Story Of An Hour Symbolism Essay

Symbolism is an important element in reinforcing the meaning of a story. It is a kind of formalist strategies which helps the reader understand the images that the author is trying to say in words. Symbolism is widely used in “The Story of An Hour” and “The Cranes”, which use conventional symbols, literary symbols, and even allegory. “The Story of An Hour” is written by Kate Chopin. Mrs. Mallard hears of her husband’s death from her husband’s friend Richards. At first, she feels depressed, but then she feels free and can have her own new life after thinking things through. Sadly, her “new” life is cut short by the abrupt return of Mr. Mallard. Mrs. Mallard, who has a bad heart, was so

The symbols and imagery used by Kate Chopin's in “The Story of an Hour” give the reader a sense of Mrs. Mallard’s new life appearing before her through her view of an “open window” (para. 4). Louise Mallard experiences what most individuals long for throughout their lives; freedom and happiness. By spending an hour in a “comfortable, roomy armchair” (para.4) in front of an open window, she undergoes a transformation that makes her understand the importance of her freedom. The author's use of Spring time imagery also creates a sense of renewal that captures the author's idea that Mrs. Mallard was set free after the news of her husband's death.

Kate Chopin’s short story, “The Story of An Hour,” emotionally illustrates the hour in which a young woman with a heart condition finds out her husband has been killed in a mining accident. In the beginning, she grieves over the loss of her husband, but she soon becomes relieved and joyous when she realizes that she is now free. However, her husband returns after having been far from the mines for the day and her heart problems return and she dies. Kate Chopin was an early feminist author and was well acquainted with death after losing many siblings as a child, her husband (who left her a large amount of debt), and her mother with whom she was very close. As a means of therapy, Chopin took up writing and her ideas about feminism and death are very clear. In “The Story of An Hour,” Chopin uses multiple symbols and an allusion to a Greek god to illustrate and support the idea that male oppression harms the souls and lives of women.

The Story of an Hour represents a single hour in Mrs. Louise Mallard’s life, in which a woman who has a weak heart due to emotional distress, experiences the momentary joy of freedom after hearing that her husband Brently Mallard had been killed in a railroad accident. Mrs. Mallard’s initial reaction, upon hearing of her husband’s death, is not far from what readers expected; she is deeply grief stricken, crying uncontrollably and wants to be left alone. However, during the hour she spent alone in her room, her state of mind changes dramatically. Sitting in the armchair motionless, she sees the blossoming

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.

I chose to do my analysis on the short story, “The Story Of An Hour”. The themes I see in this story is the quest for identity/coming of age, romantic/love, birth, and death. It is about a woman named Mrs. Mallard. She was an elderly lady and had a heart complications. Her sister Josephine and her husband’s friend Richards had to break the news to her that her husband, Brently Mallard, has been killed in a railroad disaster. Mrs. Mallard was sorrowful and sobbed in her sisters’ arms. After her grieving process, she wanted to be alone, so she went to her room and locked herself in. As she sat in the window, she seem to be calmer and accepted her husband’s death. She was not distressed of what had happened. She began to say the words “free” and her heart

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 is a short story about a woman who struggles with the oppression she experiences at the hands of her husband and her secret desire for independence. Louise Mallard didn’t realize how upset she was in her marriage until she found out about her husband’s death. She grieves for only a short period of time before mentally creating a new life for herself. This new life she envisions help her to see the silver lining in a tragic event. Chopin uses symbolism throughout the story to portray the theme of a quest for identity.

How would one feel to hear the news of a significant other or loved one who has passed away due to an accident? The news is heartbreaking and rather unimaginable. “Sorry to say but your husband has died due to an accident.” No one wants to hear those words or go through the painful time. In “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin’s, the death of her husband meant freedom and happiness. Chopin’s uses a great deal of symbolism throughout the story in order to depict the theme of freedom and happiness.

In "The Story of an Hour" by Kate Chopin, there are many different themes that depicts the relationship between Mr. And Mrs. Mallard throughout the story. These themes such as freedom, confinement, loss of self, escape and alienation. These themes shows the life of a woman's life in the mid 1800's, irony and marriage. The apparent death of Mrs. Mallard's husband shows us that she was living a life without freedom, suggesting that marriage in any form is confining.

The Story of an Hour, by Kate Chopin, is a wonderful short story filled with many different peculiar twists and turns. Written in 1894, the author tells a tale of a woman who learns of her husband’s death, but comes to find joy in it. Many of the things Kate Chopin writes about in this story symbolize something more than just the surface meaning. Through this short story, told in less than one thousand one hundred words, Kate Chopin illustrates deeper meanings through many different forms of symbolism such as the open window in the bedroom, Mrs. Louise Mallard’s heart trouble, and Chopin’s physical description of Mrs. Mallard.

Kate Chopin's short story "The Story of an Hour" presents a young married woman named Mrs. Louise Mallard, who has a "heart trouble"(26). Suddenly, Mrs. Mallard receives a news that her husband, Brently Mallard has died in a train accident. She weeps and ascends to her room. Within a short period of time, she is able to fully come to terms with her husband's sudden death. Instead of mourning over his death, she feels joy and excitement. She can now act as herself and has the freedom she is longing for. Ironically, her husband comes home alive and she dies of the realization that her freedom and identity will be taken away again. The imageries that Chopin uses help the readers imagine Mrs. Mallard's excitement and the new life waiting for her.

The Story of an Hour relates to the author, Kate Chopin’s, early life experiences. Chopin’s father was tragically killed in a train accident like Brently Mallard in the story. Chopin’s mother was also a young woman that was controlled by her husband, like Mrs. Mallards marriage. This shows that Chopin’s experience in her early life was through her mother’s eyes in the story. The whole story was not what really happened to her mother, but I think that she got the idea to use these symbols to tell the story using what her mother went through.

In the short story "The Story of an Hour" Kate Chopin, the author, presents the reader with an obscure view of marriage. Chopin's main character, Mrs. Louise Mallard, experiences the excitement of freedom instead of the devastation of loneliness after she receives the news of her husband's death. Mrs. Mallard disturbingly finds out that Brently, her husband is still alive. She know knew that her only chance at freedom is gone. The disappointment instantly kills Mrs. Mallard. Published in the late 1800s, the overbearing nature of marriage presented in "The Story of an Hour" may very well reflect, but not restricted to, that era.

“When she abandoned herself a little whispered word escaped her slightly parted lips. She said it over and over under her breath: “free, free, free!” (Chopin). During the late 1800’s women were obligated to give obedience to their husbands and basically be a housewife. In the “Story of an Hour” Louise Mallard was an intelligent women living in the 1800s with a very bad heart problem. So when the news struck about her husband’s death, Josephine, her sister had to inform her with great care about the tragic death. Instead of other women in her time who would be dreadful over the news was very understanding and decided to grieve in pain alone in her room where she felt a sense of freedom. Kate Chopin’s 1894 short story “The story of an Hour” displays a theme of freedom and the oppressiveness of marriage at the end of Victorian era with setting, symbols, and distinctive characters.