One critic points out that many of Chopin's stories are characteristic of "independent heroines" and their conjugal relationships (qtd. in Hicks). "The Story of an Hour" and "The Storm" are two of Chopin's feministic short stories that focus on women and their views on marriage. . "The Story of an Hour," published in 1894, highlights woman self-assertion when the protagonist, Louise Mallard, rejoices after hearing of her husband's death.
Ed. Janet Witalec. Vol. 127. Detroit; Gale, 2002.
• Evans, Robert C. ""Literary Contexts In Short Stories: Kate Chopin's "The Story Of An Hour."" Literary Reference Center. EBSCO, 11 Nov. 2006. Web. 6 May 2014.
Novel: A Forum on Fiction 30.1 (Fall 1996): 5-31. Rpt. in Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism. Ed. Kathy D. Darrow.
She saw beyond that catastrophic moment, placing herself in a time that was all hers. A new sense of like came upon her; she felt the real joy of freedom. “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, 15) “Her feelings for Brently, however, suddenly seem less important than the prospect of her bright future of freedom.” (Evans, 2) Mrs. Mallard’s response to her husband’s death leads majority of us to believe that she was an “egocentric, selfish monster” (Deneau, 1). Some of us may even ponder whether she even cared for her spouse as much as we once thought.
Krstovic, Jelena. Short Story Criticism: Excerpts from Criticism of the Works of Short Fiction Writers. Vol. 110. Detroit, MI: Gale Research, 2008.
Janet Witalec. Vol. 143. Detroit: Gale, 2004. Literature Resource Center.
“An Overview of “Miss Brill”.” Short Stories for Students. Detroit: Gale, 2002. Literature Resource Center. Web. 25 Mar.
Print. Jamil, S. Selina. "Emotions in The Story of an Hour." The Explicator 67.3 (2009): 215+. Literature Resource Center.
The thoughts of the freedom that our main character Mrs. Mallard feels as she learns the tragic news is definitely not the emotion that would be expected but for her it truly is release. The story and Kate Chopin’s views on the world all surround the tragedy that she experienced in her own life which has led to countless short stories and books that to this day are widely respected and read. Mrs. Mallard suffers from a weak heart so when she finds out about her husband’s death it is done very carefully. “It was her sister Josephine who told her, in broken sentences; veiled hints that revealed in half concealing” (Chopin par.... ... middle of paper ... ...r” is no different because when her own husband died she to gained a great freedom. The way that Mrs. Mallard reacts in “The Story of an Hour” is truly disturbing but it is thought provoking and really brings out a lot of points about the way that women during the turn of the century actually saw their husbands.