The Story of an Hour
The story of an hour is a narrative whose author is an American known as Kate Chopin and was published on 6th Dec 1894 by Vogue. The story revolves around the reaction of the main character Louise Mallard after receiving the information that her husband was dead. In the story, the author portrays independence and freedom as the things that make life worth living. The news of Brently Mallard's passing away was not distressful to his wife but rather the beginning of her freedom and the realization of a long-awaited moment of self-determination.
Louise's Initial Reaction
Richard and Josephine are afraid at the time of breaking the news to Louise because of her weak heart. However, when she finally gets the news, she is not troubled much. Although Louise does not think about the freedom that will come as a result of the absence of her husband, this knowledge finally gets to her while looking through the open window in her bedroom. Through this window, she sees Open Square and trees all excited with the coming of the "new spring life." She is feeling a tasty "breath of rain in the air and the twittering of the sparrows" (Chopin). All these are symbolizing the freedom that Louise is about to achieve.
The New Gift of Freedom
At first, Louise is upset after learning of the news of her husband's death; however, over the hour of mourning she discovers the new gift of freedom before her as a single woman. She feels at peace because with her husband gone she is going to enjoy the remaining part of her life the way she will want. The author uses the story to show the readers that freedom is not only important to women but also to men. "There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself. There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature." (Chopin). Louise believes that interaction between women and men in marriage results in the stealing of freedom from one another.
The Perpetuation of Resistance to Women's Empowerment
The story points out how the society perpetuates the resistance to the empowerment of women and how this leads to difficulty in achieving general human independence and freedom. The perception of freedom comes when Louise is alone in her bedroom suggesting that the social connections and interactions in one's life hamper autonomy and freedom. The dream of Louise ever achieving total independence ended immediately she came out of solitude in her bedroom.
The Use of Place and Time
Chopin uses place and time setting to convey the theme of freedom. In the story, the time setting is used to show the inner desires of Louise and her restrictions. There is a conflict between the reality and Louise's wishes as we can see the events took place during the onset of winter which represents hope and in the 1890s a period when women were subjected to strict restrictions by the society, the two settings contradict each other. Similarly, the story is set in Louise's house, and Chopin focuses more on the closed bedroom where Louise has trapped herself. The bedroom is the only part of the world where she feels a sense of belonging and away from people's restrictions because "she would have no one follow her" (Chopin). While in the bedroom behind the closed door she experiences the true feeling of freedom and this is evident when she whispers "free, free, free..." (Chopin).
The Use of Symbolism
Chopin also used symbolism to bring out the theme of freedom. The closed door of the bedroom keeps Louise away from the outside world, the society's restrictions against women as well as from Richard and Josephine giving her freedom. Louise discovers her true feelings through "the open window, a comfortable, roomy armchair" (Chopin). The author uses twittering sparrows and blue sky to symbolize happiness and hope that is bound to come along with the freedom that is ahead of her. The death of her husband is hurting, but the pain ends as soon as she realizes that it was an opportunity to the achievement of her inner desires of a new life where she will be independent with no one to live for in the future. At the end of the story, Louise succumbs to death due to "joy that kills," (Chopin). However, this is an irony because she dies not as a result of joy but because to the shock that she is going to lose her newfound freedom due to the re-appearance of Mr. Mallard and this would mean there is nothing more for her to live for in her life.
Work cited
Chopin, K. The Story of an Hour. Vogue 1894. https://archive.vcu.edu/english/engweb/webtexts/hour/. Accessed July 13, 2018
