Kate Chopin's The Story Of An Hour

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Throughout the late 19th century women questioned the oppressive and stifling patriarchal society of the time and demanded augmented rights and freedom. In “The Story of an Hour” Kate Chopin contemplates the existence and effects of societal biases towards women and the harmful attributes of marriage as an institution. In particular, Chopin employs the downstairs of the home in the beginning of the story to characterize society's notion of women as weak and at the end of the story to assert the effects of negative societal preconceptions towards women. However, when Mrs. Mallard goes upstairs, she accepts her independence and realizes the oppressive nature of marriage. Throughout “The Story of An Hour” Chopin claims that society as a whole…show more content…
Mallard's reflection on the institution of marriage after she finally accepts and welcomes her freedom. After realizing that she was “free,” Mrs. Mallard states that after the processional “there would be no one to live for her” and “there would be no powerful will bending hers” (Chopin 244). Having accepted her independence from her husband, she claims that her life with her husband did not belong solely to her and her husband's will suppressed her individual freedom. It is important to note that Mrs. Mallard knows that “she had loved him” and he “never looked save with love upon her” (Chopin 244). This shows that even though she cherished her husband and he never wronged her, the marriage itself required her to give up her independence and become subject to the will of another, which in turn oppressed her and resulted in her desire for freedom. Therefore, Chopin, through Mrs. Mallard's marriage, claims that women are forced to give up their independence in any marriage, in turn postulating that marriage is constricting in its nature. Furthermore, after reflecting upon her new sovereignty from the confinements of marriage, Mrs. Mallard asserts the oppressiveness of marriage. For instance, the narrator states that before her husband’s death “she had thought with a shudder that life might be long” but now “breathed a quick prayer that life might be long” (Chopin 244). Mrs. Mallard is…show more content…
Chopin purposely utilizes the downstairs section of the novel in the beginning to claim that society assumes women are weak and unable to be independent, as shown by Richards and Josephine’s careful declaration of Brently’s death to Mrs. Mallard. In addition, the upstairs section of the story demonstrates Mrs. Mallard’s independence and states that marriage is oppressive and confining even though it may be based on love. Moreover, the final scene in which Mrs. Mallard passes away shows an extreme effect of marriage and societal views towards women, the death of a person, in order to demonstrate their harmful effects on women. While the story’s messages may seem common with respect to modern rights for women, it is imperative to note that this story was at the forefront of its time and its messages played a pivotal role in the development of equal rights for women in the United
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