Kate Chopin The Story of an Hour Critical Analysis Essay

Brandon Dabon Professor Mario Garcia English M01A 11 October 2012 Self-Identity, Freedom, and Death in Kate Chopin’s â€Å"The Story of an Hour† The story of an hour by Kate Chopin introduces us to Mrs. Mallard as she reacts to her husband’s death. In this short story, Chopin portrays the complexity of Mrs. Mallard’s emotions as she is saddened yet joyful of her loss. Kate Chopin’s â€Å"The Story of an Hour† argues that an individual discover their self-identity only after being freed from confinement. The story also argues that freedom is a very powerful force that affects mental or emotional state of a person. The story finally argues that only through death can one be finally freed. Kate Chopin’s â€Å"The Story of an Hour† argues†¦show more content†¦Based on the insights on Mrs. Mallard’s discovery of her self-identity, we can conclude that people who have been confined for too long are robbed of their self-hood. The restraining of one’s self-hood can be defined by whomever or whatever is binding their will. It is also evident that one can only achieve their true self when they are released from confinement. Kate Chopin’s â€Å"The Story of an Hour† also argues that freedom is a very powerful force that affects the mental or emotional state of a person. The mental and emotional state Mrs. Mallard had experienced had been a peculiar one. The sense of freedom came to her as an unfamiliar feeling that perhaps she had long forgotten as she was deprived of it for a long time. The strangeness of what she was feeling made her think that there was â€Å"something coming to her [†¦] creeping out of the sky, reaching toward her† (Chopin 281) implying a confused mental state. This unfamiliar feeling of joy she is experiencing could be only one thing, the ecstasy of being free. It had been playing with her mind. The overpowering thoughts of freedom are so peculiar to her that she doesn’t recognize it and she doesn’ t know how to emotionally react to it. Through this unfamiliarity her mental state went rampant with fear thinking that it is a force of horror that was out to harm her. After a moment of resenting this feeling, Mrs. Mallard finally abandons her fight to â€Å"beat it back† (ChopinShow MoreRelatedAn Examination Of How Kate Chopin s Work1298 Words   |  6 PagesENGL 1102 – Comp/Lit Essay 2 (Mulry) Sellers, James R – 920022413 Due Date: April 20, 2015 An Examination of How Kate Chopin’s Works Taken Together Contribute to our Understanding of Her Time and the Place of Women in Society Looking at themes present in his short stories and novels, Kate Chopin presents examples of female strength and an assertive rebellion to the social norms during the late 1800s. By seeking to transparently and boldly portray the risquà © behavior of her lead characters, whichRead MoreA Comparison of Feminist Writings614 Words   |  2 PagesNora Helmer in Henrik Ibsens â€Å"A Dolls House† And Mrs. Mallard in Kate Chopins â€Å"The Story of an Hour† find themselves facing very different dilemmas, yet both women faced their respective challenge in a way that went against the social norm for women in their time period, this was done by these pioneering writers to show the oppression faced by women who were trapped in their marriages during their respective time periods. Nora and Louise are both faced with problems in their lives and both womenRead MoreFemale Empowerment in Kate Chopins The Awakening7915 Words   |  32 PagesHeinrich-Heine-Università ¤t Wintersemester 2010/11 Vertiefungsmodul Kurs: American Realism and Naturalism - Short Stories Seminarleiter: Georg Schiller Datum der Abgabe: 16.04.2011 Female Empowerment in Kate Chopin’s â€Å"The Awakening† Anjana Dhir BA Englisch KF, Geschichte NF 3. Semester Table of Contents 1. Introduction 3 2. The French