...Hannah Radney Professor Andrew J. DiNicola English 1102 July 22, 2014 Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour”: Character Analysis of Louise Mallard Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” (1894) is a fictional short story presumably set in America in the late 19th century. Chopin’s story is a description of an hour in the life of Louise Mallard, the protagonist in the story. The subject of the story is the transformation of Louise Mallard after she learns about the supposed death of her husband, Brently Mallard; what she thinks and how she feels as she is alone and contemplates self-assertion for the first time. (Koloski) Chopin first introduces the reader to the main character as only Mrs. Mallard. Given the time period of the story, Chopin directs the reader to the conclusion that Mrs. Mallard has no identity of her own. This reference to her as only by her husband’s last name foreshadows how marriage represses Mrs. Mallard and realistically like many women of this time in history. The virtuous wife, in Mrs. Mallard’s world, accepts the idea that her husband has a right to impose a private will upon her. (Jamil) During the time period in which the story takes place, married women are in a subservient role to their husbands under the “femme covert laws.” “Covert refers to a woman’s legal status after marriage: legally upon marriage, the husband and wife were treated as one entity. In essence, the wife’s separate legal existence disappeared as far as property.” (Lewis 1) A married...
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... the range, intensity, and volume of emotions that will be flowing through your consciousness. In “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, we see this scenario played out in a woman’s life during one emotion-filled hour. Louise Mallard is a woman afflicted with heart problems who, upon hearing the unfortunate news of her husband’s death, is thrust into a moment in time when the life she has come to know suddenly begins to take on a whole new meaning. Interwoven in this timeless tale are themes of self-assertion, oppression, repression, and freedom at a time when woman were anything but. Through her use of irony, symbolism, suspense, and descriptive narratives, Chopin masterfully captures the essence of one woman’s plight in “The Story of an Hour”. The use of irony is an effective literary tool Chopin uses throughout her story to keep the audience cognitive of the contradictions inherent in people and situations. Early on, we see an example of situational irony when we are told Louise Mallard, after being informed of her husband’s death, “Did not hear the story as many women have heard the same, with a paralyzing inability to accept its significance” (215). We are further told, “She wept at once, with wild abandonment, in her sister’s arms” (215). Louise appeared to everyone in the house to be extremely sad and goes upstairs to be alone in her room. Normally, this is a very typical reaction after having lost a loved one. However, once Mrs. Mallard is alone, she is not saddened...
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...The Irony of Louise Mallard’s Widowhood In “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, the author disturbs the reader through the character of Mrs. Mallard. Mrs. Louise Mallard is a coldhearted woman who is happy at the news of widowhood, unbeknownst to her family and friends. Mrs. Mallard’s train of thought throughout the story is unexpected and shocks the reader at every turn, but teaches the reader a few things about relationships in the process. Situational and dramatic irony are created through the interpretation of Mrs. Mallard’s reaction to her husband’s death and through her own untimely death. Two different events in this story shock the reader through situational irony. Situational irony occurs when the reader’s expectations of the story are met with an unexpected occurrence, something that the reader wouldn’t have guessed would happen. The first incident takes place shortly after the main character, Louise, is told that her husband has died in a railroad accident. Her immediate reaction is predictable; she clings to her sister and sobs because her husband is dead. When a person loses a loved one that person goes through a mourning period to grieve for the loss and to cope with the death. What the reader is unprepared for, however, is not this display of emotion directly after the news of the accident. Rather than devastated by his death, Louise is overjoyed. Rather than absorbing the news as some women, “with paralyzed inability to accept its significance”...
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...The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin literary device that created reader interest or to build depth was the plot. The story opens with Louise Mallard who has heart problems, must be informed of her husband Brently Mallard's death. Louise Mallard’s sister Josephine and her husband’s friend Richards feel that they must communicate the passing of her husband as delicate as possible. Josephine and Richards reluctantly tell her about her husband’s death "in broken sentences.” Josephine and Richards believe that this shocking news will cause her heart problems to get worse. Louise Mallard cries in her grief and eventually goes to her room to be alone. Louise sits in a chair facing an open window looking at the open square in front of her house. The...
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...Brooke Allen Professor Rita Wisdom English 1302.20055 17 October 2013 Broken Heart, “The Story of an Hour.” A beautiful, young, fair skinned woman died of heart disease. How could someone so young and potentially full of life have a heart disease that would kill? The question is though, what kind of heart disease did she die from, physical or emotional? Louise died from an emotional heart disease, in other words a broken heart. Some would say Mrs. Louise Mallard from “The Story of an Hour” was relieved when she heard her husband had been killed in a tragic accident and she died when she saw her husband clearly alive walk in the front door, her heart shattered at the realization she would no longer be free. Louise was relieved when she heard the new that her husband had died because she had always felt trapped. Back in this day and age, making marriage meant for some women a form of slavery. “When she hears the news of her husband’s death, Mrs. Mallard’s obliviousness to the beauty of life breaks down under the powerful impact of emotion.”(Jamil.pg215) Before this moment she didn’t even think there was a reason to live anymore. But now as she sits in the bathroom daydreaming out the window she can see all the possibilities. In an article by Jennifer Hicks called “An overview of “The Story an Hour”” it makes a very good point that “Mrs. Mallard is not “paralyzed” by the significance that she is alone.”(Hicks) Which also shows that she was not in shock like some readers...
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...of freedom of women in the 1800s. In her story, Chopin estimates the situation of women in marriage and she looks at the life from a female perspective. Mrs. Mallard, the heroine of the story, is a cardiac patient, who had been told what to do by her husband and could not make choices for herself. In a way, Chopin portrays what it is like to be a woman in the late nineteenth century through an ill protagonist. In the story Mrs. Mallard is told that her husband is dead, even though she is emotional at first, she leaps for joy with the recognition of freedom. However, when Mrs. Mallard learns her husband is alive, which means she will lose her moment of freedom all over again, she dies. “When the doctors came they said she had died of heart disease—of joy that kills.” (Chopin 3) Analyzing of “The Story of an Hour” through the historical and feminist lenses, it can interpreted as an illustrating of a woman’s lack of freedom in a male-dominated society. “The Story of an Hour” was written in the Victorian Era, when a wife was responsible for all household chores without...
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...example of the four elements that is use to create the plot of the story. The first element of plot structure is exposition. “The exposition is the information needed to understand the story”. 1 In the beginning of the story the protagonist, Mrs. Louise Mallard was known for her heart problem. Josephine her sister and Richard, who is Mrs. Mallard’s husband friend did not know how to break the news to Mrs. Mallard that her husband is dead. It was stated in the newspaper that Mr. Brently Mallard’s name was listed in the railroad disaster. The exposition gives the great detail of the story. When there is exposition there is complication that introduces the problem of the story. Complication is the second element of plot structure. “The complication is the catalyst that begins the major conflict”.1 After Mrs. Mallard was told that her husband is dead; she weeps in an instance and ran into her room. She wanted to be left alone trying to deal with the grief over her husband death. Looking out the window from her room, something came over her. How the clouds are clearing up after the rain. Mrs. Mallard realize that life lives on and her internal dilemma is control. She kept whispering to herself “Free! Body and soul free!” From then Louise knew there is no one to live for and she would live for herself. A stare out the...
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...Margaret S. Chandler ENG 102 4 June 2012 A Selfish Wife and a Selfish Death Can you die from a joyful heart disease? Louise Mallard, the protagonist of Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour,” is a nineteenth century housewife who responds dramatically to a series of life changing events that happen to her and her husband. Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” follows Louise Mallard over the course of an hour, at the beginning of which she faces the realization that her husband is a victim of a railroad disaster. Throughout the course of the story, Mrs. Mallard spends the majority of the time focusing on how this affects her own life, discovering her new found freedoms and lack of strong emotion for the death of her husband. In the end though, a crushing blow is delivered when it turns out her husband had not, in fact, boarded the train before it departed and the accident took place. It is through these events, that Mrs. Mallard’s emotions and personal thoughts are able to be examined thoroughly. By focusing on her reaction to the news of Mr. Mallard’s death, her emotions and thoughts as she sits alone in her room, and her final reaction when she discovers her husband is alive, it is evident that Mrs. Mallard is a selfish, conceited, and egotistical wife who cares nothing other than how she benefits from the death of her late husband. When Mrs. Mallard hears the news of her husband’s death, she does not react as most women would. She weeps at once and suddenly, until “the storm...
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...themes. This story tells readers a one hour story in Mrs. Mallard’s life. Mrs. Mallard has heart disease, so her sister and her husband’s friend tell the news of Mr. Mallard’s death very carefully. They both think when Louise hears the news, she will get sick. However, Mrs. Mallard feels very excited, even looks like a goddess of Victory. Though the news makes her sad, she finally...
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...In Kate Chopin’s “Story of an Hour”, Louise Mallard is one of the main characters and one of the only that we get to know the most throughout the story. She is the main character, and the story focuses on her thoughts and feelings. At the end of the short story, Louise Mallard’s destiny does not end well when Chopin decides there is not another choice for her than death. “When the doctor came they said she had died of heart disease- of joy that kills” (Chopin 130). After acknowledging the news of her husband death’s, the thoughts and feelings she has while in front of her sister, Josephine, and her husband’s friend, Richard, are very different than the one she has while in her room by herself. Because of the way she acts and thinks, Louis Mallard’s death looks as pure disappointment of the loss of her thoughts about freedom. Her death is ironic because the tone of the last line, readers can tell that she did not die of a heart disease. Readers of the short story can assume she dies because in the beginning of the story, Louise is introduced as someone...
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...“Story of an Hour,” a short fiction about a married woman named Louise Mallard, who received disturbing news about her spouse dying in a train accident. Louise’s sister Josephine was very hesitant about informing her about the tragic situation that has occurred. She was more afraid to tell Louise because of her heart condition. Therefore, Josephine tries to break the news to her gently about the death of her husband. Louise mallard immediately “wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment” (Chopin, 128). She went to her bedroom where she stood worried by an open window, symbolically meaning that things are about to open up to her. She starts to say “Free, Free, Free” (Chopin, 129) under her breath as if she will now live for herself and not for him. Mrs. Mallard’s family friend and sister were skeptical about delivering this tragic news to her due to her heart condition. Once telling her the news she then returned downstairs where she experiences another shock and disappointment that her husband is not dead. He walked steadily through the front door; ironically, she falls to the floor dead herself. “She had died of heart disease of joy that kills” (Chopin, 129). The author Kate Chopin is trying to show how Mrs. Mallard was...
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...Sheryl Stanton Laura Jones English 102-951 March 6th, 2014 Abstract The following paper discusses and analyzes the work “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin. The story uses the irony of life to show that marriage can be full of undisclosed hatred, suppression, and unpleasantness between partners – a point that remains concealed from the outside world. “The Story of an Hour” is a story about a married couple. The story begins with the wife hearing the news of the death of her husband. The news, instead of sending her into a shock, sends her into a state of excitement. Her excitement remains concealed from the people around her, who assume that she is under great shock. However, her excitement does not last too long, and she again faces news. This time, the news arrives with the arrival of her husband in front of her. Unable to control her feelings of sadness, she falls and dies on the spot. The paper takes into account multiple readings of various authors, compares their stance, and studies their views of the story. The paper establishes the point that time is running very quickly, and the story also revolves around the importance of time. It concludes with the outcome that if married couples trust each other, interconnect well, and resolve their problems, instead of thinking evil of each other, their relation is likely to remain flourishing. “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin The background of “The Story of an Hour” sets its foundations on the moralities...
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...devastated, but in a way very relived. In the text we follow Mrs. Mallard’s feelings, about herself and her husband. Kate Chopin wrote “ The story of an hour “ in 1894, which was in a time period, were the women had no rights. In 1894 the gender roles were deadlocked; the women was suppressed by their husband, in family relationship, and in the political and legal sense. The husband had the final say, in all decisions. It was him who ruled over the family’s finances, and decided where the family should live. The woman took care of the house, the children, and was responsible for the housekeeping. The man’s role was to support his family. The woman’s role was to give birth, take care of the home, and assist the husband. At the time the male gender role was portrayed as the strong, powerful, deciding and intelligent gender. Where as the woman, was portrayed as weak, without influence, insensible and the husband’s subordinate (placed under the man). Louise Mallard is a strong, powerful, intelligent and independent woman. She knows how she should behave in front of her husband, family and society. But how she feels and think, is anything but correct at that time. She is not a cruel person, and she knows that she will morn her husband`s death, when the time comes, but when she is by herself her private thoughts are her own life. The main theme in this short story is freedom. “The story of an hour” begins with Mrs. Mallard’s sister Josephine, tells her the terrible and horrible, news...
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...of Kate's most famous works was "The Story of an Hour" which is centered on a woman named Louise Mallard who is diagnosed with heart disease. Her husband died in a railroad accident and her sister Josephine informs her as delicately as possible because of her condition. At first, Louise Mallard is heartbroken and mourns her husband's death, then as she looks ahead to what her future holds, she realizes that she is...
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...depress our immune system, but it also can increase inflammatory responses that may put us at greater risk for cardiovascular disease, effect our minds in fantastical ways, as well as decrease our longevity (Winch, 2013). In Kate Chopin's, "The Story of an Hour" and James Thurber's "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty", the story of isolation and the desperate yearning for deliverance is told in two very unique and captivating ways. In Kate Chopin's poetic story—unfolding within the time span of one hour—we have Mrs. Louise Mallard who has been informed that her husband was killed in a tragic accident. As readers, we witness what happens to Louise during this moment in time. Then we have the seemingly comical story authored by Thurber in which he presents to us an older gentleman by the name of Walter Mitty. We follow Walter through his mundane existence while delving into his exaggerated day dreams. What comes to light is that the mental processes of both Chopin and Thurber's protagonists personify not only the theme of seeking freedom within the confines of marriage, but how these cognitive journeys ultimately shape and establish the symbolic literary significance of the work itself. Both Chopin and Thurber begin their stories by providing the reader with intriguing knowledge and excitement. We learn that Mrs. Mallard is a woman who has some type of heart condition and that someone is needing to give her news about her husband's death. At this time we are not certain what...
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