A Comparison of The Story Of An Hour by K. Chopin and the Red Room by H.G. Wells
I have read two short stories from the nineteenth century which both
contain tension and suspense. They both lead up to a sense of the
unexpected at the end however it is achieved in different ways that
they are told.
The Story Of An Hour is the shorter of the two. The story starts
suddenly and a tragedy is introduced immediately. The opening
paragraph is very short as it is only one sentence but a lot of
information is given to the reader. It is written in third-person
narrative, which shows that the reader will be able to know things
that other characters don't. Two characters are brought into the
story, Mrs Mallard and her husband. We are also told that her husband
had died and that she has been suffering with 'heart trouble', 'Mrs
Mallard was afflicted with heart trouble, great care was taken to
break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband's death'.
This builds up the tension and suspense and makes the reader think
that something is going to happen to her or that she could have more
trouble following his death. The reader is drawn into the story as the
tragedy shows that there could be sadness or misery. The detailed
opening encourages images and ideas of how the story is going to
progress, making the reader feel that a tragedy is to follow.
The Story Of An Hour is set in Mrs Mallard's house and as it continues
the setting is moved to her room for a large section of the story. At
the beginning, the setting is not obvious as the action starts
suddenly without an explanation as to where the characters are.
However in the third para...
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...ich give a biased view of them.
The narrator in The Story Of An Hour does not express their views on
the characters or events.
The other characters are not named, there is a 'man with the withered
arm', 'the old woman' who had 'her pale eyes wide open' and 'a second
old man' who was 'more bent, more wrinkled', 'more aged' and had a
shade over his eye. The narrator presents these characters to be
mysterious and disturbing, such features add to the sense of mystery.
These characters try to give him advice but he acts against it.
After reading The Red Room, I prefer The Story Of An Hour because,
although The Red Room is more surreal and mysterious, The Story Of An
Hour has a more satisfying ending. The Red Room is much more
descriptive and H.G Wells exaggerates the characters and the setting
to add to the tension.
The “Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin and ‘”The Hand” by Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette are similar in theme and setting. Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette and Kate Chopin create the theme of obligatory love and the unhappiness it entails. Both stories illustrate the concealed emotions many women feel in their marriage yet fail to express them. The two stories take place in a sacred room of the house and both transpire in a brief amount of time. The differences between the two stories are seen through the author’s choice of characters in each story. In “The story of an Hour” Kate Chopin involves other characters in Mrs. Mallard’s life, whereas, “The Hand” deals with marriage and togetherness and only involves the husband and wife. Symbolism is seen all throughout “The Hand” not so in ‘The Story of an Hour.” The similarities in “The Story of an Hour” and “The Hand” is portrayed in theme and setting. The differences are illustrated in the choice of characters involved in each story and the amount of symbolism depicted in the different stories.
Chopin, Kate. "The Story of an Hour." Heritage of American Literature. Ed. James E. Miller. Vol. 2. Austin: Harcourt Brace Jovanich, 1991. 487. Print.
Mrs. Mallard in 'The story of an hour', is a woman that has had to live her life composed and in control as the wife of her husband, Brently Mallard. Chopin details Mrs. Mallard's reaction to the news of her husband's death with convolted emotions that were considered appropraite and yet horrifying to the reader. At the end of the story, her death came as no surprise.
"The Story of an Hour" continues by Mrs. Mallard focusing on the freedom she secretly craves. As Mrs. Mallard is contemplating the news of freedom she didn't even stop to ask if it was a "monstrous joy" what she is feeling. At this point she is thrilled that she has newly found freedom, something society would conclude to be moral wrong after a depressing event just occurring. Even though she is happy she has freedom, when she g...
Chopin, Kate. “The Story of an Hour.” Literature: Reading Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. Ed. DiYanni Robert. 6th ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1986. 38-41. Print.
An Analysis of Kate Chopin’s The Story of an Hour and Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s The Yellow Wallpaper
Chopin lived during this era and she described appropriately how a relationship and a marriage was on the 1800’s throughout this story. It is assumed that Mr. Mallard went to work early in the morning leaving Mrs. Mallard doing her chores at the house. When receiving the news she gets sad due to the fact that she relied on his husband because at that time women weren’t used to work. “The Story of an Hour” illustrates the love and affection Mrs. Mallard had towards her husband when Chopin mentions, “And yet she had loved him--sometimes. Often she had not. What did it matter! What could love, the unsolved mystery, count for in the face of this possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being!” It is understood that the marriage between Louise and Brently Mallard was without altercations and they rarely argued, meaning the relationship was healthy. Due to this I would say that what Chopin is trying to point out in this story is that all Mrs. Mallard wanted was to experience being free for once in her
In the story of an hour, Kate Chopin uses many literary devices. Imagery, irony and symbolism makes the story interesting and the ending of the story raises many question came to my mind? How can such an event take so little time? What is the significant of that one hour? What does her heart trouble symbolize? These are some questions that came across my mind and the beauty of her writing is the symbolism and ironies she used and readers can have different interpretation.
Chopin, Kate. A. “The Story of an Hour.” Baym 1609-1611.
Chopin, Kate. The Story of an Hour. 11th . New York, London: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 2013. 476-477. Print.
Daniel P Deneau. (2003). Chopin's, The Story of an Hour. The Explicator, 61(4), 210-213. Retrieved October 6, 2011, from Research Library. (Document ID: 419206431). http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?index=3&did=419206431&SrchMode=1&sid=3&Fmt=3&VInst=PROD&VType=PQD&RQT=309&VName=PQD&TS=1317923613&clientId=74379
Chopin, Kate. "The Story of an Hour." Perrine's Literature: Structure Sound & Sense. 11th ed. Belmont: Wadsworth, 2010. 541. Print.
Chopin, Kate. "The Story of an Hour." The Compact Bedford Introduction to Literature. 4th ed. Ed. Michael Meyer. Boston: St. Martins, 1997. 12-15.
Chopin, Kate. “The Story of an Hour.” Backpack Literature: An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, Drama, and Writing. Eds. X. J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. 3rd ed. New York: Pearson, 2010. 261-263. Print.
Key Elements:The story of an hour · Plot: Standard plot. A woman who receive the notice of her husband's death, and when she begins to felt freedom her husband appear again and she can't accept it and fall died. · Characterization: Few characters a. Mrs. Mallard or Louise: Mallard's wife. Was afflicted with hearth trouble.