When a marriage that has been together for a long period of time is broken, there are certain things that are seen to hold true in most of these cases. There is a renewed sense of individuality that grasps this person's life after the initial trauma of a significant other being absent. In Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour", this situation is presented as the characterization of Mrs. Mallard, whose husband has been pronounced dead, is displayed. She goes through three seperate stages in her personal grieving process. Chopin is attempting to show readers that although sadness is the initial reaction to this circumstance, Mrs. Mallard's sense of freedom brings her joy, but it is unfathomable for her to go back to the way that she used to live after she sees that her husband is still alive resulting in her death. The moment that Mrs. Mallard learns of her husband's passing, there is an intense outburst. Her response is to cry with "sudden, wild abandonment" (Chopin, ) when she is informed. This emotional reaction indicates that she is truly sorrowful that her husband has died. Although her reaction is severe, the quickness that is displayed shows that her acceleration through the various steps of this event will be at a rapid pace. Her next …show more content…
Mallard, she is experiencing a sense of joy, instead of grief, as she is having a moment of self-actualization. The open window that is described in detail as having all of these vivid sounds, colors, and scents. As the amount of things that she notices in nature increase, she feels more freedom. She knows that with her husband gone, there is nothing holding her back from being like the birds. She makes an outward display of her feelings by murmuring "'free, free, free!'" (Chopin, ) She is aware that her husband will no longer limit her in the endeavors that she wishes to pursue. She can be the independent woman that she has secretly desired to be for so
“To love someone deeply gives you strength. Being loved by someone deeply gives you courage.”(Lao Tzu). In Kate Chopin’s, “The Story of an Hour”, it tells of a heart trouble married woman, Louise Mallard, who learns that the man she loved and married, Brently has died. Mrs. Mallard’s behavior and emotions have shocked her entire family as she finds it a joyful and powerful event that may change her life for the hour that she has remaining to live. Mrs. Mallard considers his death as a freedom that she has yet longed for over so many years. As many readers begin to express their judgment towards Mrs. Mallard, the aspects of personal relationship may seem to convince those that maybe she was a bit selfish with her response. In the agony of a bitter marriage, “The Story of an Hour” portrays the reality of being in love, being married and finally having female independence.
“The Story of an hour” a complex piece of literature by Kate Chopin, has various interpretations to it. This story has, one definite interpretation, which is the following: life has to go on no matter what is happened in the past. In this story, Chopin implies Ms. Mallard’s husband has been very cruel to her in her lifetime. However, she never lets her husband get in the way, finally he dies, and, she thinks she is free although she really is not.
When Mrs. Mallard began to realize that the whole situation of her husband dying was not so horrific, Chopin describes, “ 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 look of terror that had followed it went from her eyes” (Chopin 15). The description used by Chopin illustrates the scenario that Mrs. Mallard is facing; making it visible for the readers to understand how Mrs. Mallard realizes that she has a new beginning with her life without her having to make every decision based on her
Mallard is excitable. This trait allows Mrs. Mallard to focus on what is good regardless of how bad things may initially appear. Although being easily excitable may not always be the best trait to have, it certainly came in handy when Mrs. Mallard has needed to cheer herself up. The following is an excerpt that surely describes the role Mrs. Mallards excitability plays in the story, “When she abandoned herself a little whispered word...and the coursing blood warmed and relaxed every inch of her body” (Chopin 2). Mrs. Mallard responds suddenly to her realization. She has little control as she whispers the word “free”. Mrs. Mallard is brought aback by her own words and yet she suddenly begins to pep up. Mrs. Mallard’s excitability is what ultimately turns the situation around. She begins to focus on the good even though she knows the bad. Although in a horrendous situation, Mrs. Mallard was able to cheer herself up due to how easily excitable she
Another example of how Mrs. Mallard was more uplifted than brought down by the news of her husband?s death is the description of the window. As Mrs. Mallard looks out, Chopin explains?she could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all a quiver with new life?. This is telling the reader about the new life that Mrs. Mallard can see in the distance, that symbolizes the new life she saw that lay ahead of her now that she was free of her husband. This thought was supported by Hicks in saying "The revelation of freedom occurs in the bedroom"
The Artful Deception of Socialistic Practices in The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin
When her friends and family tell Mrs. Mallard of the tragic news they try to tell her as gently as possible because they know she has a very serious heart condition. She hears that her husband has been killed, but reacts in a strange and unusual way. She does not give herself time to think upon the subject, but immediately starts sobbing because that was the reaction she thought she should give. She is grieving, but is over come with an immense sadness. Chopin writes; " she did not hear the story as many women have heard the same…she wept at once" (paragraph 3). This was not a reaction of just emotions, but also of how she thought she should react in front of her family and friends.
As the title puts it, “The Story of an Hour” takes place in the span of an hour. The title of the story also shows the possibility of occurrences within a single hour. This story is mostly centered around one woman, Louis Mallard. In conventional circumstances, death brings sorrow, grief, seclusion, guilt, regrets, along with other feeling depending on the cause of death. In “The Story of an Hour”, sorrow and grief are a product of the recent happenings, however, these feelings are coupled with joy and independence. Kate Chopin uses this story to convey death as a joyful circumstance whereas conventionally it is portrayed as sorrowful.
Mrs. Mallard, in the story, had heart trouble and was carefully let down when they had discovered her husband’s death. Chopin said, “She sat with her head thrown back upon the cushion of the chair, quite motionless, except when a sob came up into her throat and shook her, as a child who has cried itself to sleep continues to sob in its dreams” (307). Throughout the entire story the reader is lead to believe she is sad over her husband’s death; when in reality she feels free again and she cries tears of joy. The story continues to tell the reader about Mrs. Mallard’s grievance, “She knew that she would weep again when she saw the kind, tender hands folded in death; the face that had never looked save with love upon her, fixed and gray and dead. But she had saw beyond that bitter moment a long with love upon her fixed and gray and dead. But her absolutely” (Chopin 307). Mrs. Mallard looked forward to being free from her husband even though she loved him sometimes. She kept whispering, “free! Body and soul free!” (Chopin 308). As her sister thought she was weeping tears of sadness, Mrs. Mallard was happy. As Mrs. Mallard collected herself, she and her sister walked down to the bottom of the stairs together. The door began to open, it was her husband Brentley Mallard, and Mrs. Mallard passed away from “hear disease- of joy that kills” (Chopin 308). The situational irony in this story is Mrs. Mallard
Kate Chopin wrote a short piece called “The Story of an Hour” about a woman’s dynamic emotional shift who believes she has just learned her husband has died. The theme of Chopin’s piece is essentially a longing for more freedom for women.
Most women in Mrs Mallard’s situation were expected to be upset at the news of her husbands death, and they would worry more about her heart trouble, since the news could worsen her condition. However, her reaction is very different. At first she gets emotional and cries in front of her sister and her husbands friend, Richard. A little after, Mrs. Mallard finally sees an opportunity of freedom from her husbands death. She is crying in her bedroom, but then she starts to think of the freedom that she now has in her hands. “When she abandoned herse...
Mallard supposed to be with her husband by his side and giving him advice she was not. This also lead to the news that they gave her husband had died and she was happy , she felt free. Her sister thought Mrs Mallard was crying in her room or very sad but she was not. “She said it over and over under her breath: Free, Free, Free!”(Kate Chopin 's View on Death And Freedom in the story Of An Hour,1).This was unexpected and weird in many ways . It was expected that Mrs Mallard was going to react differently as she really did. This means that maybe the years she was with her husband she was going to get attached to him but she was not . “Her sister Josephine,reminded us of her conventional thought that women should attach themselves to their husbands”(Kate Chopin 's View on Death and Freedom in the story Of An Hour,1). After that Mrs Mallard wanted her time alone in the room nobody actually knew how she felt in reality. She had a conflict in her life. Mrs. Mallard had her own experiences and thoughts. Love , freedom, and marriage were her things. Maybe she was suffering and she stuck in her mind those ideas and felty all the peace she wanted. She was not really conscious it was between her world and the actual real world she had to face. This leads to her feelings sometimes she wouldn 't love her husband , and sometimes she would and it was all mixed up into different feelings and emotions. When she saw her husband in the door she cried , but it was of happiness not sadness and it was a rare death. We as readers consider that seeing her husband shocked her and anguish when she sees her husband. The doctor eventually said a different thing that the joy killed Mrs. Mallard .” The conflict between Mrs. Mallard’s life and death becomes so irreconcilable that she finally dies of heart disease when she is told that she will see her husband come home alive instead of death in the railroad disaster.”(Kate
“There is no perfect relationship. The idea that there is gets us into so much trouble.”-Maggie Reyes. Kate Chopin reacts to this certain idea that relationships in a marriage during the late 1800’s were a prison for women. Through the main protagonist of her story, Mrs. Mallard, the audience clearly exemplifies with what feelings she had during the process of her husbands assumed death. Chopin demonstrates in “The Story of an Hour” the oppression that women faced in marriage through the understandings of: forbidden joy of independence, the inherent burdens of marriage between men and women and how these two points help the audience to further understand the norms of this time.
In “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, Louise Mallard suffers from many different emotions after hearing about her husband’s death. Her husband Brently was reported to have died after a railroad incident. Mrs. Mallard has suffered from heart issues, but shortly after hearing about the death of her husband they started to get worse. The author uses symbolism throughout the short story by using objects to symbolize her new beginnings. Kate Chopin symbolizes the theme by experiencing her personal freedom. In the short story after Mrs. Mallard’s husband dies she finds her new self and independence. Instead of being overpowered by her husband, she is now able to live more freely and without burden. The symbolism in this story is represented immediately
In the short story, “The Story of an Hour,” author Kate Chopin presents the character of Mrs. Louis Mallard. She is an unhappy woman trapped in her discontented marriage. Unable to assert herself or extricate herself from the relationship, she endures it. The news of the presumed death of her husband comes as a great relief to her, and for a brief moment she experiences the joys of a liberated life from the repressed relationship with her husband. The relief, however, is short lived. The shock of seeing him alive is too much for her bear and she dies. The meaning of life and death take on opposite meaning for Mrs. Mallard in her marriage because she lacked the courage to stand up for herself.