Interpretive Analysis of ‘The Story of an Hour’ The short story ‘The Story of an Hour’, by Kate Chopin (1894), is interesting for a number of reasons. Perhaps chief among these is the strong feminist themes that resonate from the story, which are particularly striking given that it was published at the end of the 19th century, long before feminism had become a commonplace in Academia or mainstream intellectual life. This paper will argue for a strong feminist reading of the story, one that attempts to do justice to its subtle complexities and possible ambiguities. The thesis that lies behind the reading is that Chopin was anticipating a line of thought that developed fully only much later, namely that marriage, and traditional man-woman romantic relationships more generally, can be (and perhaps ought to be) understood as a kind of slavery. …show more content…
Mallard’s heart condition is quite significant, given the way that it ties in with the story’s rather abrupt finish. It is a difficult question, to which we return at the end of the paper, what precisely to make of the heart issue. But in any case there is arguably a clear sense in which both the first mention of the heart condition, and also the story’s termination, are of secondary importance in understanding the author’s message. What is more important, it will be argued, is the almost overwhelming sense of liberation that Mrs. Mallard comes to experience when she is told about, and has had some time to process, what appears to be the fact that her husband has been
It is difficult to comprehend in today’s world what marriage actually meant to the women of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. One might want to believe in the fairytales of passion and deep abiding love that appear so often in paperback romance novels, but in her short stories, “The Storm” and “The Story of an Hour”, author Kate Chopin offers two much more realistic tales of married life. With these stories, Chopin reveals the truth: marriage was no better than slavery or indentured servitude for women.
She is home alone when a storm begins while her son and husband are out. Her ex-boyfriend arrives at her home to ask for shelter while the storm passes. Despite the love she has for her family she has an affair with him which, contrary from what expected, ends up benefiting everyone at the end somehow. In both her short stories “The Story of an Hour” and “The Storm” Chopin addresses feminist issues concerning women’s independence and liberation from their marriages ; therefore, suggesting that during her time women were oppressed in their marriage and in some cases men as well.
In Kate Chopin's short story "The Story of an Hour," there is much irony. The first irony detected is in the way that Louise reacts to the news of the death of her husband, Brently Mallard. Before Louise's reaction is revealed, Chopin alludes to how the widow feels by describing the world according to her perception of it after the "horrible" news.
A Woman Far Ahead of Her Time, by Ann Bail Howard, discusses the nature of the female characters in Kate Chopin’s novel’s and short stories. Howard suggests that the women in Chopin’s stories are longing for independence and feel torn between the feminine duties of a married woman and the freedom associated with self-reliance. Howard’s view is correct to a point, but Chopin’s female characters can be viewed as more radically feminist than Howard realizes. Rather than simply being torn between independent and dependant versions of her personality, “The Story of an Hour’s” Mrs. Mallard actually rejoices in her newfound freedom, and, in the culmination of the story, the position of the woman has actually been elevated above that of the man, suggesting a much more radically feminist reading than Howard cares to persue.
The number of marriages that end in divorce in America is one out of every five; the number of marriages that end in death is about eight hundred thousand per year. Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” is the tale of a married woman who finds herself on an emotional rollercoaster after learning that her husband was killed in a train accident, only to have him walk through the door within the hour. At first, she mourns the loss of her husband. However, as she realizes the breadth of the freedom she now possesses, this sadness soon transforms into joy, and she emerges from her upstairs bedroom a changed woman. Then, when her husband unexpectedly walks through the front door, she is all at once overcome with a sense of grief, and she collapses on the foyer floor, unable to bear the thought of returning to her marriage. Chopin, a controversial author, explores the negative side of the construct of marriage. Maintaining one’s independence can, in fact, strengthen a marriage, by promoting equality within the marriage, bolstering one’s
In "The Story of an Hour," I can relate to so many different things that go on in this short tragic story. After reading the story I almost felt like Louise Mallard and I were living the same life with different events and a different outcome. Everything about the two of us comes down to being always misunderstood and just wanting to be free.
IN "The Story of an Hour," Kate Chopin tells the tale of a woman who learns of her husband's untimely death, seeks solitude in which she proceeds to reflect upon this incident and its implications, has a life-altering/-giving epiphany, and proceeds to have all of the fresh hope and elation that had accompanied this experience dashed when her supposedly dead husband appears alive and well at her door, thereby inducing her sudden death. Read in isolation, it seems as if this is merely a detailed account of one woman's reaction to the death of her husband and, on a basic and concrete level, it is. However, to grasp Chopin's intended themes and to gain a true appreciation and understanding of the piece, we must consider it within a broader context. The author dexterously weaves a great deal of social commentary and feminist ideas through her work which may only be perceived if we consider the prevalent stereotypes and social expectations of women at her time, and the implications of such ideas. Upon doing so, we are able to see that Chopin has created a piece that vividly contrasts the true needs and wants of women with those that an oppressive society has imposed upon them, and the ultimate implications of this.
In “The Story of An Hour” by Chopin, she illustrates the role of woman in marriage and in the society during her time. It demonstrates the issue of male dominance. There are some similarities and differences in the role of women in marriage and in the community in the 1940’s compared to the way women are treated today. And these are seen in the rights of women and in the responsibilities of family and marriage. We read “A Story of an Hour” written by Kate Chopin.
Kate Chopin was one of the most impactful, provocative literary feminists during the late 1800’s. She started off as a “local colorist” focusing on depicting an accurate image of central Louisiana’s geography and culture (Kiszner and Mandell 204). Despite starting off with a conservative topic of literary focus, she eventually began to tamper with subjects of sexuality to challenge the patriarchal oppression caused by the Napoleonic Code ruling over the state of Louisiana. One of her less sexualized work, “The Story of an Hour”, depicts a young woman, Louise Mallard, feeling a sense of exhilaration and liberation, as the result of being informed of her husband’s death. Nevertheless, everything that goes up must come down.
Kate Chopin’s short story, “The Story of an Hour” begins with a nineteenth century wife, Louise Mallard receiving news of her husband's death. Josephine, Louise’s sister, “Knowing that Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with heart trouble” took extreme measures to break the news to her as softly as possible (Chopin). Once Josephine broke the news to her, she spiralled into a brief depression filled with grief, anger, and confusion. Do to the heartbreaking news she wept to the back room and sat in a chair contemplating about her life, about what comes next. Bad things happen to good people all of the time, but it is not the events that makes a person who they are, it is the way they respond.
“Story of an Hour” is a story that was written by Kate Chopin in 1894 and “The storm” in 1898. Louise Mallard, the protagonist in 'The Story of an Hour', Because of having a heart problem, she must be informed carefully about her husband’s death. As she heard the horrid news, Louise then proceed to her room where she sobbed and envisioned her life without her husband. When she learns of her significant other Brently's demise in a railroad accident, be that as it may, she rapidly starts to understand the new potential for her own self-attestation. With him out of the picture, Louise faculties another thing… drawing closer to having her, and with her calm tedious serenade of "free.”
There are many stories with twists and turns, and you never truly know what happens until you live it yourself. One story that has a twist in the plot is The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin. The story is about a lady whose husband is believed to be dead; but, in all actuality he is not. In addition, she is happy that he is dead until she finds out that he is alive. The theme is how she gave up on life until she heard the death of her husband, she then had her life to look forward to until she finds out he is alive and it shock her so much and she died.
Kate Chopin, author of “The Story of an Hour” written in 1894 was the first author who emphasized strongly on femininity in her work. In the short story, Chopin writes about freedom and confinement Chopin is an atypical author who confronts feminist matter years before it was assumed. The time period that she wrote in women were advertised as a man’s property. The main idea in the short story is to illustrate that marriage confines women. In “The Story of an Hour” the author creates an intricate argument about freedom and confinement Mrs. Louise Mallard longing for freedom, but has been confined for so long freedom seems terrible. Mrs. Mallard wife of Brently Mallard instantly feels free when her husband dies. The reason she feels this way
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.
Coming to the end of this class I have learned a lot about what it takes to make a piece of literature leave you feeling a certain way. A lot goes into setting up a atmosphere in a story because you are not really seeing it in front of your face so you must imagine it. The author wants you to imagine a certain scene and feel a certain way through their words and descriptions. An important component to making a reader understand the atmosphere and visualize the scene is by the setting. Setting is where a specific event is taking place. Without setting it would be hard for a reader to not only visualize but to even understand the theme, tone and the atmosphere. Throughout this semester we learned this from genres such as short story, poems and