The Story of an Hour: The Theme of Freedom
The author, Kate Chopin (born: 1850; died: 1904) is believed by manycritics to have been far ahead of her time. She wrote on feminist issuesduring a period when women were considered as no more than mere possessionsof their husbands and "women's liberation," far from being practiced, didnot even exist as a word. Her writing style was based on objectivity bereftof any semblance of "preaching," which make her stories effective andrealistic. In "The Story of an Hour" she explores the stark difference inthe private feelings of a nineteenth century woman and how she is expected "The Story..." is considered by many to be an autobiographical depictionof Kate Chopin's own life as the author's husband had died when she wasrelatively young. According to other critics, however, the story is amusing by the author about her mother's (Eliza O'Flaherty) marriage andread it as a criticism of institution of marriage that traps women andtakes away their freedom. (Toth, p. 10) There can hardly be any argument on the fact that "Freedom" is one ofthe most cherished of human desires. It is, unfortunately, denied to alarge number of people by their fellow-men under different pret
Just as Louise gets ready to be her own woman and emergesfrom the shadow of her husband, under which she had lived for so long, itis revealed that Mr. So much so that even an apparently disastrous eventsuch as the death of her husband may prove to be a source of opportunityand joy for a woman. " Love is often used by many people as a license to "possess" theirlovers and as a "right to impose a private will upon a fellow creature. Those who have read Chopin's workssuch as "The Awakening" (1899) or "The Story of an Hour" can easilyempathize with the feelings of women who have lived all their lives underthe shadows of their male relatives and never realized their potential. Instead of seeing the dark clouds of depression closing inaround her, she notices "the tops of trees that were all aquiver with thenew spring life" and "the delicious breath of rain. Deneau as "some type of sexual experience. Chopin, throughan ironic "twist in the tail" of her story shows us that the ultimatefreedom does not lie in our lives; it can only be found in "death. Chopin, true to her style of writing, does not end Louise's storywith her liberating decision to at last live her own life after the deathof her husband. The "shock" of seeinghim alive proves fatal for Louise, with everyone in the story believingthat she had died at the "joy" of seeing her husband alive. Mallard (whose own name, Louise, is significantly revealed more than half-way into the story) is not a run of the mill "average" woman when she weepsin "wild abandonment" (Para 3) in her sister's arms instead of being"paralyzed with inability" after receiving the news. 211 of"Explicator") Deneau supports this argument by suggesting that Louise's"abandonment," the "slightly parted lips," "fast pulse" and "the coursingblood (that) warmed and relaxed every inch of her body" are all indicativeof "coitus and post-coital reactions.
Common topics in this essay:
Explicator Deneau,
Chopin's Awakening,
Mallard Story,
Kate Chopin,
Eliza O'Flaherty,
Louise Instead,
Story Chopin,
Kate Chopin's,
Daniel Deneau,
death husband,
live own,
liberating louise,
free free,
sexual experience,
own life,
,
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Acceptance Essays
