I thought that this story was a very unusual story because all the events seem to proceed in slow motion. Perhaps that is why the story is titled “The Story of An Hour;” the entire story covers a period of only an hour. The title might have more significance, but I’m not entirely sure. I read the story a few times to try to find a hidden meaning, but found just two points that stuck out in my mind. First, I think that Mrs. Mallard’s heart condition symbolizes society’s view of women in Kate Chopin’s era. Many people in that culture probably thought that women couldn’t handle the freedom to make their own decisions and live their own lives. Finally, I think that Mrs. Mallard died because she saw that her husband was still alive, not because of overwhelming joy. The author was trying to say that if women’s hope of equality dies, then women will be worse off than before they had hope of freedom and equality.
I was surprised throughout almost all of this story. Mainly when Mrs. Mallard was actually overwhelmingly happy that her husband was dead, when Mr. Mallard came back and actually wasn't dead, and when Mrs. Mallard had a heartattack when she saw that her husband wasn't dead. These are very odd events to be occurring between a husband and a wife. You would usually think that the wife would be in depression she was so sad because of the news that her husband was dead. Also, once she saw him alive you would think that it would be at that point that she was overwhelmingly happy; but her emotions were switched for the events. I guess this shows you how the roles of women played out in Chopin's time. Mrs. Mallard's true identity and feelings are repressed constantly from society's views on her (and other women) to just stay behind the husband and not really have any opinions, roles, or personal thoughts really. It was kind of ridiculous...I guess thinking about it I would have been happy if I was free to and not tied down by an unfair, unequal marriage that I didn't want to be in.
I thought this story was a little unusual mainly because Mrs. Mallard, after finding out her husband was dead, was stricken with grief then she began to feel free and when she saw that he was not dead, she died. I honestly think that she died of a heart attack due to seeing that her husband was still alive. Mrs. Mallard really began to believe that she was free now that her husband had died and it even says that "there was a feverish triumph in her eyes, and she carried herself unwittingly like a goddess of Victory"(20). I guess in the end Mrs. Mallard was finally free.
Mrs. Mallard seemed at first as though this was a terrible tragedy and once in her room we learn that is was a blessing. Her husband's death had given her life. Which suggests that their marriage was ruled by her husband, but perhaps the marriage itself acted as a weight crushing her existence and therefore giving her her heart condition, only to be crushed by it when her husband walks through the door. But in a marriage (as with any relationship) one can no longer deal with personal aspirations; both parties must have a voice in order for cohesion otherwise one is left in the cold or forced to do as the other says. At the sametime however, not all voices can be answered, this time it is uncommon for a woman's voice to be addressed or even heard, but nothing in the story indicated to me that she loathed her husband only the tie that bound her. We do not know whether or not Mr. Mallard was a cruel man, so it would be cruel to assume so. She said herself that she loved her husband, just not the fact she HAD to bend to his will. I think this story was more about the burdens and suppression of marriage, rather than a personal relationship with her husband.
This story was very odd because it does not depict the "normal" events that your everyday couples would experience. The main character Mrs. Mallard, who has a heart condition, discovers that her husband has died in a train accident. Immediately following the news, Mrs. Mallard has a very peculiar re-action. She was stricken with grief for a very short time and then went to her room. After spending a short amount of time staring at the blue sky from a window she mutters "free, free, free!" It seemed as if she was unbound and released from her husbands control and she began to experience a sense of joy. Then at the end of the story her husband re-appears and is alive, which causes Mrs. Mallard to have a heart attack. This story tells us that things are not always what they seem to be. It also shows us just how fast our lives can change in the blink of an eye hence "The Story of An Hour".
Overall, i believe that Mrs. Mallard was in a very unhappy marriage. Perhaps, one that was purely sexual or just to be used as a social standing. Not one of true love. I base that purely off of the fact that she was happy over her husbands death and died after his return. I also find it interesting that when the reader knew that Mr. Mallard was alive, Mrs. Mallard was referred to as "Mrs. Mallard" or "wife" and was actually referred to as herself during the period in which she was happy and free. Overall, i thought this was a very very interesting and good story. I'm sure there are a thousand different ways to interpret her death and feelings towards her husband, but unhappiness in the relationship is what i got out of it.
Kate Chopin obviously disagreed with the relationship between men and women and husbands and wives during her era (1851-1904). I think she probably saw men as being too controlling of their wives and not allowing them to live for themselves. Chopin's character, Mrs. Mallard was so miserable because her husband controlled her life that she found joy in his death and was literally killed by the news that he was alive. I thought that it almost seemed like she found "rebirth" for herself in his death.
I really enjoyed reading this story. I’ve actually read it before but it’s been so long that it was almost like my first time reading it again. The ending for me was completely unexpected. At first, Kate Chopin really makes you believe Mrs. Mallard is sincerely grieving over her husband’s death. She probably does this so readers will be shocked by the ending. I, for one, definitely did not expect it the first time I read the story. I pity Mrs. Mallard because she never got to live the life that she wanted. As the title indicates, her whole life story took place in an hour. For one hour, she was able to be the woman she had always wanted to be but couldn’t because of society’s standards. She was free to do as she pleased without worrying about her husband. When she discovers her husband is alive, this newfound freedom is ripped away from her and it is so devastating that it actually kills her. On the other hand, it is arguable that we shouldn’t pity Mrs. Mallard. That hour was probably the best hour of her life. She was able to be herself and no longer had to pretend to be satisfied with a life that did not suit her. Many people go through their entire lives pretending to be something they’re not. Mrs. Mallard finally got her chance to be happy. Though only for an hour, it probably made her whole life up to that point worthwhile.
After doing some research for my paper, I began to realize how much Chopin hated to be controlled by men. All through her life, men controlled her. I can kind of relate to her. As a survivor of child abuse, it was hard for me to deal with the thought of another man entering my life. My biological father gave me up when I was six. As a six year old, that was hard to grasp that my dad did not want me. As the years went on my ex-step dad adopted me and changed my name to Huffman, but not knowing that the years to come would be insane. After my ex-step dad became abusive and I had to go to court all the time, I began to develop a hate for the control of men. Like Chopin, I could not stand the fact the men try and control women, but unlike Chopin, I have been able to except the fact that not every man is controlling. I can say I am in a happy relationship with my boyfriend, which took me awhile to accept because of the past pain but I am glad that someone can understand me for me.
I have read this story befoe, but i think that it is a great story to read again. To be reminded of how marriages used to take place, because of social standing or based on heritage. This story is a good reminder that we take for granted now that we are allowed to marry for love, and that marriages are becoming more equal in love and understanding between the spouses. This short story needs to be read more than once to catch all of the hidden meanings, but once you have an understanding of how Mrs. Mallard wants to be set free you can grasp how marriage used to be, and how womens choices and rights are often overlooked in marriages of that time. This still occurs in other cultures and i think that we as a americans need to be reminded of the luxuries that we have and the freedom of choice we have when chosing a mate. We need to be thankful of being American, and having a choice.
This was a very good story and I really enjoyed reading it. These sort of off-beat short stories like this and "The Yellow Wallpaper" are my favorite kind of short stories. The progression of the story was very well developed. Mrs. Mallard at first finds her self devastated by the news that her husband has been killed in a train accident. She then proceeds to think about how her husband had treated her. He was kind of oppressive towards her. She then realizes his death mean freedom for her and she happily comes to terms with her loss. At that time someone is at the door and her husband shows up. she then dies on the spot. I think this death is not the result of overwhlelming joy or an earlier mentioned heart condtion. I htink her detah is a result of her realization that her last chance for freedom was killed with her husbands arrival.
Louise is obviously the character of interest-through her we see the social repression that women felt at the time. Louise represents all women of the time. They were locked into marriages that were probably loving-at least Louise says her husband “never looked at her save with love”-but were oppressive in their treatment of women.The language of the story does a good job at conveying the emotions and feelings of the characters. Although Louise represents all women, she is different. Being told of her husband's death, she “did not take the news as many women have.” The choice of many is interesting. It shows that many women accepted (perhaps blindly) the situation of being controlled in their lives by their husbands.
12 comments:
I thought that this story was a very unusual story because all the events seem to proceed in slow motion. Perhaps that is why the story is titled “The Story of An Hour;” the entire story covers a period of only an hour. The title might have more significance, but I’m not entirely sure. I read the story a few times to try to find a hidden meaning, but found just two points that stuck out in my mind. First, I think that Mrs. Mallard’s heart condition symbolizes society’s view of women in Kate Chopin’s era. Many people in that culture probably thought that women couldn’t handle the freedom to make their own decisions and live their own lives. Finally, I think that Mrs. Mallard died because she saw that her husband was still alive, not because of overwhelming joy. The author was trying to say that if women’s hope of equality dies, then women will be worse off than before they had hope of freedom and equality.
I was surprised throughout almost all of this story. Mainly when Mrs. Mallard was actually overwhelmingly happy that her husband was dead, when Mr. Mallard came back and actually wasn't dead, and when Mrs. Mallard had a heartattack when she saw that her husband wasn't dead. These are very odd events to be occurring between a husband and a wife. You would usually think that the wife would be in depression she was so sad because of the news that her husband was dead. Also, once she saw him alive you would think that it would be at that point that she was overwhelmingly happy; but her emotions were switched for the events. I guess this shows you how the roles of women played out in Chopin's time. Mrs. Mallard's true identity and feelings are repressed constantly from society's views on her (and other women) to just stay behind the husband and not really have any opinions, roles, or personal thoughts really. It was kind of ridiculous...I guess thinking about it I would have been happy if I was free to and not tied down by an unfair, unequal marriage that I didn't want to be in.
I thought this story was a little unusual mainly because Mrs. Mallard, after finding out her husband was dead, was stricken with grief then she began to feel free and when she saw that he was not dead, she died. I honestly think that she died of a heart attack due to seeing that her husband was still alive. Mrs. Mallard really began to believe that she was free now that her husband had died and it even says that "there was a feverish triumph in her eyes, and she carried herself unwittingly like a goddess of Victory"(20). I guess in the end Mrs. Mallard was finally free.
Mrs. Mallard seemed at first as though this was a terrible tragedy and once in her room we learn that is was a blessing. Her husband's death had given her life. Which suggests that their marriage was ruled by her husband, but perhaps the marriage itself acted as a weight crushing her existence and therefore giving her her heart condition, only to be crushed by it when her husband walks through the door. But in a marriage (as with any relationship) one can no longer deal with personal aspirations; both parties must have a voice in order for cohesion otherwise one is left in the cold or forced to do as the other says. At the sametime however, not all voices can be answered, this time it is uncommon for a woman's voice to be addressed or even heard, but nothing in the story indicated to me that she loathed her husband only the tie that bound her. We do not know whether or not Mr. Mallard was a cruel man, so it would be cruel to assume so. She said herself that she loved her husband, just not the fact she HAD to bend to his will. I think this story was more about the burdens and suppression of marriage, rather than a personal relationship with her husband.
This story was very odd because it does not depict the "normal" events that your everyday couples would experience. The main character Mrs. Mallard, who has a heart condition, discovers that her husband has died in a train accident. Immediately following the news, Mrs. Mallard has a very peculiar re-action. She was stricken with grief for a very short time and then went to her room. After spending a short amount of time staring at the blue sky from a window she mutters "free, free, free!" It seemed as if she was unbound and released from her husbands control and she began to experience a sense of joy. Then at the end of the story her husband re-appears and is alive, which causes Mrs. Mallard to have a heart attack. This story tells us that things are not always what they seem to be. It also shows us just how fast our lives can change in the blink of an eye hence "The Story of An Hour".
Overall, i believe that Mrs. Mallard was in a very unhappy marriage. Perhaps, one that was purely sexual or just to be used as a social standing. Not one of true love. I base that purely off of the fact that she was happy over her husbands death and died after his return. I also find it interesting that when the reader knew that Mr. Mallard was alive, Mrs. Mallard was referred to as "Mrs. Mallard" or "wife" and was actually referred to as herself during the period in which she was happy and free. Overall, i thought this was a very very interesting and good story. I'm sure there are a thousand different ways to interpret her death and feelings towards her husband, but unhappiness in the relationship is what i got out of it.
Kate Chopin obviously disagreed with the relationship between men and women and husbands and wives during her era (1851-1904). I think she probably saw men as being too controlling of their wives and not allowing them to live for themselves. Chopin's character, Mrs. Mallard was so miserable because her husband controlled her life that she found joy in his death and was literally killed by the news that he was alive. I thought that it almost seemed like she found "rebirth" for herself in his death.
I really enjoyed reading this story. I’ve actually read it before but it’s been so long that it was almost like my first time reading it again. The ending for me was completely unexpected. At first, Kate Chopin really makes you believe Mrs. Mallard is sincerely grieving over her husband’s death. She probably does this so readers will be shocked by the ending. I, for one, definitely did not expect it the first time I read the story. I pity Mrs. Mallard because she never got to live the life that she wanted. As the title indicates, her whole life story took place in an hour. For one hour, she was able to be the woman she had always wanted to be but couldn’t because of society’s standards. She was free to do as she pleased without worrying about her husband. When she discovers her husband is alive, this newfound freedom is ripped away from her and it is so devastating that it actually kills her. On the other hand, it is arguable that we shouldn’t pity Mrs. Mallard. That hour was probably the best hour of her life. She was able to be herself and no longer had to pretend to be satisfied with a life that did not suit her. Many people go through their entire lives pretending to be something they’re not. Mrs. Mallard finally got her chance to be happy. Though only for an hour, it probably made her whole life up to that point worthwhile.
After doing some research for my paper, I began to realize how much Chopin hated to be controlled by men. All through her life, men controlled her. I can kind of relate to her. As a survivor of child abuse, it was hard for me to deal with the thought of another man entering my life. My biological father gave me up when I was six. As a six year old, that was hard to grasp that my dad did not want me. As the years went on my ex-step dad adopted me and changed my name to Huffman, but not knowing that the years to come would be insane. After my ex-step dad became abusive and I had to go to court all the time, I began to develop a hate for the control of men. Like Chopin, I could not stand the fact the men try and control women, but unlike Chopin, I have been able to except the fact that not every man is controlling. I can say I am in a happy relationship with my boyfriend, which took me awhile to accept because of the past pain but I am glad that someone can understand me for me.
I have read this story befoe, but i think that it is a great story to read again. To be reminded of how marriages used to take place, because of social standing or based on heritage. This story is a good reminder that we take for granted now that we are allowed to marry for love, and that marriages are becoming more equal in love and understanding between the spouses. This short story needs to be read more than once to catch all of the hidden meanings, but once you have an understanding of how Mrs. Mallard wants to be set free you can grasp how marriage used to be, and how womens choices and rights are often overlooked in marriages of that time. This still occurs in other cultures and i think that we as a americans need to be reminded of the luxuries that we have and the freedom of choice we have when chosing a mate. We need to be thankful of being American, and having a choice.
This was a very good story and I really enjoyed reading it. These sort of off-beat short stories like this and "The Yellow Wallpaper" are my favorite kind of short stories. The progression of the story was very well developed. Mrs. Mallard at first finds her self devastated by the news that her husband has been killed in a train accident. She then proceeds to think about how her husband had treated her. He was kind of oppressive towards her. She then realizes his death mean freedom for her and she happily comes to terms with her loss. At that time someone is at the door and her husband shows up. she then dies on the spot.
I think this death is not the result of overwhlelming joy or an earlier mentioned heart condtion. I htink her detah is a result of her realization that her last chance for freedom was killed with her husbands arrival.
Louise is obviously the character of interest-through her we see the social repression that women felt at the time. Louise represents all women of the time. They were locked into marriages that were probably loving-at least Louise says her husband “never looked at her save with love”-but were oppressive in their treatment of women.The language of the story does a good job at conveying the emotions and feelings of the characters. Although Louise represents all women, she is different. Being told of her husband's death, she “did not take the news as many women have.” The choice of many is interesting. It shows that many women accepted (perhaps blindly) the situation of being controlled in their lives by their husbands.
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