Kate Chopin’s Work “The Story of a Hour”

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Analysis
Conclusion

Introduction

During the 19th century, women lived in a male oriented world. That means that women’s rights did not exist as we know them today. Instead, women then were like Mrs. Louise Mallard, subservient and obedient to the wishes of her husband. Always agreeing with him and never actually having made a decision or choice that was her very own. Kate Chopin lived during this era, causing her to become an advocate of women’s rights of sorts. One of her most popular short stories regarding women’s rights is The Story Of An Hour. A short narrative that all happened within one hour, in a single location, and without any secondary story lines to distract from the main theme of the paper.

Analysis

Early in the story, we are told that Mrs. Mallard has a heart condition that may or may not allow her to survive too much good news or bad news. Which is why her family friend and sister could not figure out how to tell her about her husband dying in an accident. When the family friend finally told her about it, she appears to be distraught and inconsolable. Until such a time when she finally has some alone time in one of the rooms in the house. It is in this room where she begins to question herself. Does she grieve the loss of her husband? The man she loved so dearly over the years, or, does she give in to sense of freedom and relief that is offered by her becoming a widow? This is the main conflict of the story and it is my belief that she chose to be happy at her newfound freedom while grieving for her husband a little. All of these emotions are played out within an hour ending with her death in the end because her “dead husband” walked through the door and gave her a heart attack because nobody had expected him to survive the accident.

Women who lived during this time were treated no better than slaves who existed to serve their masters. The only difference between the two is that one is called a slave and the other is called wife because she carries the man’s name. But just like slaves, these women, once married no longer had the freedoms they had before marriage. Being married meant that they no longer could make decisions for themselves and were obligated to do everything and agree with everything the husband said.

For some women, like Mrs. Mallard, the only way out of a relationship that made her act like a zombie was if her husband died. Such unexpected husband deaths are, for women of Mrs. Mallard’s kind, something to be celebrated because of the freedom it offers the widow. She can finally go back to being herself and not having to think about how to best serve and obey her husband instead. It is because of this mindset that Mrs. Mallard seems to be celebrating the news of her husband’s death upon learning of it instead of being distraught and inconsolable because of the death. This is the discovery I made while reading the following paragraph in the essay.

She could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with the new spring life. The delicious breath of rain was in the air. In the street below a peddler was crying his wares. The notes of a distant song which some one was singing reached her faintly, and countless sparrows were twittering in the eaves.

There was a note of freedom in this paragraph. Almost as if Mrs. Mallard was relieved that Mr. Mallard had died and thankful that it happened early on in her life so that she could still enjoy a good part of it the way she wants to live it.

Later on, without having to go into a totally unrelated subplot, we begin to understand why Mrs. Mallard is relieved by the news that hit her. She was not always the submissive and agreeable wife that she had been during her marriage. She used to be a bright individual who marriage ruined her personality and left her without the ability to think for herself even if she was capable of doing so. The paragraph goes:

She was young with a fair, calm, face, whose lines bespoke repression and even a certain strength. But now there was a dull stare in her eyes, whose gaze was fixed away off yonder on one of those patches of blue sky. It was not a glance of reflection, but rather indicated a suspension of intelligent thought.

However, we later on see she repents for her sense of liberation and freedom. Instead she tries to fight off the feelings of relief in favor of realizing the she actually loved her husband and they had planned on spending the rest of their lives together. She found herself asking if she actually loved him or if she loved herself more?

There would be no one to live for during those coming years; 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. A kind intention or a cruel intention made the act seem no less a crime as she looked upon it in that brief moment of illumination.

And yet she had loved him–sometimes. Often she had not. 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!

“Free! Body and soul free!”she kept whispering.”

Conclusion

It was these conflicting emotions within her that caused her demise in the end. After she had begun to plan how to live life alone and the way she wanted to, her husband came back without a scratch on him. The shock caused her heart to stop. So what was it that killed her? I think it was the realization that she would have to go back to her zombie like existence again. Death was a better option for her and her weak heart knew it.

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Kate Chopin’s Work “The Story of a Hour”

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