Summary Of A Woman Rejoiced

Have you ever rejoiced when something bad happens to somebody? I am going to tell you about a story of a woman who rejoiced when a terribly tragic event happened to her husband. This story starts in 1894 when women had no power. The woman’s name was Mrs. Mallard, and she was married to Brently Mallard. She had a heart disease and any seriously shocking moments could trigger a fatal heart attack. Mrs. Mallard is an unsympathetic person based on her desire to become a widow, the perceived joy and freedom of her husband’s death, and the shock she faces when she realizes her husband is still alive. Mrs. Mallard felt stuck with no power and desired to become a widow because a widow had almost as much power as a man. She had two people watch over her because of her heart condition- her husband’s friend and her sister. …show more content…
Mallard’s happiness ended when she realized her husband was still alive. After she exited her bedroom, she started walking down the stairs. When she reached the bottom of the stairs she heard someone unlocking the door. Once the door was opened, her husband walked in unaware that people thought he was dead. Out of shock and disappointment she had a heart attack and collapsed to the ground dead. When the doctors came, they said, “…she had died…of joy that kills (1).” Some say she is a sympathetic person because she was being controlled. Others say she is a sympathetic person because she mourned the death of her husband. Yes, she was being controlled by her husband, but it is still unacceptable for her to wish for his death. Furthermore, rejoicing in his death is even more unacceptable. She was sad first when she heard of her husband’s death, but she began to whisper, “…free, free, free…” and had, “triumph in her eyes.” That doesn’t sound very sad or mournful, in fact it sounds like the opposite (1). She wants to be free no matter the price, which means his death is an okay part of the cost according to her