Irony And Shock In Kate Chopin's The Story Of An Hour

Irony and shock were no strangers to one another in certain scenes and settings but it was the publication of literary author Kate Chopin, who showed a tense moment that housed both irony and shock in the beginning and end of her short story. A story in which, the reader may have had to read several times over to fully grasp just what she meant. To others, though, it was obvious and painfully clear that the characters may not have been interacting in such a way that was expected of a married couple in 1894.

It was in Kate Chopin’s 1984 publication of “The Story of an Hour” that you meet Mrs. Mallard, her sister Josephine, her husband’s friend Richard and finally her husband Brently Mallard. A married couple who from an outsider’s view had a seemingly normal marriage, not taking into effect Mrs. Mallard’s ill health due to being “afflicted with a heart trouble” (Pg. 54). Although not everything is as it seems in the light of day, the difference comes in the darkest parts of the night. The happiness of the Mallard’s could have been very short lived for numerous reasons.

Firstly, could it be that upon hearing grave news from her husband’s friend, Richard, “Brently Mallard’s name leading the list of ‘killed’” …show more content…
Mallard comes to terms with her husband’s demise her attitude changes. Recognition of what has happened lead Mrs. Mallard to whisper “Free, free, free!” (Pg. 54) over and over with almost fear of being over heard by her sister, Josephine. “Free! Body and soul free!” (Pg. 55) is the response of a woman who was relieved to finally be alone. Or could it be that the couple had gotten married far too young and it left room for resentment to build, leading to the sweet relief of liberation that Mrs. Mallard was feeling? Yes, as it could happen to anyone and any marriage for that matter but more than anything else a distance had formed between the two creating a divide that neither of them knew how to bring their feelings up to one