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Story Of An Hour Literary Analysis

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There are several ways to interpret and analyze this short story and apply each of the four styles of criticism. Strong feminist themes appear throughout, but the other themes of mortality, the need for a sense of self and a yearning for freedom have their roles in examining the formalist aspect. Like any effective tragedy, this story is bitter- sweet and can bring a character to the greatest heights before fate takes it away and brings that person down to the lowest point. Chopin’s life and the culture around her had a definite influence on her writing, using the philosophies created by the naturalist movement to portray what would be the last hour of a young, frail woman’s life.
Naturalism is a style of literature based on chaos and believes that nature is an uncaring and indifferent force that is beyond the characters control and works against them as they fight their fates. Unlike its counterparts such as Romanticism, this style used principles based on scientific method instead of idealism to portray themes of survival and determination. These authors focused on taboos and the dark side of human behavior or as …show more content…

While the other characters tread lightly because they knew “that Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble” (Chopin 352), Louise lets herself become overwhelmed with emotion despite this. We also come to know and understand her true nature and desires through this struggle, in her guilt for not feeling guilty enough about her husband’s supposed death and the joy in the freedom of suddenly becoming a widow. This mentality considering the time period of the story would seem unrealistic and foolish. Either way, Chopin destroys any romantic nature about marriage as she “implicitly questions the institution of marriage, perhaps as a by-product or her scientific questioning of mores, but she does so in a cleverly tempered way”

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Unsurprisingly, this article discusses the emotions in Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour.” S.S. Jamil shows the irony in stereotyping women as overemotional, when the conventional roles Louise Mallard lives in force her to suppress her emotions. Jamil suggests that this is the cause of Louise’s heart trouble, since psychological health does affect physical health. The self-assertion that Louise discovers is permission to be herself, since emotions are a substantial part of who we are. The narrative of this article paints Louise as the victim and society as the culprit.

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916 Words | 4 Pages

Such experiences as the foregoing were not uncommon in her married life. (Chopin III)” Chopin uses the super detailed description of Edna crying to appeal to the audience and demonstrate how Edna’s current situation is exceedingly unpleasant. In both situations the authors use pathos to appeal to the audience and show the characters in dark and unpleasant situations to display how horrendous their situations

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1147 Words | 5 Pages

Remarkable masterpieces of literature are created when oppressed individuals decide to unleash their prolonged vexation through the ink of a pen. During the Latin American boom, these tyrannized people joined hands to voice out their bottled up emotions through writing. It seems as though the authors of the two novellas, Hour of the Star and Chronicle of Death Foretold, are rebelling against the injustice by presenting some naked bitter truths about the Latin American societies. The plot of Chronicle of a Death Foretold deals with a murder, or rather an ‘honour killing’ that took place in a small village in Colombia. According to Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s autobiography, the novella was inspired by the murder of his friend Cayetano Gentile, who is Santiago Nasar in the story.

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422 Words | 2 Pages

Naturalism was a philosophical belief that human character was shaping by a natural environment, which stating any superstition did not exist, such as gods, spirits. Naturalism literary movement began in late nineteenth century in art, film, and literature. It was about showing human character for surviving in a naturalistic environment. One of the naturalism literatures was The storm. It was a short story and written by Kate Chopin.

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281 Words | 2 Pages

The poetic elements and rhyme helps contribute to the humor of the story. The figurative language what the story helps us picture what the story is trying to show us. For example “And the greasy smoke in an inky cloak went streaking down the sky.” The imagery in that sentence helps us see what the story is describing.

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822 Words | 4 Pages

This was bitter irony since everyone thought Louise died from being excited to see her husband when she really died from not wanting to see him. “She thought of Leonce and the children. They were part of her life. But they need not have thought that they could possess her, body and soul. ”(Chopin 137).

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940 Words | 4 Pages

In Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” demonstrates the personal growth of the dynamic protagonist Louise Mallard, after hearing news of her husband’s death. The third-person narrator telling the story uses deep insight into Mrs. Mallard’s thoughts and emotions as she sorts through her feelings after her sister informs her of her husband’s death. During a Character analysis of Louise Mallard, a reader will understand that the delicate Mrs. Mallard transforms her grief into excitement over her newly discovered freedom that leads to her death. As Mrs. Mallard sorts through her grief she realizes the importance of this freedom and the strength that she will be able to do it alone.

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1096 Words | 5 Pages

Every person has the right to be and feel free. They have the right to be independent and live happily. Kate Chopin’s, “The Story of an Hour,” focuses on sixty minutes in the life of a young Mrs. Mallard. Upon learning of her husband’s death, Mrs. Mallard experiences a revelation about her future without a husband. Her life, due to heart problems, suddenly ends after she unexpectedly finds out her husband is actually alive.

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276 Words | 2 Pages

The story I chose to explain the use of symbols in is, The Story of an Hour, by Kate Chopin. It is a very short story but gave a lot of details that helped the short story worthwhile. The story starts off with an older woman named Louise who suffers from heart trouble; this heart trouble can be seen as a beginning symbol in the story. There is no in depth detail as to what kind of heart trouble the woman suffers from so the story explores many options, the biggest being how her heart will react to her husbands possible death. The story examines the reality of her new found freedom that her heart will feel if her husband was dead.

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Literary Analysis “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin introduces us to Mrs. Mallard as she reacts to the sudden death of her husband. Chopin describes Mrs. Mallard’s emotions as sad, yet happy that her husband has been killed. Kate Chopin’s “ The Story of an Hour” argues that when a person is controlled and made to live under another person their mental state of mind is affected. The story also argues that when that person is freed from the controlling person their true self can finally be achieved. Kate Chopin portrays these themes by the use of character development; plot control, and irony throughout the story.

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550 Words | 3 Pages

“The Story Of An Hour” uses Literary Devices. Literary Devices are specific language techniques which writers use to create text that is dear, interesting, and memorably. The literary devices in “The Story Of An Hour” are Irony, Symbolism, Imagery, and Allegory. Irony means the expression of one’s meaning by using language that normally signifies the opposite, typically, for humorous or emphatic effect. Symbolism is the use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities.

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828 Words | 4 Pages

Louise’s victory in accepting her husband’s death is a feeling that she now cannot live without. The ultimate death of Louise Mallard is one that represents physical and emotional defeat. In this dramatic short story, Chopin uses imagery to sew together a tapestry of emotions all encompassed in an ill-stricken widow. Works Cited Chopin, Kate. “The Story of an Hour.”

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1332 Words | 6 Pages

The author takes the reader through a series of grieving by the wife who has been left by her husband. Unexpectedly, the grieving widow is celebrating the news of her husband’s demise as it sets her free (Chopin, 2017). At the beginning of the story, the two people who want to convey the news of the husband’s death are at pain to break the news fearing that the wife may collapse due to heart problems. However, the wife seems happy with her husband’s death and even starts to imagine how sweet life would be without the husband. The author catches the reader’s imagination through Mrs. Mallard by explaining how she will get her life back after the death of the husband in a humorous manner.

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770 Words | 4 Pages

The story also argues that freedom is a very powerful force that affects the mental or emotional state of a person. Chopin argues that only through death can one be finally freed. The author makes strong, yet subtle statements towards humanity and women’s rights. Through subtle symbolism, Kate Chopin demonstrates how marriage is more like a confining role of servitude rather than a

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1346 Words | 6 Pages

The story of an Hour Critical Analysis through a Psychological Perspective using both Freud and Lacan’s theory approach. In the beginning of the story, the Chopin informs the audience of Mrs. Mallard serious heart condition. Her friends and family were worried how to break the news to her of her husband’s death. After giving it much thought Mrs. Mallard was given the news as gently as possible of her husband’s death.

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