In the twenty-first century many of us who live in Canada have become used to the idea of female independence and freedom from male authority. We see women in powerful positions such as the heads of corporations, or provinces, or universities, and few think of such women being hindered by their husbands in any way. However, although this is the case for many women today, it is not the case for all of them, and they have not always had the freedom to fully express their own identities and agency in the world. This type of restriction placed on women is explored by Kate Chopin in her short story titled "The Story of an Hour" which details the last moments of a woman's life where her main character experiences dependence, independence, and
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First, female dependence is evoked with the opening lines which speak of the need for those around her to take "great care" because of Mrs. Mallard's heart trouble and "to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband's death" (57). Here Chopin uses the idea of physical frailty and the need for other people to protect her to indicate the idea of Mrs. Mallard's dependence on her husband so much so that sudden news of his loss might be harmful to her. Chopin's diction choices ("great care" and "as gently as possible") emphasize the patriarchal ideology of female fragility in the way that others feel they must take care of her and shield her from the harsh reality of her husband's death, and further leads readers to perceive Louise Mallard as a child unable to process the hard fact of the loss of her male protector. Chopin's language use continues to reinforce patriarchal ideas of female fragility when she has the sister break the news to her "in broken sentences" and "veiled hints that revealed in half concealing" (57). Here, dysfunctional or "broken" language, where even "hints" or clues to a hard truth must be obscured behind a protective veil is followed immediately by a paradoxical construction where difficult truth is simultaneously revealed and concealed, to add an element of
First, female dependence is evoked with the opening lines which speak of the need for those around her to take "great care" because of Mrs. Mallard's heart trouble and "to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband's death" (57). Here Chopin uses the idea of physical frailty and the need for other people to protect her to indicate the idea of Mrs. Mallard's dependence on her husband so much so that sudden news of his loss might be harmful to her. Chopin's diction choices ("great care" and "as gently as possible") emphasize the patriarchal ideology of female fragility in the way that others feel they must take care of her and shield her from the harsh reality of her husband's death, and further leads readers to perceive Louise Mallard as a child unable to process the hard fact of the loss of her male protector. Chopin's language use continues to reinforce patriarchal ideas of female fragility when she has the sister break the news to her "in broken sentences" and "veiled hints that revealed in half concealing" (57). Here, dysfunctional or "broken" language, where even "hints" or clues to a hard truth must be obscured behind a protective veil is followed immediately by a paradoxical construction where difficult truth is simultaneously revealed and concealed, to add an element of