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Mrs. Mallard In The Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin

1037 Words5 Pages

The Story of an Hour
“The Story of an Hour” is a short story that was written by Kate Chopin in the late 1800s. the story's main character or protagonist name is Mrs. Louise Mallard, Mrs. Mallard suffers from an existing heart condition which only adds to the restriction and fragility of her life. Her marriage to her husband, Mr. Brently Mallard was typical of the time period, which Joan Perkins describes as a time where women were subjected to the domination of their fathers or husbands (Perkins,2002). Out of the six story options we were given for this week's complete assignment, Chopin’s “ The Story of an Hour” is the best story because Mrs. Mallard is a character that women can relate to due to their feelings of being in an oppressive …show more content…

Although marriage is a beautiful thing sometimes it is not all that it appears to be. The story describes how Mrs. Mallard loved her husband sometimes and other times she did not, this makes Mrs. Mallard and her marriage an even more relatable character and situation. The third and final element of fiction that stood out to me in this story is symbol. I found it interesting that once she observed the activities and life that continued outside of her window,despite just being given the tragic news of her husband's death, that the window suddenly became symbolic of the new life that awaits her outside of this unhappy, and smothering marriage that she once shared with her husband. The elaborate description of the people, smell of rain, and the sounds of the birds all symbolize joy and new life that Mrs. Mallard can and will experience in the upcoming season and years. While daydreaming of the enjoyable and stress free days that are to come, she is suddenly interrupted by her sister Josephine who is at the door asking her to open the door. At first Mrs. Mallard declines to open the door but when Josephine asked again she obliged and let her in. Josephine then leads Louise down the stairs where her late husband’s

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Mallard life, has been miserable and she felt as she was a slave of her own place she is living, the room is basically her life and identity. The news of her husband death was still roaming in her head; she went in her room alone to reflect the situation around her. She stands in front of an open window, staring at “the tops of trees that were all aquiver with new spring life. The delicious breath of rain was in the air.” Louise Mallard felt as this is the time where she felt like a whole new person someone who finally reborn and start all over again in life and that she has a promising future ahead of her as Choplin describe, “There were many patches of blue sky showing here and there through the clouds that had met and piled one above the other in the west facing her window” (Para 6).

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Mrs. Mallard was a just like any other house wife until her husband died. She says, “sparrows were twittering in the eaves”. Now let me remind you this is right after she finds out her husband has passed. To me this is like a big weight that is now off of her shoulders and now she can go and follow her dreams.

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She learns of her husband’s death in an accident and falsely finds a renewed joy for life as she is free from the burden of marriage. Tragically she goes to the front door as it is being opened with a key, to find Mr. Mallard still alive, causing her to die of heart

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This is when Mrs. Mallard realizes they are tears of joy; this is her chance of freedom. It is important to note that she did love her husband very much, and she was very saddened by his death, but this was the first time she actually felt free. Instead of dreading the days of the future, she is now looking forward to them. When Mrs. Mallard finally comes out of her room, and notices that her sister had been waiting outside her door the whole time to make sure she was okay. Mrs. Mallard and her sister start walking downstairs, to the surprise of Mr. Mallard.

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This can be seen when she fees free in a confined room, or how her weak heart sets her free from her husband through death. The author also sets up a subtle melancholy tone to the story that leaves the reader thinking and analyzing the sad events that occurred in the hour. She also use her tone to point out the cruelty idea of marriage at the time and how Mrs. Mallard thought it was a crime which left her powerless because she was a woman. Throughout this short story symbolism is quite clear. For example, when Mrs. Mallard is characterized with heart trouble.

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One of the most potent symbols in the story is the imagery of the open window, which represents both physical and metaphorical liberation. As Mrs. Mallard gazes out the window, she is confronted with the teasing prospect of a life unrestrained by the constraints of marriage. The open window symbolizes the threshold between captivity and freedom for Mrs. Mallard (Durrer et al. 2010).

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Feeling the grief, she goes into her room and looks through the window, soaking in every bit of the world she sees. Mrs. Mallard begins to just sob, letting reality settle, shifting to depression. The view of herself has altered, as she looks at the reflection before her, the author states, “It was not a glance of reflection, but rather indicated a suspension of intelligent thought” (Paragraph 8). She begins to feel something taking over her, sort of a joy-like feeling, but then her perception changes again, imagining her husband, dead in his casket, so gray and lifeless. Quickly that moment passed, causing her to realize that all the years ahead were hers.

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The irony and symbolism of Mrs. Mallard losing her freedom, leads to Mrs. Mallard being grateful and ambitious of the time she had of her newfound life. In the beginning of the story, Mrs. Mallard learns of her husband’s death. Readers gather that Mrs. Mallard feels free from the stress of marriage and the constant belonging to another person, and through the heart break of losing her husband, Mrs. Mallard feels excited to have a new life. The irony of what one would think bring Mrs. Mallard sorrow, instead brings her joy, creates a symbolic gesture of what freedom and ambition truly is. The death of her husband helped her become grateful that she was now free and ambitious to start her new free life.

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She has to always “life for” (14) rather than herself. So when Mrs. Mallard finds out of the news that her husband has died “She (had) wept” (3) with “wild abandonment” (3). Many readers seem to think the she is devastated because of her loss of her husband, but really, she is experiencing an insight to her call to

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When she's alone at first she feels empty, then she takes a deeper look outside her window and finds a joy of independence. " Finally, both Louise and the reader discover that at some very deep level of her being she feels liberated by her husband's death " (193). The spring season setting occurring outside of her window makes Mrs. Mallard see a healthy positive outlook on her future, at that moment she realizes that she can bloom independently by herself and live the way she wants.

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‘Louise, open the door! I beg; open the door—you will make yourself ill.’ said Louis”(Chopin). It is ironic that Josephine is so worried about Mrs. Mallard when in reality she is in her room dreaming of how her new life will be. The short story is rather entertaining because you have to think past what the author writes, and create for yourself your own depiction of what the meaning is.

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Through her husband’s death, Louise Mallard saw a new life for herself and freedom from her body and spirit. Even though it doesn’t show how Mr. Mallard oppressed Louise, there are hints throughout the story that suggests how they both oppressed each other. The author used death to symbolize freedom and happiness instead of fear, grief or sorrow. After hearing the news about her husband, Mrs. Mallard went to her room and we can see how the atmosphere of the story changes by reflecting how Louise is feeling as soon as she enters the room. For example, “She could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with the new spring life.

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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

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Further, situational irony is present through the reaction that Louise Mallard has after learning about her husband’s death. Upon first learning of her husband’s death she is very devastated and distraught. As soon as she is alone in the bathroom however, it is clear to the readers she is not as upset. In fact she is slightly relieved in that “she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely. And she opened and spread her arms out to them in welcome” (235).

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The text says, “There were patches of blue sky showing here and there through the clouds that had met and piled one above the other in the west facing her window” (Chopin 13). This tells about the sadness and sorrow that has piled up in her married life. Mrs. Mallard has no children and she is unhappy in the couple. The scene opens up, “Knowing that Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble, great care was taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband’s death” (Chopin 13). The opening sentence of the story foreshadows the

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