In “A pair of silk stockings” by Chopin, a mother temporarily escapes from the daily worries and fatigue of the lower class to enjoy luxuries only available to the affluent upon the chance possession of a large sum of money. Pat Mora’s “Now and Then, America” on the other hand, is a short poem depicting a fiery will to be free, different, and “sane” amid those who succumb to the confines of society’s fashion, clothes, and behavior. Although both authors wrote about freedom, identity, and individuality, their attitudes toward these themes are very distinct. “A pair of silk stockings” carries a rather gloomy mood. The main character belongs to the lower class, and as a mother of quite a few children she must constantly budget and calculate where
(29, Chopin) In the 19th Century Society, especially that of New Orleans High Society, the women’s reputations, and positions were the most important thing to them, and in order to maintain that, they had to live under very strict expectations. “Even as a child she had lived her own small life all within herself. At a very early period she had apprehended instinctively the dual life—that outward existence which conforms, the inward life which questions” (1, Chopin). The men were also expected to cohere to certain expectations as well, but not at as high of a standard.
There are four expectations: piety, purity, submissiveness, and domesticity. In her short story, “Story of an hour”, Kate Chopin uses tone and metaphor to protest the expectations of women in the late 1800s. First, the tone is ironic. “Knowing that Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble, great care was taken
In the late 1800s, nearly all women were viewed as subservient, inferior, second class females that lived their lives in a patriarchal and chauvinist society. Women often had no voice, identity, or independence during that time period. Moreover, women dealt with the horrors of social norms and the gender opposition of societal norms. The primary focus and obligation for a woman to obtain during the 1800s was to serve her husband and to obey to anything he said. Since women were not getting the equality, freedom, or independence that they desired, Kate Chopin, an independent-minded female American novelist of the late 1800s expressed the horrors, oppressions, sadness, and oppositions that women of that time period went through.
In the 19th century, a group of people launched the suffrage movement, and they cared about women’s political rights, their property and their body liberty. Born in that age, Kate Chopin was aware of the importance of setting an example for those who were taken in by the reality and poor women to be an inspiration. So we call her a forerunner of the feminist author for every effort she put in advocating women’s sexuality, their self-identity and women’s own strength. When people were ashamed of talking about sexuality, Kate Chopin stood out and call for women’s sexual autonomy.
In Kate Chopin 's novel The Awakening and the short story “The Story of An Hour” feminist beliefs overshadow the value in moral and societal expectations during the turn of the century. Due to Louise Mallard and Edna Pontellier Victorian life style they both see separating from their husband as the beginning of their freedom. Being free from that culture allows them to invest in their personal interest instead of being limited to what 's expected of them. Chopin 's sacrifices her own dignity for the ideal of society’s expectations. Chopin 's sad, mysterious tone seems to support how in their era, there was a significant lack of women 's rights and freedom of expression.
Kate Chopin’s short story “The Story of an Hour” is set in the late 1800s – a time when women were considered inferior to men. Women had traditional roles as wives and mothers. In this 19th century patriarchal society, Chopin shows us Louise Mallard, the main character, who does not comply with the female gender norms of the Victorian period. When Louise learns about the death of her husband, her reaction and the reaction of her sister and the doctor tell us a great deal about gender stereotyping during this time. Louise Mallard is described to us as “firm” and “fair.
An analysis of Kate Chopin’s “Desiree’s Baby” shows the ways in which gender inequality, class and race play a large theme in mid-nineteenth century Southern culture. The gender inequality Chopin insinuates in her story is one that women still battle today. By buying Desiree corbeille gifts and fine clothes, she is treated as a possession by Armand. He seems to believe that by gifting these items to her, he can buy her – and her love.
Growing up as a woman has been quite difficult in this generation, however, growing up around thirty years ago must have been more difficult. Back in the 1900’s, women had different social norms to deal with in society. Women had to stay at home, be housewives, do the laundry, and cook while men went out and worked to obtain money for their family. In Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin, she tells the struggles that women went through back in the 1990 's and the social norms that women had to go through. Chopin addresses many instances of symbolism to portray the feeling Mrs. Mallard has about her own thoughts and experiences with or without a man in her life.
Kate Chopin reveals how language, institutions, and expected behavior restrain the natural desires and aspirations of women in patriarchal societies. In 1894, when this story was formed, culture had its own structure on marriage and the conduct towards women. Gender roles play a major role throughout our history. They would decide whether a woman in colonial times would be allowed to join the labor
Kate Chopin, a famous author from the American Realism period, writes the reality of the financial pressures that surrounded the women of the 19th century. She writes the story of Mrs. Sommers, a poor mother of many children, and her struggles finding freedom in the judgemental society she lives in. Mrs. Sommers was wealthy, but recently entered a life of poverty due to harsh times. When faced with financial decisions of her family 's wants and needs, Mrs. Sommers hastily spends all the money she has on herself rather than her children who need new clothes. The setting of this story is a large city with department stores and many attractions which play into Mrs. Sommers’ temptations later on in the story.
One of the most prevalent themes in literature and today’s society is the role that gender plays in the American family, in this case, most predominantly in the South. Most traditionalist thinkers, even today, believe that women have limited options in what they can and cannot do; to some, it is truly a “man’s world.” While written in the late 1800’s, Kate Chopin’s short story “Désirée’s Baby” contains topics of gender roles in the Southern Antebellum period that have remained relevant worldwide throughout the years. Chopin uses foreshadowing, irony, the element of surprise, and figurative language to portray the traditional gender roles for women in the seventeenth century; she also uses characterization to show the pride Armand had in himself, such as his white, male stature, which caused him to believe that he was never at fault.
Women in the 1890s were expected to work at home to keep their husbands comfortable and bear him children. Kate Chopin wrote most of her short stories during this time period. Her stories “A Respectable Woman” and “A Story of an Hour” show a female protagonist who want their freedom and control over their own lives. Her characters pushed the bounds of the roles that society gave them and showed the brutal reality of how women were treated in the 1890s. In “A Respectable Woman” the female protagonist Mrs. Baroda is married and lives on a plantation with her husband, who invites a friend to spend a week or two with them.
These themes can be clearly seen in the short stories Chopin’s “The Story Of An hour”, Gilman’s “The Yellow Wallpaper”, and Hurston’s “Sweat”. These pieces of literature strongly portray how women are seen in instances
Universidad de Costa Rica Carlos Contreras Flores B01884 Literary Criticism The Story of an Hour Divided in Two Millenniums Throughout human history, literature has giving people an insight of what the role of women were in different time periods. In most scenarios, literature has served to establish or spot the role of women as secondary, where they were mere subjects or objects of chauvinism. Although the role changes from time to time, it has one particular characteristic, which is the restraining of their liberty or right to choose. In “The Story of an Hour”, Kate Chopin illustrates throughout the character’s fate the only way to escape from the gender role that women were meant to have at 19th century. She achieves
