Story of an Hour

The open window in “A Story of an Hour” holds a lot of symbolism towards the emotions that Mrs. Mallard discovers within the story. The open window constitutes as her epiphany moment in the story where she discovers her true feelings and bases her actions off of the freedom she finds when she looks beyond the scenery through the window with new eyes. The open window in Mrs. Mallards home is what triggers her emotional state in which she breaks out of her restraints that her marriage has put her in.

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.

I want to analyze the short story of Kate Chopin. Kate Chopin born on February 8th, 1850 in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. And she died on August 22th, 1904 in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. She was a U.S. author of short stories and novels based in Louisiana. She wrote many short stories such as The Story of an Hour, The Storm, Desiree’s Baby, and A Pair of Silk Stockings. I choose The Story of An Hour because it is very interesting story. The Story of An Hour published on December 6th, 1894.

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.

For this story, I will use Mrs. Mallard as the example, and will discuss her challenges and struggles. According to the text, she was “afflicted with a heart trouble," so based on that alone we know that she struggled with delicate health issues. The narrator further described her as, “young, with a fair, calm face, whose lines bespoke repression and even a certain strength.” The ‘lines’ or wrinkles of repression that he speaks of is most likely caused by the stress of suppressing feelings or emotions in her life. Although she described her husband in a positive light, I do not believe she was happy and/or in love with him. My assumption is based on the fact that she demonstrated an incredible sense of relief when she thought he had passed on.

In “The Autonomous Female Self and the Death of Louise Mallard in Kate Chopin’s ‘Story of an Hour,’” Mark Cunningham expresses his opinion on how he believes Mrs. Mallard dies in Chopin’s short story. “The Story of an Hour” was written in the late 1890s, during a time when it was controversial for women to be independent. The ending of her story has created somewhat of a dilemma among readers for years. Some people conclude one ending based on the details and clues Chopin wrote throughout the story, while others come up with a totally different opinion. Mark Cunningham writes a brilliant article on his view of the story’s ending, where he clearly conveys his take on Louis Mallard’s death. Although there are many times when he repeats the same information, Cunningham makes good use of textual evidence and authorities, as well as logic, which makes it easy to agree with his claim.

It is a fantasy, a dream, and “A Story of an Hour” was indeed first published in Vogue magazine in 1894 under the more revealing title of “The Dream of an Hour.” Given her dissatisfaction with the best that life has to offer her and her unrealistic expectations of absolute freedom, therefore, there is no other option for Louise expect death. The conclusion of the story follows logically upon Louise’s specifications of her deepest wishes. Chopin’s expose of the fanciful dream of Louise is richly subtle, and is an exquisite example of her remarkable ability to present an untenable view in a seemingly sympathetic way.” In “The Story of an Hour” Chopin projects with delicately incisive irony what would happen if an immature and shallow egotist were to face the earthly consequence of an impossible dream of her afflicted heart” (Berkove

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.

In "The Story of an Hour," Kate Chopin suggests that in certain scenarios, the death of a loved one may be a blessing in disguise. Possible situations may include an abusive relationship, or an unhappy marriage, as the story suggests. Although the circumstances throughout the story might lead the reader to believe that Louise's husband's death would cause her great pain, ironically, when she hears the news, she feels a sense of euphoria. This suggests that death may not always cause agony.

     In conclusion the title, the "story" refers to that of Louise's life. She lived in the true sense of the word, with the will and freedom to live for only one hour. Only an hour because her husband ruined the

In “The Story of an Hour” we are taken through a journey. The journey is the thoughts and emotions going through Mrs. Mallards (Louise) mind. The journey only takes an hour, so everything moves at a fast pace. Louise seemed to process the news of her husband’s death without an initial element of disbelief and shock. She goes right into the reaction of grieving for her husband. She quickly begins to feel other emotions. At first she does not understand them. The journey is a way that Louise comes to her final thoughts of freedom. She looks into the future and looks forward to living a long life on her own terms.

`The Story of an Hour' was written in the nineteenth century and during this time highly restrictive gender roles forbade women to live as they saw fit. Kate Chopin presents in her story,

The Story of an hour written by Kate Chopin is the best short-story because theme, characters, point of view, and style show the attitude that some women felt or may feel regarding marriage being repressive in their life and a longing for freedom. The story opens with Mrs. Mallard’s sister Josephine informing her that her husband has been killed. Because of Mrs. Mallard’s heart condition Josephine and Richards, who is a friend of the family and there to help deliver the news, are concerned with how the news will affect Mrs. Mallard. When Mrs. Mallard hears the news to is over taken with grief and locks herself in her room. While in her room she imagines herself in her new life that is no longer bogged down by her duties as a wife. When

Kate Chopin's The Story of an Hour is a great story that conveys an important message about life and how difficult it can be for women, particularly in previous centuries. Back in the late 1800s and early 1900s, when this story was written, women were quite often mistreated and had to live restricted lives that lacked opportunity. Generally, women weren?t liberated during the 19th century. Traditionally, women did all the hard work in the house and had no opportunities to make their own living or pursue their own personal dreams. Kate Chopin does an outstanding job of portraying a woman living in these times. The Story of an Hour is a good depiction of the unspoken repression that women faced in the past. Kate Chopin's major theme of the

After reading “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin the reader can see that the text reveals a major theme about freedom with the use of a few characters, a basic setting, and plot. This text was written to address the crisis of the restricted lives women were forced to live during that time period. In the beginning of the story, the narrator is discussing how they were being careful to break the news of Louis husband’s death because she had a heart problem. In the middle of the text, we learn how the news was accepted. Finally, in the end of the text, the author adds an interesting plot twists that brings the meaning of the story together. Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour,” is the best story because it developed the theme of the loss of freedom can be detrimental through her use of plot, setting, and character.