Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” was written in 1894 and explores the position of women within the 19th century society. An interesting aspect of this short story is that it is an early example of feminism in literature. Chopin is subtle, but very effective, in criticizing marriage and the role and position of women during the Victorian Era. The purpose of this essay is to make an approach into the mythic constructions of femininity in this Kate Chopin’s story but also to explore how the author influences the reaction of the reader by using several literary techniques. This essay analyzes the literary techniques employed by Chopin in “The Story of an Hour”. One of the most important aspects of “The Story of an Hour” is the setting in which the story develops. The setting is “the time, place and conditions in which the action takes place” (Merrian-Webster). There is textual evidence to let the reader know that this short story develops in the Victorian Era during the 19th century. “It was he who had been in the newspaper office when intelligence of the railroad disaster was received.” the reader could associate railroads with the 19th century. Another subtle examples of textual evidence are the fact that Richards was…
Kate Chopin, in her short story, “The story of an hour”, shows a lamentable woman Mrs. Mallard who realizes the freedom unfortunately when her husband come home, she has a heart attack, and died in the end of the story. Mrs. Mallard because of her husband's panic and desire for freedom, so an important theme in this story is Mrs. Mallard’s Awakening. In order to develop and reveal this theme, the author uses setting, portrayed of the character and symbolism. To begin with, using the importance…
“The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin is a tightly written short story that takes place within a single hour of Mrs. Louise Mallard’s seemingly unsatisfying and oppressive marriage. Although the story is no more than two pages long, one should not look down upon the shortness of the story, but instead read in amazement at how packed such a small piece of literature is. Reading through it once may stumble the reader and seem a bit confusing, but reading through it several more times will…
Your emotions play a huge role in ever day life and are what makes us human. Emotions are not on a set schedule, and happen in various ways, for various reasons. In The Story of an Hour, Mrs. Mallard goes through the stages of grief in the time span of an hour. This is very interesting due to the fact that, for most of us, it usually takes a span from at least days, to months, to even years to fully go through the stages of grief. I believe that Chopin’s story is centered on time and emotions by…
“The Story of an Hour,” by Kate Chopin, tells of Louise Mallard’s final hour, in which she claims and loses her freedom all too soon. Mrs. Mallard’s liberation is granted at the supposed tragedy of her husband 's death, the only power strong enough to terminate a marriage in the 1800s. In the 19th century, the constraints of marriage for women like Louise was not an anomaly, but rather felt by married women nationwide. "The Story of an Hour" highlights the oppressive nature of 19th century…
“The story of an hour” by Kate Chopin’s is a story for those readers who like short stories that contain much symbolism within it. Although this book is full of symbolism, it begs the question what do these symbols mean in this story, as well as how does it relate to Louise. The story of an hour is about Louise Mallard a woman who finds that her husband Richard Mallard has died in an accident. So after locking herself in her room for a while she eventually gets out only to discover that her…
In Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour,” Mrs. Mallard at first grieves over the death of her husband, but when she gets upstairs, she finds her new found freedom. In the time frame of an hour, her freedom is snatched from her because her husband is alive. Through effective use of imagery, symbolism, and a third person limited narrator, Kate Chopin shows the reader Mrs. Mallard’s feelings about marriage. Chopin shows her usage of imagery by describing the feeling of Spring. When Mrs. Mallard…
The Story of an Hour The Story of an Hour written by Kate Chopin describes more than an hour of Louise Mallard’s life. “The story is narrated by third-person who is not present in the story” (Berenji, 2012). It gives you a glimpse of her entire life in an hour and what she has dreamed her future would be like without her husband Brently. Louise Mallard, who is she? Some would say she is an extremely fragile and ill woman who learns of her husband’s sudden tragic death. She locks herself in…
were used as communication devices in early Native American tribes. They are also used for things like super heroes. A child can quickly identify their idol and hero with that certain symbol. Irony is something that is portrayed but is opposite of what it really means. For example, irony can be found in a McDonald’s worker giving a speech about child obesity. It wouldn’t make sense because McDonald’s has been proven to give young children obesity. In the short story, The Story of an Hour, a…
How many women would feel relieved or overjoyed to hear that there husband is dead? Not many in fact, but in the story written by Kate Chopin, a Louisiana cotton broker and a local colorist in the mid-18th century and early 19th century, “The Story of an Hour”, the now widow, Mrs. Mallard, was over joyed when hearing of her husband’s death. Could the joy she was experiencing be eluding to something else? Also, could there have been a mix up of identification in the accident that her husband was…