During the time that this story took place married women were highly dependant on their husbands. The problem that is encountered with Mrs. Mallard is that she lacks the joy of Independence. At the beginning of the story freedom to Mrs. Mallard seems like an awful idea because she has been restricted in multiple ways such as the house, her marriage etc. Despite the love that is shared between a husband and a wife Mr. Mallard’s death seems to come as a release from oppression to Louise. As stated by Chopin “ There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself.
(526) Mrs.Mallard begins to see through as an independent woman rather than one confined by marriage. She can live for herself now and not so much for her husband. After she found out that he passed she was way too excited for freedom. In “The Yellow wallpaper” the narrator was almost normal.
The reader soon discovers, this feeling that comes to Mrs. Mallard is joy and relief, she feels this because she can now finally be her own person. Mrs. Mallard comes to the realization that her husband had been oppressing her for years, “There would be no powerful will bending..”, and she was finally free of that. Before the passing of her husband, Mrs. Mallard was scared of living a long life because of the treatment she received from him. After his passing she had a much different outlook, “There would be no one to live for her during those coming years; she would live for herself.” This shows that Mrs. Mallard was excited to now live her own life without being told what she was to do.
Throughout the story readers can see Mrs. Mallard being characterized through the ironic events. The story says, “And yet she had loved him - sometimes. Often she had not” (8). This shows how Mrs. Mallard cares for her husband but doesn’t enjoy the power he carries over her, which nobody in the story realizes. “She arose at length and opened the door to her sister’s importunities.
Chopin also describes Mrs. Mallard as “young, with a fair, calm face, whose lines bespoke repression and even a certain strength”. At the beginning Mrs. Mallard is thought of as being controlled, and weak. In the 19th Century, when this story was written, husbands controlled their wives. Perhaps Mrs. Mallard wasn’t like most women of her time. After she hears of her husband’s death she morns for what feels like only a moment.
In the beginning of the story, she heard the news of her husband’s death in train accident from her sister Josephine and her husband’s friend, Richard. She was shocked by the news and showed sad feelings in the story. However, when I was reading through the story, I could infer that Mallard had a terrible marriage life with her husband because the story later said that Mallard was happy because she had freedom. In the beginning of the story, she was shocked and sad but later on, she was happy because of in dependence. These evidences prove that she is a dynamic character.
Chopin uses women such as Calixta and Clarisse as examples of women gaining their freedom back within marriage. Calixta finds her freedom by having an affair with a man who isn’t her husband, while Clarisse takes a long vacation away from her husband to experience her freedom again. This allows for them to be less pressured from marriage. These women are breaking the boundaries of an ideal marriage, which allows them to no longer feel like their imprisoning themselves and to be open to more opportunities. Women of the nineteenth century have many expectations they live by.
Chopin makes her strong statement in this quote from the story. Mrs. Mallard has no one to answer to but herself, and she feels liberated that her husband can no longer control her. During the late nineteenth century, women quite frequently had to suppress themselves to the will of their husbands, or to some other man who had a significant amount of control over their lives. Chopin successfully uses vivid imagery, point of view, and irony that gives a different view of marriage that is not typical of today.
With this belief Mrs. Mallard now looks forward to a long life. Previously to her husband’s death she dreaded the years ahead spent under the thumb of her husband. Now, though, Mrs. Mallard is someone who has much to look forward to and many joys to appreciate. Soon this opportunity is taken from her, just as her chance of freedom is taken from her she learns that Brently is still alive. When Mrs. Mallard sees Brently walk through the front door, the disappointment and the devastation of loss that she suffers cause her heart
" she kept whispering. The diction that is being used by Mrs.Mallard shows how she is actually feeling about the death of her husband. Mrs. Mallard feels as if she will be free now, freer than she was before since her husband’s death. This provides evidence of male dominance in a patriarchy through diction by Mrs.Mallard stating that she is ready to start a new life right after her husband passes away and the fact she states her body and soul are
Kate Chopin introduces her main character as “Mrs. Mallard” to signify her being married. However, within her marriage, she loses herself. Being married, she took her husband’s last name and became a wife. In a way it changed her personality. She was no longer her own self, she was someone else’s “property”.
In the story, Chopin begins with the issue of female identity. The story, just like several other stories, begins with Mrs. Mallard being at home; two assumptions can be made, one she is married, and two, she is probably waiting for her husband to return home. What is particular about it, is how Chopin only mentions her name after she knows about her husband’s death and when is realizes that she is free. By doing this, the author criticizes the fact that women adopted her husband’s name in marriage as a signal of men’s property. This fact could mean that for a woman to recover her identity or freedom is by becoming a
Mallard, one can conclude that she suffers defeat by being the lesser of her marriage. After years of being an accessory to her husband, Mrs. Mallard could not help but to feel completely taken with pleasure at the thought of her husband’s supposed death. In her mind, her husband’s death meant that she would finally be open to the world, that she could now live her life in whichever way she dreams. This new-found feeling of freedom caused her to act in ways she would never consider around her husband. She locks herself into her room to collect her exuberant thoughts and to confirm it to herself that she no longer must live according to her condescending
”(page 843) In this evidence, author uses the other women to compare to Mrs.mallard. It discover that Mrs mallard love her husband,but she didn’t satisfy her life. On the other hand, the sentence expose the fact of society, the man is their everything, they don’t have chance to start new life, the death of husband mean the
Mrs. Millard admits her husband was kind and loving and that “she knew she would weep again when she saw the kind tender hands folded in death”.(65) She feels joy either way. Her reaction does not show anything bad since she knows she “had loved him”(66) . However, despite the love between them, Mrs. Millard views her husband 's death as a release from oppression. She does not specify any ways that her husband oppresses her, but it can be understood that during that time period, in 1880s Louisiana, women did not have many rights, if at all any.
