her life and be absolutely free of the imposing will of her husband: There would be no one to live for her during the coming years; she would live for herself. There would be now powerful will bending hers in the blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow creature.(15)

When first reading Kate Chopin's "Story of an Hour," one may not typically be surprised at its ending, write it off as one of those creepy "back from the dead" horror stories and forget about it. There is more to this story than simply horror. The author is making a very strong, however subtle, statement towards humanity and women's rights. Through subtle symbolism, Kate Chopin shows how marriage is more like a confining role of servitude rather than a loving partnership.

Mrs Mallard's awkward attitude after learning of her husband's death establishes an irony- somebody who is really happy in marriage will not enjoy nature in peace and have mixed emotions; the person will feel genuine grief upon hearing of the death of her husband. Here, Mrs Mallard's reaction portrays the extent to which her thirst for freedom was strong. Kate Chopin allows us to visualise the moment that Mrs Mallard is able to shed the bondage of marriage: "free, free, free!." She feels liberated through her husband's death. Much emphasis is laid on her joy upon finding freedom- "there would be no one to live for." The author also points out that "she knew that she would weep again.....folded in death." This only highlights the fact that it is not an expression of love but seems more like a duty that

I think Mrs. Mallard felt trapped in her marriage, a marriage where communication no longer existed. I believe this caused her to feel very alone and restless in her marriage. In the late nineteenth century, women basically had little or no rights. It was thought that women’s sole purpose in society was to marry, have children, and to care for their family and household. Women of this era were not allowed to satisfy their own wants and desires. Therefore, we can assume that Mrs. Mallard got married at a young age. This fact, along with the crumbling of her marriage caused her to feel lost in a world where she knew not even herself. The fact that she was unable to experience life for herself resulted in her yearning desire for independence. These explanations contributed to Mrs. Mallard’s overwhelming enjoyment of her newfound freedom.

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

(654) It is quite apparent that Mrs. Mallard was struggling to fight back certain feelings about her husband?s supposed death. Although she is at first sad, she slowly begins to realize that the death of her husband can mean a number of great things for her. As the story progresses Mrs. Mallard eventually solves her internal conflict by accepting her husband?s death as a gift.

In Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour,” Chopin illustrates the mood and setting to express how Mrs. Mallard feels after she is notified of her husband; Brently Mallard’s death. Chopin describes different objects Mrs. Mallard comes in contact with in the story to give the reader a great sense of how she feels. The author depiction of Mrs. Mallard portrays how calm she is.

Mrs. Mallard feels tied down and trapped in her marriage. The lines of her face "bespoke repression" (paragraph 8). Once Mrs. Mallard receives the news of her husband's death, she knew that there will "be no powerful will bending her" (paragraph 14). There now would be no husband who believes he had the "right to impose a private will upon a fellow creature"

Mallard sits down, she starts to look like a tougher female. She stares out of the house through the huge open window which could also indicate the open chances accessible to her now and starts to realize how her marriage ready her into a smaller individual. She understands that she has remained living her life through limits triggered from being married and now sees that she can start to live for herself. “There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature”, this displays the feminist theory that it was anticipated females were burdened and displays the male-controlled philosophy. She was giving her spirit and liberty to a man that detained all of the control in the association. Marriage in the story, seems to be the male having total power over the females and it appears like Mrs. Mallard believed that she wasn’t even permitted to have her individual opinions which was possibly

Kate Chopin also depicts the misfortune and hardship that the main character, Mrs. Mallard, experiences in “The Story of an Hour”. In the story, a misinformed Mallard learns that her husband was involved in a tragic accident. Chopin illustrates Mallard’s feelings of mishap in writing, “She did not hear the story as many women have heard the same, with a paralyzed inability to accept its significance. She wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment, in her sister's arms” (1). Realizing that her life has now been changed forever is not something Mallard could embrace easily. Eventually, she embraces it and learns to live in the freedom she now had in living for herself. Unfortunately, the story ends when Mallard’s heart fails by the overwhelming feeling of seeing her husband once again, alive and

Kate Chopin's short story, "The Story of an Hour" is largely about the forms of repression that women were forced to endure during the epoch in which the story was written (1894) and during much of the time that preceded it. During this time period, women quite frequently had to subjugate themselves to the will of their husbands, or to some other man who had a significant amount of control over their lives. Chopin chooses to address this phenomenon in an indirect manner with this particular short story, although she does so in a thematic manner which, of course, is the ""¦idea that lies behind the story. Every story narrows a broad underlying idea, shapes it in a unique way, and makes the underlying idea concrete" (Clugston 2010, 7.1) The theme that "The Story of an Hour" is based upon is the notion of the liberation of women from the overbearing influence of men. Chopin chooses to illustrate this theme quite dramatically through literary devices of symbolism and metaphor.

Kate Chopin 1894 short story “The Story of an Hour” show the emotional roller coaster that the main character Louise Mallard goes through with the incorrect knowledge of her husband's untimely demise from a train wreck. This short story dives deep into the gender inequality of the time from the ginger way the family informs her of her husband due to what the writer refers to as heart trouble to her sister’s reaction to Louise saying “Free! Body and soul free!” (151). The writer without giving you what the woman is going through in her thoughts places you in in her chair forcing you to analyze the blanks that you’re filling. Leaving the information about her oppressor allows the reader to infer in what they see as her oppressor.

“The Story of an Hour” is a short story, written in 1894, by Kate Chopin. There is an underlying theme of social issues, such as independence or freedom for women in the 1800’s. This is displayed throughout the story through the setting of the story taking place in the 1800s, through the plot and character development of Louise Mallard, and through various symbols.