Often times in literature, symbolism is used to add depth and meaning to one’s work. In “The Story of an Hour,” Kate Chopin utilizes symbolism to illustrate how easily things can be misconceived, all depending on how you think about it. This is evident upon examining the use of heart disease, springtime, and the open window. We are exposed to the fact that Mrs. Mallard has heart disease, and a family friend tells her of a train wreck, in which her husband is killed. She is remorseful at first, then realizes the freedom that she has just inherited. She thinks about how she has been repressed, but now she is free to pursue a new path in life.
In the beginning of the story, we discover Mrs. Mallard is ill with heart disease. Mr. Richards, a close friend of her husband, and her sister, Josephine, are concerned how she will take the news of Mr. Mallard dying. For the reader, her heart disease serves as a symbol of her repressed life, and her marriage to a man who controls her will. During her time alone, her will and outlook on life seem to become more vibrant as she thinks about how she has a new lease on life due to her husband’s death. She starts to feel as if she has the entire world at her fingertips.
The author describes the springtime, “the tops of trees that were aquiver with new spring life… countless sparrows twittering in the eaves,” symbolizing renewal or a new start of her life. When the story began, it was raining and it seemed depressive, as if there was no hope or change. Then, as her thoughts become realized, it changes to demonstrate how things change and are reborn. She starts to think of all the possibilities laid out before her.
Another use of symbolism used by Chopin is that of the open window. Louise Mallard looks out the window to see a sea shore that crashes and then fades back to the sea, only to repeat itself, time and time again. This