Story Of An Hour Comparative Essay

The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin and Out Out by Robert Frost both centre on the tragic loss of a person. Loss in both texts presents multiple interpretations, not only the literal loss of a person, but also the figurative loss of innocence, identity, freedom and oppression. The Story of an Hour and Out Out were written in 1894 and 1916 respectively and provide powerful social commentaries particular to these time periods. During the nineteenth century many women’s rights, and overall independence was suppressed by a male dominant society. Chopin illustrates the social behaviour of society during this period in The Story of an Hour. We are introduced to loss early in The Story of an Hour and action begins in media res, with news of a “railroad

Mallard’s loss of innocence is revealed in the euphoric moment when she recognizes she is happy to hear of her husband’s death and evidenced in the following two sentences. “But 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.” Phrases and sentence structure are repeated to further highlight this theme. Chopin writes, “ she breathed a quick prayer that life might be long. It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long.” The identical phrasing reminds us how significantly her life has changed. Similarly Out Out also introduces a loss of innocence in the quote “doing a man’s work, though a child at heart”. In the poem, we find out that the boy is handling dangerous equipment, the saw. This already changes our perception of him as being physical beyond his years. However, when he fatally cuts himself, it brings us back to the jarring reality that he is too young to be assuming this responsibility. His realization that he has lost too much blood to survive as he tries to “keep the life from spilling” from his hand once again highlights his maturity beyond his years in stark contrast to his