Story Of An Hour Symbolism Analysis

The story of an Hour by Chopin is about Louise Mallard desire for freedom. Throughout her life Mrs. Mallard was incapable to leave her home due to a heart illness. The doctor explained how although a sudden shock could kill Louise she would be able to leave the house. Louise was beyond happy to finally be given the chance to leave her home. Brently Mallard did everything in his power to stop her from leaving by using the sickness as a justification. Mr. Mallard would only dedicate little time and affection to his wife. The newspaper had reported a railroad disaster in which Brently Mallard’s name appeared. Louise sister’s Josephine and Brently’s friend knowing of her heart condition gently broke the devastating news to her.

Immediately after the news of her husband's death, Mrs. Mallard races upstairs into her room where she settles into “a comfortable, roomy armchair” (para.4). The armchair symbolizes the rest from the oppressive life she had and freedom from society's expectations. Since it was tradition for women to be married by a certain age, Louise Mallard must have obligated to marry Brently. Sitting in the armchair, she gazes out of the window and starts indulges in deep thought, which establishes her as an intelligent individual.

Setting in a story can create certain moods, influence the way we feel about a character, and change the reader's perceptions. “The Story of An Hour” by Kate Chopin is a short story about a woman named Mrs. Mallard, who learns of her husband’s death. This tragic news causes a range of emotions and internal conflict for the main character. The century, season, and room, in which the story takes place, prepares readers for the overflowing emotions and gives clarity to the character’s frame of mind. Kate Chopin uses the setting to help set the structure of the story.

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.

The story of an hour by Kate Chopin introduces us to Mrs. Mallard as she reacts to her husband’s death. In this short story, Chopin portrays the complexity of Mrs. Mallard’s emotions as she is saddened yet joyful of her loss. Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” argues that an individual discover their self-identity only after being freed from confinement. The story also argues that freedom is a very powerful force that affects mental or emotional state of a person. The story finally argues that only through death can one be finally freed.

Louise went to her room where she tries to process the news. It is clear that she is sad, she knows that her husband was a good loving man. But then she recognized that she finally could be free, and she will be able to make her own life by her own decisions and desires.

This newfound freedom is in effect a new motivation for Louise. Before experiencing such freedom, Louise was petrified of the thought of life being long; now however, she felt herself wishing, even praying for life to be long. This is evidenced with the following quote, "She breathed a quick prayer that life might be long. It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long." (15). This depicts an ever embracing Louise, finally liberated of the powerful institution of marriage. What is more, this quote serves to further support the idea that Louise indeed felt trapped, she was unhappy and yet, the thought of her husband dying hadn't crossed her mind, only the relief from her own passing was her wish.

A symbol, is a representation of a thought or an idea. In the Story of an Hour Kate Chopin does a great job of using many examples as symbolism. She uses these symbols to represent the main theme she wants to get across to the readers. And the idea she wants to get across is the renewal of Mrs. Mallards life. The three major examples of symbolism are, when she says blood coursed through her body, the use of nature, and when she welcomes her new life with open arms.

Heart troubles play a huge role within this story and that is why it is also a great example of symbolism. We find out that Louise has heart troubles to begin with. Her heart troubles affect her both physically and of course symbolically. Since she has heart troubles, it makes it hard for her to do much of anything in the first place. The heart trouble that Louise is dealing is from the state of her marriage with her husband. Her lack of freedom and independence is affecting her ongoing heart troubles through marriage. She is doesn’t have that freedom and independence from her husband which is affecting her heart and causing these troubles. When the death of her husband came out, it took a huge toll on her physically. Symbolically the heart trouble plays well towards the end of the story when Louise dies. She goes into shock when her supposed dead husband walks through the front door and she drops dead to the floor. The doctors say she had died due to heart disease but symbolically she died of a broken heart caused by her loss of freedom and her independence because her husband wasn’t

The beginning of the story sets the theme for the whole story. We are told about the heart condition that inflicts Louise. This is significant throughout the story. The heart condition is a symbolic way of describing her thoughts of oppression she felt about her marriage. She was trapped and isolated by the marriage. She felt the need to hide these feelings. Women of her era were supposed to be home and under their husbands command. The story has her going through this journey privately. That is significant in the fact that now in her husband’s passing, she will be alone. She will need to work through things by herself. She will be able to go through the whole process on her own, without being judged and persuaded to feel differently.

By the repetition of the words as a reader we come to understand the meaning behind the story and how Louise actually felt towards her husband. The theme of the story is mainly the forbidden joy of independence. Due to that the story was written years ago where women were very dependent to their husbands Louise actual feelings of joy and happiness towards her husband death was forbidden by society during this

After quickly recovering from the storm of grief which showered her, Louise comprehends her own independence; “‘Free, free, free!’” (202). Something of which she has not possessed before. Not to mention, Louise holds great passion for the future without her husband influencing her decisions, “...(the) long procession of years to come (...) would belong to her absolutely” (202). As the story continues, it becomes evident that Mrs. Mallard’s confidence and jubilance holds direction in her long life to come. Ironically, however, Louise only lives to see the next few minutes of her life. As the shock of seeing the living dead births a heart attack; “When the doctors came they said she had died of heart disease- a joy that kills” (203). Ultimately, her gluttonous behaviour and extreme state of joy lead her to an untimely death when her eyes lay upon the presumed dead, Brently

“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.

In “The Story of an Hour” Kate Chopin uses symbolism to show that Louis Mallard experienced freedom when her husband dies. Throughout her marriage, she has not yet experienced freedom. “The Story of an Hour” is Chopin tale of a woman being happy because of her husband passing away from a railroad disaster. Louis later found out that it was a mistake her husband did not die. During the time she thought her husband had died, Louis sat in her room and realized that freedom is very essential to one’s life. Also, the author mentions that it is spring time. Spring signifies that life is brought back or it can mean a new life. In Chopin`s “The Story of an Hour” the main character, Louis Mallard, shows freedom as she sits in the comfortable, roomy chair, and looks out the open window and at the blue sky.

Kate Chopin is the author of many short-stories and novels. Her short story, “The Story of an Hour,” is about a woman named Mrs. Louise Mallard with a fragile heart that suddenly and unexpectedly loses her husband in a train accident. Throughout the story, Mrs. Mallard learns to embrace the accident because for her it meant she finally obtained freedom from her demanding life that she has been wanting to break away from. Freedom and independence is one of the themes of “The Story of an Hour” and appears in the story when Mrs. Mallard learns that her husband is in a train accident, when she secludes herself from everyone in her room, and when she learns that her husband is actually alive.