The story of an hour is an impressive masterpiece that appeals to the emotions and the mind of the audience because every word in this short story has a lot of sense and deep meaning. The main character in the book is Mrs. Mallard who is lucky to experience the happiness of liberty which is a rare thing. At the exposition, Mrs. Mallards Husband dies and the news of her death is brought to her very subtly because of the fear that it might aggravate her illness. However, contrary to the expectations of the reader, the news does not affect her in any way. The author makes many omissions in the exposition to create a missing link whereby the reader manages to understand everything at the end. The author develops the main character subtly and avoids being distracted by too much action and dialogue. The main intention is to hide some details from the reader who discovers them at the end of the story.
Dialogue and action give the reader the power to carry out introspective analysis that may help in understanding the character beforehand. Dialogue and action bring the characters closer to the reader in quite a revealing way. The author did not want to make revelations until the end of the falling action. The situation the main character is in makes her not be deeply affected by the news of the death of her husband.
She wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment (p. 788). This is contrary to the expectation of the reader who expects the woman to be emotionally affected by the death. It is only afterward that she comes to realize that death means much to her and she becomes emotional.
When she finally retreats to her room, she undergoes a Catharsis and experiences a liberal feeling that is somehow disturbing. This reaction makes the character assume the role of an antagonist because she goes against the expectations of the reader and the grain of the plot. She also becomes a protagonist because this reaction is later exposed in the story as the one that set the stage for her happy ending.
The conflict in the story is brought about by the reaction of the main character towards the news of the death. People are trying to break the news so subtly to avoid hurting her further but in the real sense, she feels liberated by the news. It is important to note that the woman was not happy with her man whom she would have divorced earlier if the society did not frown upon widows. The death of her husband rids her of someone she didnt even desire.
The climax of the story comes when the husband reappears and the wife dies upon seeing him. This is the part that turns the story around because questions emerge about the cause of her death. Some students find it hard understanding the ending of this book especially if they have not figured out the conflict. A keen reader will notice that the main character does not die because of being overjoyed after seeing her husband who had been presumed dead; she dies because that was the only way to gain freedom from her husband. She would have chosen to die than live under her domineering husband again. The liberation she gets in death has been foreshadowed in the exposition where she gets liberated by the death of the husband only for the ending to reveal that she is liberated by her own death.
The Birthmark (1843) tells the story of a scientist Aylmer who was obsessed with the idea to remove his wifes stain. The Story of an Hour (1894) is the psychological description of a young womans feelings when she hears the news of her husbands death. The analysis of these two short stories shows that The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorne and The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin apply the point of view and some themes similarly, but use tone differently.
Although Hawthorne, in his story, raises many themes (perfection, the fight against natural laws, etc.), his story relates to Chopins The Story of an Hour as it narrates the tragedy of oppression inside a family. Even if Georgiana earlier recognized that her birthmark could be seen as a charming feature, she decides to risk her life to satisfy her husbands whim. She says: Either remove this dreadful hand or take my wretched life! (Hawthorne, 1102). As for Chopins The Story of an Hour character, Mrs. Mallard, her thoughts about her husbands death include reflections on lack of freedom in marriage. These are thoughts of that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature (Chopin, 276). Finally, in both short stories, husbands are the reason for wives deaths. In The Birthmark, Georgiana becomes the victim of her husbands ideas of perfection and egoistic intention to play God. Louise Mallard of The Story of an Hour has a weak heart, and it breaks when the sudden appearance of her husband, safe and sound, destroys her dreams of freedom. Hence, the stories are similar in their coverage of the problem of marriage and the subordination of women to men.
Tones of short stories are different: at the end of each story, readers have disparate feelings connected with the sense of predictability of the ending. Hawthornes The Birthmark is full of mysterious signs of impending disaster. For example, Aylmers dream when he was inexorably resolved to cut Georgianas heart (Hawthorne, 1102), or description of Aylmers failed experiments. The text is full of words frightful , mystery , shock , trouble , horror , so the tragedy becomes a logical and expected outcome. Chopins The Story of an Hour , by contrast, has some unexpected twists. Its tone shifts throughout the story from a burst of suffering to calm sadness, from sadness to incredible feeling of deep happiness, and then from glee to frustration. That transition from a feverish triumph to sudden death (Chopin, 277) startles readers and produces an ironic effect. Therefore, the tone in each story works toward different aims to create the atmosphere of mysterious horror or ironically describe vicissitudes of life.
The narrator in both short stories speaks from the omniscient third point of view and observes the events, characters feelings, emotions, desires, motives, etc. Such perspective helps writers create a feeling of complete immersion into a fictional world, allowing the reader to reflect on the factors that influence the characters actions. In The Birthmark, the narrator describes Georgiana and Aylmers feelings and intentions, creating a sense of contrast between the unconditional love of a suppressed woman and the destructive ego of a dominant husband. Similarly, the contrast in The Story of an Hour is created by a widowed womans feelings and expected behavior: readers can note that Mrs. Mallards intentions and actions could be interpreted differently. That is the reason why the last line, she had died& of the joy that kills, causes a sad grin in a sympathetic person. The use of omniscient third point of view in these stories works alike, creating contrasting dimensions.
All the things considered, both The Birthmark and The Story of an Hour raise the theme rather revolutionary for the 19th century: the tragedy of oppression inside a family. The stories are similar in the way that narrators describe the characters actions and their inner world. However, stories vary in a tone that creates a different atmosphere and defines the effect from endings.
Works Cited
Chopin, Kate. The Story of an Hour . Seeing Ourselves, edited by Alan Cheuse, Applewood Books, 2007, pp. 275-77.
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Birthmark . The Complete Works of Nathaniel Hawthorne, 3rd Edition, Delphi Classics, 2016, pp. 1101-7.
This paper will be aimed at discussing such literary works as the play Trifles written Susan Glaspell and Kate Chopins short story The Story of an Hour. In particular, it is necessary to examine the views on marriage expressed by these authors. Much attention should be paid to the similarities and differences in the themes that these writers focus on.
Overall, this topic has been chosen because it plays an important role for these feminist writers who want to highlight the problems that could be faced by women living in patriarchic societies. So, this question is helpful for studying various works of Susan Glaspell and Kate Chopin.
Furthermore, this topic is important for understanding the problems that feminist movement tried to address at the beginning of the twentieth century. This is why I have decided to focus on this particular topic in this essay.
My major argument will be based primarily on the analysis of the main characters behavior, especially their reactions to different challenges. In particular, I will focus on the way in which these women perceive their marriage. On the whole, I will argue that Susan Glaspell and Kate Chopin demonstrate that marriage can turn some form of oppression because it deprives them of their independence or dignity.
This is the main similarity that can be identified. However, Minnie decides to use force in order to end the humiliation to which she is subjected to. In contrast, Mrs. Mallard does not want to acknowledge that her marriage is unhappy.
Moreover, she is extremely ashamed of her willingness to leave her husband. In other words, these characters do not have the same attitudes toward the social norms and expectations that are set for women. This is the thesis that I will discuss in greater detail.
Essay
The attitudes toward family and gender roles have been described in various literary works that could have been created during different periods. These questions are explored by such authors Susan Glaspell and Kate Chopin.
Such works as Trifles and The Story of an Hour can be regarded as eloquent examples of feminist literature since they can throw light on the peculiarities of a patriarchal society in which women are not allowed to be autonomous and self-sufficient.
This is one of the main themes that can be singled out. Overall, one can say that these writers describe the experiences of women who are strongly dissatisfied with their marriage because they crave for personal dignity and independence that are denied to them.
These are the things that Mrs. Mallard and Minnie lack. However, these characters respond to these hardships in different ways. In particular, Minnie kills her husband because; to a great extent, it is her response to his continuous abuse. In contrast, Mrs. Mallard is not ready to acknowledge that she is glad to live without her husband. She does not want to say that marriage can turn into a disaster for a person.
Therefore, the characters described by Susan Glaspell and Kate Chopin respond to social injustice in different ways. These are the main questions that should be examined closely. On the whole, this discussion can show that marriage is described as the union in which the rights of both partners are not always equal.
First of all, Susan Glaspell and Kate Chopin throw light on the life of families in which women are forced to play certain gender roles that are imposed on them. In particular, these women are deprived of their freedom and dignity. This point can be illustrated with the help of several examples. For instance, one can look at the way in which Mrs. Mallard responds to the news about her husbands death.
Kate Chopin describes her reaction in the following way, When she abandoned herself a little whispered word escaped her slightly parted lips. She said it over and over under the breath: free, free, free! (Chopin 53). This quote is important for showing that Mrs.
Mallard does not view her marriage as something valuable (Chopin 53). This is one of the aspects that can be singled out. It is possible to say that marriage is not satisfying for the main character of Susan Glaspells play. The author does not directly describe her experiences. However, the writer provides several eloquent details.
For example, the visitors can find the body of the dead canary that was killed by Minnies husband (Glaspell 44). However, male investigators of the murder dismiss this evidence by arguing that women are used to worrying about trifles (Glaspell 38). This quote is important for showing that Minnies inner world is completely overlooked by men.
To a great extent, the husbands cruelty is one of the factors that prompted her to kill him. Yet, this idea does not even occur to the police officers. Overall, family life is practically unbearable for each of these characters. This is one of the details that can be singled out.
Susan Glaspell and Kate Chopin show that marriage produced a devastating effect on the inner world of these characters. Much attention should be paid to such a theme as lack of personal fulfillment which is critical for every individual. Both characters suffer because their personal needs are continuously disregarded.
However, there are important distinctions that should be considered. First of all, Mrs. Mallard is unable to acknowledge that she wants to live for herself (Chopin 53). In her opinion, such a desire is monstrous (Chopin 53). The protagonist does not admit that she does not want to grieve for her husbands death (Chopin 53). She believes that her inability to feel the sense of loss will be condemned by other people.
This character suffers a heart attack when she finds out her husband has not died. This is one of the aspects that can be distinguished. In contrast, Minnie is able to live without her husband. She is ready to defy the social traditions according to which women are obliged to accept the rules set by males. One can say that Mrs. Mallard is afraid of stating that she wants to end her marriage.
This is one of the distinctions that can be identified since it is important for describing the differences between these literary works. It should be borne in mind that these texts were written during different periods, and they can show how womens values evolved. They became more willing to challenge the authority of males.
Thus, Minnie deviates from the established social tradition. Certainly, it is difficult to find an ethical justification for murder or any other forms of violence. However, this behavior is a response to suffering and injustice. This is one of the points that can be made.
Certainly, it is possible to raise some objections to the arguments that have been placed in the paper. For instance, one can mention that both authors do not speak about the relations between the main characters and their spouses. These issues are not explicitly described by the writers.
In particular, the readers do not know much about the behavior of Brently Mallard whose personality is not examined by Kate Chopin. Additionally, this author does not speak about the way in which he treats his wife. This is one of the flaws that should be considered. Furthermore, Susan Glaspell does not pay much attention to the relations between Minnie and her husband John Wright.
Moreover, the author does not explicitly tell that the main character killed her spouse. This is only the assumption that cannot be fully verified. These are some of the limitations that should be considered. Yet, one can respond to these objections. For instance, it is necessary to keep in mind that as a reporter Susan Glaspell often wrote about women who were accused of murders (Ben-Zwi 141).
Moreover, in many cases, these women were victims of abuse or humiliation (Ben-Zwi 142). This story is partly based on the life of Margaret Hossack who murdered her husband because of his abuse. Therefore, one can argue that Minnie could be humiliated or abused by her husband.
Moreover, it is important to remember that Kate Chopins short story is also based on the real-life events (Toth 10). In particular, she wrote about women who were compelled to marry (Toth 10). Apart from that, she had to end the short story with the death of the main character, otherwise this literary work might not have been published (Toth 10; Berkove 152).
These examples indicate that at the end of the nineteenth century, women were not supposed to be independent from males. Therefore, it is quite possible to identify the connections between the feminist movement and the literary works of Kate Chopin and Susan Glaspell who want to throw light on the difficulties faced by women.
On the whole, this discussion suggests that these short stories present a critique of marriage. In both cases, the writers show that women could be dissatisfied with this form of union. Minnie and Mrs. Mallard are not willing to reject their freedom and sense of dignity. However, they are forced to do it. To a great extent, this situation can be described by the social norms that existed during the nineteenth century.
So, this is the main internal conflict that they struggle to resolve. Yet, they react to these hardships in different ways. In particular, Minnie kills her husband because in this way she attempts to retain her dignity. In contrast, Mrs. Mallard cannot openly state that she cannot live with her spouse.
This is why this character is speechless when she sees her husband. Overall, the main theme is the lack of personal fulfillment and autonomy that these women lack. However, Susan Glaspell focuses on the idea of protest against the existing social hierarchy while Kate Chopin focuses on the social norms that are aimed at subduing women. These are the main arguments that can be put forward.
Works Cited
Ben-Zwi, Linda. Murder, She Wrote : The Genesis of Susan Glaspells Trifles. Theatre Journal 44.2 (1992): 141-162. Print.
Berkove, Lawrence. Fatal Self-Assertion in Kate Chopins The Story of an Hour.American Literary Literalism 32.2 (2000): 152-158. Print.
Chopin, Kate. A Pair of Silk Stockings. New York: Courier Dover Publications, 2012. Print.
Glaspell, Susan. Plays by Susan Glaspell. New York: Cambridge University Press, 1987. Print.
Toth, Emily. Unveiling Kate Chopin. Jackson: University Press of Mississippi,1999. Print.
The story of an hour by Kate Chopin is built using the classic rules of plot structure. The exposition is the news about Brently Mallards death. The complication is how his wife reacts to the situation and how she begins to feel free and happy even though she should feel sorrow. The climax of the story is Brently Mallards return home and the situation when Mrs. Mallard cries. There is no falling action in the story as the resolution is presented immediately Mrs. Mallard is dead because of a heart attack.
The point of view in the story is categorized as the third person limited omniscient as the story-teller is not the participant of the events which take place and is aware of the thoughts of Mrs. Mallard. It should be mentioned that the point of view through the story changes. When Mrs. Mallard is told that her husband is killed in an accident, she wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment, in her sisters arms (Chopin, 2006, p. 352).
When she entered her room, her feelings and attitude to the husbands death changed as she whispered free, free, free! (Chopin, 2006, p. 353). Thus, a deep grieve has changed with the inner feeling of satisfaction and joy for the free future.
Reading the story, I followed Mrs. Mallards reaction and my opinion about her marriage and her husband changed with the change of the point of view. These changes showed me that the first impression was wrong when I thought that she loved her husband and suffered because of his death. The changes of the point of view are closely related to the story theme and content, as with the help of those changes it is possible to predict that Mrs. Mallard died not because she was so happy to see her husband, but because she understood that her dreams of freedom were ruined.
Reference List
Chopin, K. (2006). The story of an hour. The complete works of Kate Chopin. Baton Rouge: LSU Press.
In this essay, we are going to make a critical analysis of a short story by a famous American writer Kate Chopin (1850 1904) The Story of an Hour . K. Chopin is sometimes called a forgotten voice of American Literature, only in the middle of the 20th century her works regained their popularity and took their deserved place among the masterpieces of world literature. Kate Chopin can even be called a prophet of the feminist literature of the end of the 19th century.
And this fact can be easily explained if we take a look at her life. Her father died when she was five years old and she was brought up by her mother and great-grandmother. She had to prove the right of a woman to decide something in the society contemporary to her and, besides, was influenced by her parents. So, as we can see it is understandable that her works express concern about the role a woman should play in society.
In the story under consideration, The Story of an Hour , purely feminist ideas are expressed together with a skillful description of the emotional state of the main character of the story which is rather an interesting psychological type of a human being. What we are going to discuss in the essay is the epiphanies the main character of the story, Mrs. Mallard, had and the conflict of her behavior with the social and historical context of those times.
We will try to find out the reasons for such actions and feelings of Mrs. Mallard, discuss the means used by the author to describe the above-mentioned emotions of the main character, and the aim of the story on the whole: its audience and the effect it had in the social opinion.
To start with, let us restore a picture of the society of that time a society controlled by and existing for men, few, if any, womens rights, and the atmosphere of the permanent tension, though not exposed, nevertheless, felt and real. It was impossible to imagine a womans behavior that would violate the set standards and avow disagreement with the existing norms. And in the story under consideration we can observe an inner conflict of a personality she is ashamed to express her emotions, not because of possible social disapproval, but because she still can not decide even for herself what she feels. We are the witnesses of the duality of the attitude conditioned by two musts : on the one hand an inner state of a personality, and on the other hand societal foundations and principles.
Now let us examine the characteristics of the main heroine in a more detailed way. Mrs. Mallard was a young lady with a fair face that bespoke repression and a certain strength (Chopin 259). She could not be called a weak-willed person anyway. Surely, she had some physical weaknesses, like heart trouble she was afflicted with, but this has nothing to do with the strong spirit of freedom and aspiration for self-assertion which lived inside of this tender young lady. If we address the message implicated in the text of the story, we can guess that her husband, Brently Mallard, did not appreciate these features of her character and, probably tried to suppress them.
She confessed to herself that there had been moments when she loved her husband but more often she did not (260). Mrs. Mallard could patiently stand almost everything but the only thing that arouse her anger was that she did not possess her life, her time, she did not possess herself everything was bent to her husbands will.
When we start reading this story we do not know these details and that is why Mrs. Mallards reaction to her sisters message about the accident on the railroad where her husband was among the killed seems, at first, natural: She wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment, in her sisters arms. (259), but then it becomes unpredictable and she even starts feeling a kind of joy! Of course, she was sure to weep again when she saw the kind, tender hands folded in death; the face that had never looked save with love upon her, fixed and gray and dead (260), but it was nothing in comparison to the freedom she could get from what had happened. Free! Body and soul free! she kept whispering. (260)
As can be easily understood, she spoke of herself, of her new life which must begin after her husbands death. She was at first afraid of these thoughts, afraid to accept them, tried to beat them back with her will . But a bit later she gave up, she abandoned the hope to resist these thoughts and feelings and a word in whisper sounded from her lips again: Free! (260).
Having thought of all the advantages of her new status, the status of a widow, she opened and spread her arms out to them [above mentioned thoughts] in welcome. (260). Here we can notice that she was ashamed to feel this way but she could not fight the feeling because it was inside of her, it was her original self expressing sincere emotion, though cruel but not subjected to social attitudes. In this episode of the story, the author depicted the state of mind when a conflict with the accepted standards is a result of a persons being absolutely sincere and honest to herself.
The author skillfully pictures Mrs. Mallards behavior at the time when she was alone in her room after coming to know about her husbands death. Her husbands friend Richard and her sister were afraid that she was drowning in sorrow and could make herself ill while she was looking at the blue sky with grey patches of clouds and considering all the positive sides of the freedom she could finally get. No one would control her actions, she would be the only mistress of her life, she would live for herself. There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature. (260).
Her husbands death became a starting point for her new life, at least she took it so: She breathed a quick prayer that life might be long. It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long. When Mrs. Mallards sister persuaded her to leave the room and go downstairs she appeared in the corridor with a look which could not be called the one of a mourning widow. She was full of energy, her eyes sparkled with enthusiasm and she carried herself unwittingly like a goddess of Victory. (261).
But when she descended the stairs the dreams of freedom broke into small pieces. What she saw made her cry piercingly. Her husband stepped into the house has opened the front door with a latchkey. He did not even know about the accident and was far from the place where it had happened. Mrs. Mallards shock was too strong. When the doctors came they said she had died of heart diseaseof the joy that kills.
An hour in Mrs. Mallards life depicted in the story under consideration turned out to be fateful, but, at the same time, the happiest one. During this hour she felt free, felt how her dreams came true and this was real happiness. And when this feeling came to its end so did her life.
Speaking of Brently Mallard, we can not learn a lot about him and his relations with his wife from the text of the story. It is the implication that helps us develop the whole setting of the work. Only using understanding the implicit meaning we can visualize the background of the story. We know much about Mr. Mallard after reading the story through the author mentions his name only several times. The emotions of Mrs. Mallard are what give us information to think over and make our conclusions about her husband. This should be referred to the authors literary skills Kate Chopin said much without saying a word. The fact confirms Chopins works place among the best masterpieces of world literature.
And in conclusion, I would like to sum up all the above said. The Story of an Hour is one of the best works by the famous American writer Kate Chopin. In this story, we could observe different sides of human nature, the conflict within a personality, and contradictions of ones own identity with the norms of society. We were witnesses of the kaleidoscope of feelings of the main character, we could see how happy she was and how, in a minute, everything was destroyed and her life did not have sense anymore.
Kate Chopin is a master of a psychological novel and, by different means, for example describing how Mrs. Mallard enjoyed looking at the sky after she had learned about her husbands death, she displays a full picture of human life in the plenitude of its bright and dark colors. Kate Chopin managed perfectly to describe them in her work which provokes every reader to think of what is right and what is wrong and to change in a certain manner his or her values and the universal values of mankind.
Another point of crucial importance in this story is the feminist view of the author, paying attention to the problem of a womans role in society and an attempt to change the situation by the power of literary art.
So, the idea of the story under consideration is making changes, in a personality as well as in the state of things in the whole world and the audience of such a work can not be outlined distinctly. It is aimed at readers of all ages, genders, and social positions. It was written more than a hundred years ago but still has not lost its topicality and importance because it is the material side of life that changes but not people.
The Story of an Hour leaves a strange feeling based on misunderstanding and a lasting impression of what happens at the end. Indeed, Louises untimely death came as a surprise to me. However, throughout the story, the author seems to be preparing the reader for this conclusion. Firstly, at the very beginning of the story, Chopin makes it clear that the main characters have heart problems, and a solid emotional shock can be fatal for her. Moreover, before immense joy explained her condition, one might have thought that she was experiencing mortal anguish.
The death of a character from the joy that kills causes conflicting feelings. Alone in a room, Louise is unaware at first but then realizes that she enjoys being on her own. It refers to the marriage union of a man and a woman as an oppressive position and a life doomed to shared suffering. Louise despaired that her independence as a free man was tied to her husband. The release that led to a heart attack can be called joy that kills. For a moment, she thinks she loves her husband, but afterward, Louise realizes that most of their marriage, she did not feel it. Her joy is due to the complete liberation from the marriage ties that bind her. Louise is delighted that now she can control her desires.
However, this does not mean that she did not love her husband. Nonetheless, even in favorable alliances, oppression and implicit control of a persons will can occur. Thus, Louises feelings are pretty explainable by the fact that she can devote her life to herself with the death of her husband. The realization of this leads her to delight and a feeling of euphoria, which she cannot contain in herself. Louises heart is already weak, so she dies from an overabundance of positive emotions.
The Birthmark (1843) tells the story of a scientist Aylmer who was obsessed with the idea to remove his wifes stain. The Story of an Hour (1894) is the psychological description of a young womans feelings when she hears the news of her husbands death. The analysis of these two short stories shows that The Birthmark by Nathaniel Hawthorne and The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin apply the point of view and some themes similarly, but use tone differently.
Although Hawthorne, in his story, raises many themes (perfection, the fight against natural laws, etc.), his story relates to Chopins The Story of an Hour as it narrates the tragedy of oppression inside a family. Even if Georgiana earlier recognized that her birthmark could be seen as a charming feature, she decides to risk her life to satisfy her husbands whim. She says: Either remove this dreadful hand or take my wretched life! (Hawthorne, 1102). As for Chopins The Story of an Hour character, Mrs. Mallard, her thoughts about her husbands death include reflections on lack of freedom in marriage. These are thoughts of that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature (Chopin, 276). Finally, in both short stories, husbands are the reason for wives deaths. In The Birthmark, Georgiana becomes the victim of her husbands ideas of perfection and egoistic intention to play God. Louise Mallard of The Story of an Hour has a weak heart, and it breaks when the sudden appearance of her husband, safe and sound, destroys her dreams of freedom. Hence, the stories are similar in their coverage of the problem of marriage and the subordination of women to men.
Tones of short stories are different: at the end of each story, readers have disparate feelings connected with the sense of predictability of the ending. Hawthornes The Birthmark is full of mysterious signs of impending disaster. For example, Aylmers dream when he was inexorably resolved to cut Georgianas heart (Hawthorne, 1102), or description of Aylmers failed experiments. The text is full of words frightful , mystery , shock , trouble , horror , so the tragedy becomes a logical and expected outcome. Chopins The Story of an Hour , by contrast, has some unexpected twists. Its tone shifts throughout the story from a burst of suffering to calm sadness, from sadness to incredible feeling of deep happiness, and then from glee to frustration. That transition from a feverish triumph to sudden death (Chopin, 277) startles readers and produces an ironic effect. Therefore, the tone in each story works toward different aims to create the atmosphere of mysterious horror or ironically describe vicissitudes of life.
The narrator in both short stories speaks from the omniscient third point of view and observes the events, characters feelings, emotions, desires, motives, etc. Such perspective helps writers create a feeling of complete immersion into a fictional world, allowing the reader to reflect on the factors that influence the characters actions. In The Birthmark, the narrator describes Georgiana and Aylmers feelings and intentions, creating a sense of contrast between the unconditional love of a suppressed woman and the destructive ego of a dominant husband. Similarly, the contrast in The Story of an Hour is created by a widowed womans feelings and expected behavior: readers can note that Mrs. Mallards intentions and actions could be interpreted differently. That is the reason why the last line, she had died& of the joy that kills, causes a sad grin in a sympathetic person. The use of omniscient third point of view in these stories works alike, creating contrasting dimensions.
All the things considered, both The Birthmark and The Story of an Hour raise the theme rather revolutionary for the 19th century: the tragedy of oppression inside a family. The stories are similar in the way that narrators describe the characters actions and their inner world. However, stories vary in a tone that creates a different atmosphere and defines the effect from endings.
Works Cited
Chopin, Kate. The Story of an Hour . Seeing Ourselves, edited by Alan Cheuse, Applewood Books, 2007, pp. 275-77.
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. The Birthmark . The Complete Works of Nathaniel Hawthorne, 3rd Edition, Delphi Classics, 2016, pp. 1101-7.
The short stories by Jamaica Kincaid, Girl and Kate Chopin, The Story of an Hour, entirely focus on women and their experiences. The story Girl takes the form of a mothers list of rules for her daughter, detailing everything from domestic chores to social etiquette. In The Story of an Hour, a wife learns of her husbands death and goes through various feelings as she adjusts to her new life. The two pieces are short but give insight into womens lives, navigating the world with difficulty. The female protagonists in Girl and The Story of an Hour question their assigned societal roles and advocate for greater autonomy for women.
According to the basic allocation of gender roles in a societal setup, girls are required to be able manage to take care of the members of a family, which means they need to know how to cook, clean, and take care of their children. Additionally, they should behave well in public through decent dress code and acting in a mature way and are at many times regarded as subjects to their elders (Mambrol). The protagonist, in the story, Girl needs to learn the finer points of ladylike behavior. However, she resists fitting into these stereotypical gender stereotypes and longs to be treated as an individual with complete autonomy. On the other hand, the protagonist of The Story of an Hour, Mrs. Mallard, begins to feel a sense of freedom and she is finally free to pursue her interests. In both works, gender norms are questioned, and women are given new agency and they advocate for womens autonomy, saying they shouldnt have to conform to societal standards based on gender.
Both narratives expose the heinous maltreatment of women in todays patriarchal culture. Women are at times regarded selfless and therefore, prone to mistreatment by inconsiderate men (Mambrol). The main character in Girl is assumed to be capable in the kitchen and around the house which she resists to fit as she longs to be treated as an individual with complete autonomy. The protagonist of The Story of an Hour is a heartbroken widow who finds a newfound feeling of independence as she grieves. She does not have to please her spouse anymore and she is finally free to pursue her interests. The ladies in both narratives advocate for their autonomy and freedom from traditional gender norms which belittle them and hold them in their cocoons dominated by societal values.
In conclusion, the oppression of women is a common theme in Jamaica Kincaids Girl and Kate Chopins The Story of an Hour. Womens oppression is a common problem in each of these narratives. The two stories culminate in different ways, but highlight the power of women (Chopin). At the end of Girl, the main character finally speaks her mind to her mother. The main character in Girl is continually lectured about proper behavior. She is never allowed to speak her mind or share her perspective. After her husband dies in The Story of an Hour, the protagonist is first crushed. Soon, though, she recognizes the liberating reality that her marriage no longer holds any power over her. She has complete autonomy over her daily activities and major life choices and finally comes into terms that she is free. These narratives demonstrate the potential for women to be robust and triumph over oppression through self-realization over any circumstance and taking an initiative to show independence in the society
Works Cited
Chopin, Kate. The story of an hour. Joe Books Ltd, 2018.
Mambrol, Nasrullah. Analysis of Jamaica Kincaids Stories. Literariness»,: 2020.
The Story of An Hour by Kate Chopin (1894) tells us the transition of a woman from shock to grief to joy and then again to shock within a span of an hour or so. But it should be mentioned in the initial stages that there is no change of character in its fundamentals throughout the story. This unchanging existence due to an unhappy marriage is the focal point of the character and main theme of the story.
The author narrates the change of emotions in a crisp construction pattern that is visual and descriptive yet short and sensitive. Mrs. Mallards unsatisfied married life is also projected as the subdued conclusion statement in the story. Her reaction to the news of her husband was natural but yet not natural as the transition from shock to grief was an extremely short one. The author narrates this phase in a very illuminative manner. She did not hear the story as many women have heard the same, with a paralyzed inability to accept its significance. She wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment, in her sisters arms. (Chopin, 1)
After a while came the time to consolidate her initial outburst of agony and this was the phrase when the storm of grief had spent itself she went away to her room alone. She would have no one follow her. (Chopin, 1) This was the time she started formulating and evaluating her actual position in a situation that would be completely in the absence of her husband. She hardy savored her married life and felt little emotional bondage with her husband.
Thus it was her time to analyze her position and She was beginning to recognize this thing that was approaching to possess her, and she was striving to beat it back with her willas powerless as her two white slender hands would have been. When she abandoned herself a little whispered word escaped her slightly parted lips. She said it over and over under her breath: free, free, free! (Chopin, 2)
This was her sense of freedom from a marriage that she had hated all her married life but never realized so vividly. In fact, it is possible that her ill health and poor cardiac conditions were all due to the fact that all her married life she had been through depression and anxiety that she never knew. Thus once the news of death came in it took some time for them to realize the essence of her liberty from an unwanted relationship which otherwise was irreversible during the late 1800s.
It can be easily identifiable that the fear of the violent man is a reason which makes most victims fails to seek out help in the event of domestic violence. With some partners being so violent, women tend to fear the repercussions that would result if the partner realized that she was looking for help. They, therefore, made sure that looking for help would improve the situation rather than make it worse. Having a good understanding of their partners, most women understand what they were capable of doing. This makes them try to protect themselves, or friends and family by advising them not to call for help because the partner could harm them.
Furthermore, women who live under the shadows of violent partners but are not ready to seek help from relevant organizations or their family and friends. This is triggered by several factors that would implicate negatively on them if their partners discovered that they are seeking help or the steps that would be taken to assist them. This means that all the organizations that are responsible for dealing with domestic violence must come up with strategies that would take these barriers into consideration. Failure to do this will mean that domestic violence will remain for ages. In the case of the story, violence, physical or mental, or simply the essence of the threat made the protagonist traumatized throughout her life. The death of her husband was a complex relief to her.
It should be noted that Psychological trauma is an alarming clinical as well as a societal problem. It is inclined to repeat itself from generation to generation for the reason that its victims defensively re-enact the evil that has been done to them by vicariously or blatantly repeating it with those they hold most dear, particularly significant. In this case, it was the husband. The suffering of the traumatized patient is blatant, manifesting itself in various feelings, from anger to depression, and in various psychological defenses, for instance, aggressive outbursts, verbal provocation, disavowal, and guilt feelings. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is one of the most commonly discussed psychiatric syndromes in the popular press. The womens stress in this story is such a case of traumatic life but suppressed to the society.
The characteristics of Mrs. Mallard never revealed the pain of marriage even to herself thus when the effortless sense of joy was realized it cannot be stated that she was becoming a different person altogether or there was a shift of character in the story. This is because the character that came out after receiving the death of Mr. Mallard was always there present in her mind but in a much-suppressed manner. The news only opened up the gate to let the emotions of joy flush out. Thus it cannot be stated that it changed Mrs. Mallard rather we can say that the news actually revealed the inner self of Mrs. Mallard to the readers. This was no transition of character but a construction process of hope that indicated that What did it matter! What could love, the unsolved mystery, count for in the face of this possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being . (Chopin, 2)
It may appear that Mr. Mallard kept her inner self a secret but in reality, it was the perception of the reader about a marriage in the society that was the main obstacle of understanding the approach of this character. As it is, as, in the 1890s, it is the common discernment of the society that marriage is regarded as successful if the violence or discontent is not visible to the society but this society fails to understand and feel the essence of mind and the desires are kept suppressed.
Thus it can be stated that if there are any transition or change of character in the story, after the development of incidents, are from the parameter or perspective of the society or the readers of the society. Mr. Mallard remained the same as she was at the beginning of the story only the perception of the readers changed along with the storyline making her a constant quintessence of free will or the aspiration of it throughout the narration.
The story of an hour by Kate Chopin focuses on Josephine, who has conflicted feelings about the loss of her husband. The entire text describes how she reacts to the news of her husbands death. Her worries, possible memories, emotions and, oddly enough, the inhalation of freedom are placed at the center of the narrative. Existential awareness covers Josephine with her head, and she is speechless from the news that has come. The denouement of the story lies in the fact that Brentley returns home at the moment of Josephines awareness of the death and the meeting of a new reality. Josephine is shocked to see her husband as a ghost back from the dead, and has a heart attack. Kate Chopin in The story of an hour describes the conflicting feelings of the main character, her renewal after the death of Brentley, and leads her to a cruel conclusion: death from shock.
Throughout the story, Josephine experiences fear, awe, release, pleasure, and anticipation. Kate Chopin draws parallels between feelings and bodily sensations, which tells readers about Josephines excitement: Her pulses beat fast, and the coursing blood warmed and relaxed every inch of her body (Chopin 2). Chopin mentions the main characters eyes, which look ahead and prepare to accept a new reality. It seems strange that Josephine, despite the present descriptions of pain, suffering, tears and tantrums, quickly puts up with the loss of her husband. It cannot be called joy, it cannot be called intense grief, but it is precisely the existential rift that divided Josephines life into two parts. In the first part, she belonged in body and soul to her husband (Paudel 98). Sitting at the window, while the rest of the house is worried that she will hurt herself, Josephine is looking forward to the renewal.
The text produces the effect of a riddle and forces one to take attempt after attempt in understanding Josephine. The descriptions of Josephines physicality force readers to better understand how she feels, and therefore produce the effect of a serious emotional charge; some of Josephines emotions are conveyed to the reader. The topic raised by Kate Chopin is closely related to the existential issues of communication, emotional attachment and the Other in philosophy. This story shows readers what a powerful influence one person can have on another, even to the point of controlling his life and death.
Works Cited
Chopin, Kate. The Story of an Hour. Joe Books Ltd, 2018.
Paudel, Kishor. Existential Angst in Kate Chopins The Story of an Hour. NCC Journal vol. 4, no. 1, 2019, pp. 97-99.