“The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin Essay

Once Mrs. Mallard calms down after being given the news of her husband's death, where she goes (or, perhaps, doesn't go) is evidence to the fact that there was very little love between her and her husband. "She went away to her room alone." In a time of grief such as this, it is expected that she would want to go to their bedroom because it is the room they would have privately shared. However, the story refers to the room as "her room" and when she enters it, the piece of furniture that she sought comfort in was an armchair. It would be assumed that their bed would be her place of comfort, yet there is no mention of the presence of a bed in the room. It is when she closes herself in her room that her feelings begin to take hold and are revealed. The description of the room and the scenery unravel simultaneously with her inward thoughts. As she enters the room, the immediate

In Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” allows one to explore many ironic instances throughout the story, the main one in which a woman unpredictably feels free after her husband’s assumed death. Chopin uses Mrs. Mallard’s bizarre story to illustrate the struggles of reaching personal freedom and trying to be true to yourself to reach self-assertion while being a part of something else, like a marriage. In “The Story of an Hour” the main character, Mrs. Mallard, celebrates the death of her husband, yet Chopin uses several ironic situations and certain symbols to criticize the behavior of Mrs. Mallard during the time of her “loving” husband’s assumed death.

This personal confession shows that Mrs. Mallard, though she will mourn at first, now is free to “live for herself,” (228) not for her imposing husband. Before her husband’s death, Mrs. Mallard believed she was in a healthy, normal marriage. This death revealed to her how while she cared about her husband, she despised the lack of freedom her marriage had given her. All of the realizations that Mrs. Mallard reaches during her time of reflection shows the readers exactly why she will no longer mourn the death of her husband.

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.

Upon hearing the news, Mrs. Mallard is overwhelmed with grief, which swiftly turned into hope. Mrs. Mallard’s reaction upon receiving the news of her husband 's death is considered to be unusually by society’s standards. In the beginning of the story it is revealed that Mrs, Mallard suffers heart problems; however, when it is revealed that her husband is dead her heart is relieved. She was thrilled that she was able to be her own person again. It was revealed through her reflection on her marriage that she “had loved him - sometimes” (16). Mrs. Mallard overcame is quick to overcome her grief after the realization that she has been set free of her horrible marriage. As a married woman, Mrs. Mallard is miserable, but as a widow she feels a sense of relief that she is free of her marital vows. At the end of the story Mrs. Mallard dies of a failing heart which it ironic because typically a woman would be filled with joy to find out

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)

The audience would have expected Mrs. Mallard to be upset after learning of her husband’s death in “The Story of an Hour” but she expresses joy. Her joy does not come from a place of true hatred; she claims that she did love him at some point, she was just tired of her life being control by her husband. She realizes that her husband’s death means her freedom and that, “There would be no powerful will bending hers in

Kate Chopin's `The Story of an Hour' is a short yet complex piece describing the feelings of Mrs Mallard. This story is overflowing with symbolism and imagery. The most prominent theme here is the longing for freedom. Chopin focuses on unfolding the emotional state of Mrs Mallard which can be separated into three stages: quickly moving to grief, through a sense of newfound freedom, and finally into the despair of the loss of that freedom.

“There was something coming to her and she was waiting for it, fearfully. What was it? She did not know; it was too subtle and elusive to name. But she felt it, creeping out of the sky, reaching toward her through the sounds, the scents, the color that filled the air” (7). Mrs. Mallard started to feel a minimal amount of freedom from her husband. “ 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! The vacant stare and the look of terror that had followed it went from her eyes. They stared keen and bright. Her pulse beat fast, and the coursing blood warmed and relaxed every inch of her body” (7). Mrs. Mallard’s emotions are described through imagery. Imagery helps us to get a feeling of what is happening in the story through wordplay, and

Mrs. Mallard has a heart condition, which means that if she was to be startled she could have a heart attack and die. So when her husband, Mr. Mallard, arrives into town by the train tracks, the train crashes and people that are nearby call for help. When the news gets out that Mrs. Mallard's husband was “killed” by the debris of the train her sister, Josephine, and her husbands friend, Richard, has to carefully approach Mrs, Mallard by telling her the news without startling her. Josephine was the one to tell her. When she explains what had happened carefully without hurting her heart. Mrs. Mallard goes into her room and closes the door behind her. Even though, Josephine and Richard wants to enter the room to help comfort her and to make sure

While Mrs. Mallard remembers Mr. Mallard as a kind and tender man who loved her, she also viewed him as the oppression that marriage put upon women and men. While Mr. Mallard was kind and loving to his wife, he was also controlling and overbearing. Josephine, Mrs. Mallard’s sister and Richards, Mr. Mallard’s friend is there to break the news of Mr. Mallard’s death. Richards has learned of Mr. Mallard’s death at the newspaper office, not wanting to believe the information that was received, Richards waited for the new to be delivered for a second time before enlisting the help of Josephine. They are both there to support Mrs. Mallard and their support shows that they care for Mr. and Mrs. Mallard.

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

At the end of the story, Mrs. Mallard’s husband walked through her front door in the flesh, but Mrs. Mallard’s heart could not handle the excitement. The

As she reflects, it is easy to see that Mrs. Mallard is not content with her lifestyle. She feels perturbed by her cursed fate. So the thought that she may be released from the restraints of her marriage feels joyfully divine. Plans of her potential alternate life overwhelm her. Over several years she has built up intense repugnance toward her husband’s behavior and her life. Thus she is consumed by a false sense of

When Mrs. Mallard finally realizes that she is free she leaves reality. “ 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, 5). This newly free woman abandoned her life. She is no longer the old Mrs. Mallard. The freedom she has, has not set in with her yet. Her lips were slightly parted because she is preparing herself to open up to the world. Mrs. Mallard has finally escaped into the free world.