The Joy That Kills Irony

“The Joy that Kills” Things are not always what they appear to be on the surface. Instead, they can be much deeper and darker within. Kate Chopin portrays this idea throughout her short story “The Story of an Hour.” In this short story, irony is displayed in many ways. A marriage is shared between a man and woman in the story in which the woman is responsible for the man’s happiness. It is revealed within the text that the wife is miserable in the life she lives with her husband. Throughout the course of the story, the marriage shared between the two main characters is how the theme of irony develops. Irony is depicted in the short story “The Story of an Hour” through the characters within the story and the actions that they make. First, irony is portrayed in the story when Mrs. Mallard was relieved at the thought of her husband being dead. This relates to irony because in an average marriage a wife would be devastated to lose her spouse and to gain the title of a widow. However, Mrs. Mallard does not feel this way. Mrs. Mallard took the news quite differently. “She did not hear the story as many women have …show more content…
Kate Chopin uses “The Story of an Hour” as a masterpiece of irony. Even title itself is ironic; so many unexpected events take place in Louise Mallards life in just an hour. The irony in this short story was demonstrated when Mrs. Mallard felt free after hearing of her husband’s “death,” Mrs. Mallard dying from his existence, and the cause of Mrs. Mallard’s death being portrayed as joy when in reality it was caused by devastation. Ultimately, this short story is a rollercoaster of emotional feelings from ultimate joy to devastating loss. The actions made by Mrs. Mallard related to the death of her spouse unwind this theme of irony. In the end, Mrs. Mallard got her wish after all. She is finally free, even if it is by her death and not her