Mrs. Mallard's Dream

The dream of an hour

In ‘The dream of an hour’ the writer describes the process of grieving that a Mrs. Mallard goes through after learning of her husband’s death and the effect this has on her identity which becomes increasingly focused and possessed by the ideas of freedom and independence. These extent of the power of these ideas is conveyed through the increasingly invasive narrative structure, the development and personification of Mrs. Mallard’s environment and the description of her almost physical possession.

In ‘The dream of an hour’ Mrs. Mallard’s growing intoxication with the concept of independence is mirrored by an increasingly invasive narrative structure. The effect of this is that the entire story becomes a focused reflection

Mallard highlights the authority of her thoughts and ideas by mirroring their development. This mirroring has the effect of making Mrs. Mallard’s thoughts more pronounced by making them into physical and tangible elements. The first turning point of the story is punctuated with the description of an ‘open window’ which Mrs. Mallard sits opposite to. The word ‘open’ is typically used to describe possibility and potential. When this common meaning is connected to the word ‘window’; a word which represents a physical portal from the inside (which is seen as repressive and contained) to the outdoors (which is seen as liberating) an image is created of a tangible opportunity for Mrs. Mallard, who is indoors, to escape and be free into the outdoors. The effect of this physical portrayal of potential freedom is developed through the description of the things occurring in it. ‘patches of blue sky’ are described as showing ‘through the clouds’. The word ‘sky’ develops the idea created by the portrayal of an ‘open window’ by physicalizing the wide borders of the outside world. Furthermore the description of ‘patches of blue sky’ becoming visible through the clouds is a very tangible mirror to the growing ideas of freedom that penetrate Mrs. Mallard’s mind. The effect of this mirroring is that Mrs. Mallard’s thoughts appear significant and powerful. These two elements, (Mrs. Mallard’s thoughts and the clearing sky) become further connected through the description of Mrs. Mallard’s ‘gaze’ which is ‘fixed’ on the clearing sky. This connection