Introduction
Stories are made to possess a message that their authors intend to portray through various literary elements. “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin explores the topic of coping with a tragedy from the point of view of a widow.
Point of View
Mrs. Mallard receives news of her husband’s death, albeit false, and passes through grief quickly, comprehending her newfound freedom, which also makes her already weak heart stop (Chopin 569-570). The depiction of Mrs. Mallard’s emotions and her contemplation of new choices in life highlight the author’s point of view regarding one’s opportunities and circumstances that are not under their control entirely.
Character
Mrs. Mallard is the main character of this story, and her experiences and emotions after the loss of her husband portray one’s journey through the stages of grief that heal a person’s mind. Instead of focusing on her dire situation, Mrs. Mallard realizes that there are new possibilities in life that await her. Chopin states that Mallard “saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely” (570).
The primary character’s name suggests her role in society and in her relationships. Mrs. Mallard is free from the cage that loomed over her for the past years, making her miserable and contemplating the disadvantages of one’s longevity, yet she is frail, which leads to her untimely death (Chopin 570).
This literary element indicates the author’s intentions to create a dissonant picture that makes one trapped in their circumstances, yet a person’s complete freedom is detrimental due to the unpreparedness for upcoming opportunities. The death of Mrs. Mallard is the real tragedy of this story, which makes readers question the nature of society.
Critique of Characters
Aside from Chopin claiming that characters are essential to understand the meaning of the work, other critics view the characters through the prism of issues of feminism or other issues. For instance, according to Abdullah Alajlan and Aljohani (123), the character Louise Mallard “undergoes an essential journey of self-realization, which leads them to finally freeing themselves from patriarchal authority and oppression.” As a result, female characters are vital for readers to understand the voice and perspectives of women. As Cunningham (48) says, the work and its characters “portray the position of women in late nineteenth-century American society.” Ultimately, the protagonist created a response to being repressed and resisted it.
Critics support the idea that the author was successful in capturing the actual qualities of female characters since they were able to express their own thoughts and feelings (Abdullah Alajlan and Aljohani 123). Similarly to this perspective, de Deus Rocha (59) supports the argument that female characters are central to the story since they aid in “unveiling the female act of resistance on 19th century.”
Additionally, Berkove (152) points out that story’s “heroine dies, ironically and tragically, just as she has been freed from a constricting marriage and has realized self-assertion as the deepest element of her being.” Thus, while appearing fragile, the main heroine was capable of having the peace for which she yearned. Not wanting to be reunited with her husband, Louise found a way to be still separated from him.
Setting
The setting is critical for making the author’s point of view as well. Chopin explains that “men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature” (570). Through this line, the author presents the reason behind the double-sided response by Mrs. Mallard to the death of her husband. The widow’s newfound freedom from social bonds creates a unique situation, which enables her to comprehend her possibilities in life.
However, such liberty against deeply-seated traditions in relationships overwhelms Mrs. Mallard, and she dies from a heart attack (Chopin 570). This tragic turn of events pinpoints the fact that the setting does not tolerate such deviations. The fact that Mr. Mallard is alive contributes an additional layer of duality to the author’s intention to highlight how opportunities in one’s life can quickly appear and vanish (Chopin 570). Chopin skillfully changes the direction of the story to make her point through the setting as a literary element.
Critique of Setting
The belief that the setting plays an immense role in Chopin’s story and is emphasized to show the inner struggle of the heroine is supported by other critics as well. According to Kadafi (144), lamentation may be viewed as a mental and physiological mirror of the self and permeates two settings, before and after the husband’s appearance. Such stages represent the heroine’s inner upheaval and her search for conflict-resolution tactics.
Khadafi (143) believes that Chopin’s intentional use of duality in the setting was used to emphasize the fragility of the woman. Emmert supports these opinions and states the meaning of the setting is to make it seem natural. The author claims that the goal of the writer is to “not only place the reader within a particular setting but also within a perception of that setting” (Emmert 3). Therefore, the setting is among the essential elements of the work.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the author of “The Story of an Hour” focuses on the main character and her experiences to convey the idea behind her writing, while the setting adds context to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional response. Chopin’s masterful use of literary elements creates a scene that fills readers with confusion and urges them to contemplate the true meaning of freedom and social relationships.
This short story utilizes its setting and characters to portray the emotions and the reasoning behind Mrs. Mallard’s overjoyed state. Chopin switches between grief and joy in order to show the dualistic nature of humanity, which can make opportunities as much as they can take them back.
Works Cited
Abdullah Alajlan, Lama, and Faiza Aljohani. “The Awakening of Female Consciousness in Kate Chopin’s The Story of an Hour (1894) and Charlotte Perkins Gilman’s The Yellow Wallpaper (1892).” Arab World English Journal for Translation & Literary Studies, vol. 3, no. 3, 2019, pp.123-139. Web.
Berkove, Lawrence I. “Fatal Self-Assertion in Kate Chopin’s” The Story of an Hour”.” American Literary Realism, vol. 32, no. 2, 2000, pp. 152-158. Web.
Chopin, Kate. “The Story of an Hour.” The Norton Introduction to Literature, edited by Kelly J. Mays, 13th ed., W. W. Norton, 2018, pp. 568–571.
Cunningham, Mark. “The Autonomous Female Self and the Death of Louise Mallard in Kate Chopin’s” Story of an Hour”.” English Language Notes, vol. 42, no. 1, 2004, pp. 48-55. Web.
de Deus Rocha, Vanessa. “A Comparative Study Between The Female Characters In The Storm And The Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin.” Revista de Crítica Cultural, vol. 6, no. 1, 2018, pp. 59-73. Web.
Emmert, Scott D. “Naturalism and the Short Story Form: Kate Chopin’s The Story of an Hour.” In Scribbling Women and the Short Story Form: Approaches by American and British Women Writers, 2008, pp. 74-85.
Khadafi, Bima Iqbal. “Feminist and Pessimist Existentialism in Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour”: A Systemic Functional Grammar Analysis.” Journal of English Language Studies, vol. 6, no. 2, 2021, pp.138-157. Web.