Womens Repression in The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin...

Kate Chopins The Story of an Hour is a great story that conveys an important message about life and how difficult it can be for women, particularly in previous centuries. Back in the late 1800s and early 1900s, when this story was written, women were quite often mistreated and had to live restricted lives that lacked opportunity. Generally, women weren?t liberated during the 19th century. Traditionally, women did all the hard work in the house and had no opportunities to make their own living or pursue their own personal dreams. Kate Chopin does an outstanding job of portraying a woman living in these times. The Story of an Hour is a good depiction of the unspoken repression that women faced in the past. Kate Chopins major theme of the†¦show more content†¦(654) It is quite apparent that Mrs. Mallard was struggling to fight back certain feelings about her husband?s supposed death. Although she is at first sad, she slowly begins to realize that the death of her husband can me an a number of great things for her. As the story progresses Mrs. Mallard eventually solves her internal conflict by accepting her husband?s death as a gift. Chopin also uses foreshadowing as a tool to describe to the reader what ?The Story of an Hour? truly represents. The most vivid example of foreshadowing is at the beginning of the story, where Chopin wrote, ?Knowing that Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with heart trouble, great care was taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband?s death?(653). The reader is given a large clue that Mrs. Mallard has heart trouble which is a slight foreshadowing of her impending death at the end of the story. Chopin uses hints throughout the story that foreshadow upcoming events, but each hint is deceptive and often hard to comprehend at first sight, adding a bit of mystery to the story. The symbols in ?The Story of an Hour? are very important to the overall theme of the story itself. Chopin uses symbols such as freedom repetit ively to emphasize the theme of repression. When Chopin wrote, ?Free, free, free? it was an indication that up until that certain point, Mrs. Mallard had not been free (654). She hadShow MoreRelatedFemale Repression of the 19th Century as Seen Thru the Two Stories: the Necklace and the Story of an Hour652 Words   |  3 Pageswhen literary writers started to expose this female repression. Guy de Maupassant and Kate Chopin clearly express definitive examples of female repression in their stories, The Necklace and The Story of an Hour. During this time period, women’s role in society was that of a submissive, powerless position. They often relied solely on their husband for direction, allowing the husband to make decisions and take lead no matter what. 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