Background

"The Story of an Hour" is a short story written by Kate Chopin

Kate Chopin

Kate Chopin, born Katherine O'Flaherty , was an American author of short stories and novels. She is now considered by some to have been a forerunner of feminist authors of the 20th century....

 on April 19, 1894, and published in Vogue on December 6, 1894. Initially, it was written and first published, under the title "The Dream of an Hour." Then later reprinted in St. Louis Life on January 5, 1895.
The title of the short story only refers to the time elapsed that the story is told. (the story take place within an hour).
"The Story of an Hour" was considered a scandalized story during the 1890s because it dealt with a female protagonist who is somewhat elated by the news of her husband's death. As a result of this, Kate Chopin had to disguise reality. She had to have her heroine die. A story in which an unhappy wife is suddenly widowed, becomes rich, and lives happily ever after . . . would have been much too radical, far too threatening in the 1890s. There were limits to what editors would publish, and what audiences would accept."

Summary

The story describes the series of emotions Louise Mallard endures after hearing of the death of her husband, who was believed to have died in a railroad disaster. Mrs. Mallard suffers from heart problems and therefore her sister attempts to inform her of the horrific news in a gentle way. Mrs. Mallard locks herself in her room to immediately mourn the loss of her husband. However, she begins to feel an unexpected sense of exhilaration. "Free! Body and soul free!" is what she believes is a benefit of his death. At the end of the story, it is made known that her husband was not involved in the railroad disaster and upon his return home Mrs. Mallard suddenly dies. The cause of her death is ambiguous and left for analysis as it can range from her known heart problems to psychological factors. We can ask ourselves if the real reason for the death was knowing that she wouldn't be free after she sees that her husband isn't really dead.

Characters

• Mrs. Mallard (Louise), the protagonist
  Protagonist
  A protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
  
  
• Mr. Mallard (Brently Mallard), her husband
• Josephine, Mrs. Mallard's sister
• Richards, Mr. Mallard's friend

Emotional repression

In her article, "Emotions in 'The Story of An Hour,'" Jamil argues that Chopin portrays Mrs. Mallard’s perception of her husband’s supposed death as fostered by emotions, rather than by rationality. Jamil claims that up until that point, Mrs. Mallard’s life had been devoid of emotion to such an extent that she has even wondered if it is worth living. The repression of emotion may represent Mrs. Mallard’s repressive husband, who had, up until that point, “smothered” and “silenced” her will. Therefore, her newfound freedom is brought on by an influx of emotion (representing the death of the figure of the repressive husband) that adds meaning and value to her life. For, though Mrs. Mallard initially feels fear when she hears of her husband’s death, the strength of the emotion is so powerful that Mrs. Mallard actually feels joy (because she is feeling). Since, this "joy that kills," ultimately leads to Mrs. Mallard's death, so that one way of interpreting this is that the repression of Mrs. Mallard's feelings is what killed her in the end.

In the same article, Jamil shows that the repression that Mrs. Mallard faces as a wife. She realizes how after her husbands apparent death that she was "free, free, free". This shows how her life would change and she is now a new person and removed from the repressed life she faced before. No evidence is given in the story about how she is repressed, but her reaction of his death and her new found confidence and freedom is enough. This repression of herself that she dealt with she was now removed from and would be able to be free.

Responses

Bert Bender offers a biographical reading of the text and argues that Chopin's writing of the 1890s was influenced by Darwin

Charles Darwin

Charles Robert Darwin FRS was an English naturalist. He established that all species of life have descended over time from common ancestry, and proposed the scientific theory that this branching pattern of evolution resulted from a process that he called natural selection.He published his theory...

's theory of sexual selection

Sexual selection

Sexual selection, a concept introduced by Charles Darwin in his 1859 book On the Origin of Species, is a significant element of his theory of natural selection...

. Her understanding of the meaning of love and courtship, in particular, was altered and became more pessimistic. This attitude finds its expression in The Story of an Hour when Mrs. Mallard questions the meaning of love and ultimately rejects it as meaningless.

Lawrence I. Berkove notes that there has been "virtual critical agreement" that the story is about female liberation from a repressive marriage. However, he contests this reading and argues that there is a "deeper level of irony in the story". The story, according to Berkove, depicts Mrs. Mallard as an "immature egotist" and a "victim of her own extreme self-assertion". He also challenges the notion that Chopin intended for the views of the story's main character to coincide with those of the author. Xuding Wang has criticized Berkove's interpretation.

Analysis

Mrs. Mallard's character had no emotion until she heard that her husband had died; in fact, her "heart trouble" is more than physical issue, but rather more of an emotional concern. Similarly, by using her 5 senses, Louise familiarizes with how nature smells, sounds, etc. As well, her emotions create a harmony between her senses (body) and her own self (soul). The season of spring is a time of rebirth, where plants grow and develop; Louise is reborn, has a new energy and perspectives on life. Louise envisions herself as a free woman now that her husband has tragically died. She can now live for herself and nobody else. In the end, the build up of emotion creates an overexcitement for Louise, which takes a toll on her heart condition. Because Mrs. Mallard was able to branch out of her comfort zone and physically and emotionally experience the world, she has finally discovered who she is.

Film adaptation

In 1984

1984 in film

-Events:* The Walt Disney Company founds Touchstone Pictures to release movies with subject matter deemed inappropriate for the Disney name.* Tri-Star Pictures, a joint venture of Columbia Pictures, HBO, and CBS, releases its first film....

, "The Story of an Hour" was adapted to film, under the title The Joy That Kills

The Joy That Kills

The Joy that Kills is a 1984 film adaptation of Kate Chopin's short story "The Story of an Hour." It was directed by Tina Rathbone and co-written by Rathbone and Nancy Dyer. It was released in 1984 as part of the PBS series American Playhouse....

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