Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin Essay
As defined by Merriam Webster Online Dictionary, feminism is “the theory of the political, economic, and social equality of the sexes”. Kate Chopin writes a short story that explains feminism in a literary approach. The Story of an Hour tells the story of a woman who feels trapped in her marriage and desperately wants to escape. Within a matter of two pages, Chopin gives Mrs. Mallard the chance to obtain freedom, however, not in the way the reader expects.
The short story starts off by telling the reader that Mrs. Mallard is “afflicted with a heart trouble” (122). With this being said, her family takes caution in telling Mrs. Mallard the news of her husband passing. Richard, who is a close friend of the husband, was there to comfort Mrs.
Mallard about the “railroad disaster” (122). It can be determined that the story takes place approximately in the 1950s by the language that is presented, such as the men working on railroads and discovering news off of a telegram.
In relation to that, the main focus of The Story of an Hour is feminism. Since the reader can conclude that the story takes place around the 1950s, it is understandable as to why Mrs. Mallard felt relieved, instead of mourning, when the news was brought to her attention. In the 1950’s, women are known to be a housewife while the men went out to earn the money. Mrs. Mallard felt “there would be no one to live for her during those coming years: she would live for herself” (123). With this being said, Mrs. Mallard acknowledges her freedom and is happy to be able to make her own choices. In addition, one symbol that stands out in The Story of an Hour is the heart. It is brought to the reader’s attention right away that Mrs. Mallard has a troubled heart. This heart trouble is what seems to make the announcement of Mr. Mallard death so threatening. A person with a weak heart, after all, would not deal well with such news. When Mrs. Mallard reflects on her new independence, her heart races, pumping blood through her veins. At the end of the story, the doctors determine that she has “died of a heart disease-of joy that kills” (124). Mrs. Mallard was overjoyed that she was free, but her amount of joy was in her heart and torn when she finds out that her husband is still alive. This is ironic due the fact that everyone is worried about Mrs. Mallard’s heart when she finds out that her husband has died, however, the true heartbreak happens when she sees that he is still alive. She was so happy and excited to begin a new life of her own, she kept whispering “Free! Body and soul free!” (124). However, even though it was a heart break that Mrs. Mallard saw that her husband was still alive after being anxious, she was still given the opportunity for freedom and her own life, in the after world.
The short story starts off by telling the reader that Mrs. Mallard is “afflicted with a heart trouble” (122). With this being said, her family takes caution in telling Mrs. Mallard the news of her husband passing. Richard, who is a close friend of the husband, was there to comfort Mrs.
Mallard about the “railroad disaster” (122). It can be determined that the story takes place approximately in the 1950s by the language that is presented, such as the men working on railroads and discovering news off of a telegram.
In relation to that, the main focus of The Story of an Hour is feminism. Since the reader can conclude that the story takes place around the 1950s, it is understandable as to why Mrs. Mallard felt relieved, instead of mourning, when the news was brought to her attention. In the 1950’s, women are known to be a housewife while the men went out to earn the money. Mrs. Mallard felt “there would be no one to live for her during those coming years: she would live for herself” (123). With this being said, Mrs. Mallard acknowledges her freedom and is happy to be able to make her own choices. In addition, one symbol that stands out in The Story of an Hour is the heart. It is brought to the reader’s attention right away that Mrs. Mallard has a troubled heart. This heart trouble is what seems to make the announcement of Mr. Mallard death so threatening. A person with a weak heart, after all, would not deal well with such news. When Mrs. Mallard reflects on her new independence, her heart races, pumping blood through her veins. At the end of the story, the doctors determine that she has “died of a heart disease-of joy that kills” (124). Mrs. Mallard was overjoyed that she was free, but her amount of joy was in her heart and torn when she finds out that her husband is still alive. This is ironic due the fact that everyone is worried about Mrs. Mallard’s heart when she finds out that her husband has died, however, the true heartbreak happens when she sees that he is still alive. She was so happy and excited to begin a new life of her own, she kept whispering “Free! Body and soul free!” (124). However, even though it was a heart break that Mrs. Mallard saw that her husband was still alive after being anxious, she was still given the opportunity for freedom and her own life, in the after world.