ELELE1

STYLISTICS AND DISCOURSE ANALYSIS

Submitted by:

Singco, Vanessa Mae B.

Submitted to:

Leonisa C. Del Rosario

 The Story of an Hour
Literary Analysis

Consider a world wherein women are striving for unprecedented rights, the economic
climate is volatile, and significant technological advancements are created every year. While this
world sounds contemporary, it also describes America in the 1890s.

It was in this world that author Kate Chopin did write and ended up living, and many of
the issues of the time are reflected in her short story, "The Story of an Hour," which has
remained one of Kate Chopin's best known masterpiece for over a century and continues to shed
light on the inner battle of women who rejected autonomy.

In this literary analysis for Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour,” we’ll discuss:

 A brief history of Kate Chopin;

 “The Story of an Hour” summary; and
 The Analysis of the key story elements in “The Story of an Hour,” including themes,
characters, setting, plot, point of view, figurative language, imagery, tone and symbolism.

The History of Kate Chopin and the 1890s

A Short Biography of Kate Chopin
 Kate Chopin (originally Kate O'Flaherty) was born into a wealthy Catholic family in St.
Louis, Missouri, in 1850. In 1855, Chopin's father, Thomas, was killed in a tragic and unforeseen
railroad accident. Kate would be haunted by the events of this catastrophe for the rest of her life,
eventually generating "The Story of an Hour" nearly four decades later.

Chopin was well-educated throughout her childhood, reading eagerly and learning
French. Chopin was also well aware of the socioeconomic chasm that existed at the time between
the strong and the oppressed. She grew up in America. As a result of the Civil War, she gained
firsthand knowledge of brutality and servitude in the United States. Chopin had also been
introduced to non-traditional female roles as a result of her family situation. After their spouses
died, her mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother decided to stay widows (rather than
remarry). As a response, Chopin understood the value of women's freedom, that would influence
most of her subsequent writing.

As she got older, society in St. Louis recognized Chopin for her attractiveness and
congeniality. At the age of nineteen, she married Oscar Chopin, who hailed from a rich cotton-
growing family. The couple migrated to New Orleans, wherein they opened a shopping center
and raised a big family. Over the next nine years, Chopin did give birth to seven children.

Oscar loves his wife, but he was incapable of operating a business. Financial difficulties
caused the family to relocate to rural Louisiana. However, Oscar died of swamp fever in 1882,
left Chopin massively in debt and in charge of the family's faltering companies. Chopin agreed to
her mother's request to return to St. Louis with her children after trying to manage the business
for a year. Chopin's mother died later year. Kate started writing to assist her family in order to
sustain herself and her children. Chopin, fortunately, achieved rapid fame as a writer. Many of
her short tales and novels, including her best-known work, The Awakening, were set in
Louisiana. She was also recognized as a quick and prolific writer, having authored over 100
stories, articles, and essays before the end of the twentieth century.

Unfortunately, Chopin died in 1904 at the age of 54 from a presumed brain hemorrhage.
Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour" and other works, on the other hand, have remained
popular. Her work remains endured, and she is now regarded as among the most influential
American writers of the nineteenth century.
 “The Story of an Hour” Summary
Kate Chopin (1894)

Mrs. Louise Mallard is at home when her sister, Josephine, and her husband’s friend,
Richards, come to tell her that her husband, Brently Mallard, has been killed in a railroad
accident. Richards had been at the newspaper office when the news broke, and he takes
Josephine with him to break the news to Louise since they’re afraid of aggravating her heart
condition. Upon hearing the news of her husband’s death, Louise is grief-stricken, locks herself
in her room, and weeps.
 From here, the story shifts in tone. As Louise processes the news of her husband’s death,
she realizes something wonderful and terrible at the same time: she is free. At first she’s scared
to admit it, but Louise quickly finds peace and joy in her admission. She realizes that, although
she will be sad about her husband (“she had loved him—sometimes,” Chopin writes), Louise is
excited for the opportunity to live for herself. She keeps repeating the word “free” as she comes
to terms with what her husband’s death means for her life. 

In the meantime, Josephine sits at Louise’s door, coaxing her to come out because she is
worried about Louise’s heart condition. After praying that her life is long-lived, Louise agrees to
come out. However, as she comes downstairs, the front door opens to reveal her husband, who
had not been killed by the accident at all. Although Richards tries to keep Louise’s heart from
shock by shielding her husband from view, Louise dies suddenly, which the doctors later
attribute to “heart disease—of the joy that kills.”

The Story of An Hour

Key Story Elements

There are several conflicting forces in this brief novella. The story's concepts, characters,
setting, plot, point of view, figurative language, style and even symbols are frequently equal but
diametrically opposed. Analysis of all of these aspects in "The Story of an Hour" reveals a
deeper meaning.

Theme:

A theme is a message that is explored in a work of writing. Most stories contain several
themes, and "The Work of an Hour" is no exception. Despite its brief length, Chopin's story
explores the themes of marriage, freedom, and repression.
  Marriage:

Marriage as a motif in "The Story of an Hour" is much more than a romantic relationship with a
significant person. The Mallards' marriage depicts a reality of 1890s life that many people were
acquainted with. Marriage served as a social control mechanism, keeping women in check while
securing men's social and political dominance. While husbands were normally free to travel the
world, work, and make crucial family decisions on their own, wives (at least those of the wealthy
elite) were supposed to stay at home and be domesticated.

Marriage has little passion in Louise Mallard's instance. She seems to see her marriage as a life-
long bond in which she lacks confidence, as evidenced by her admission that she adored her
husband only "more often than not." More specifically, she defines her marriage as a "dominant
will trying to bend hers in that blind perseverance with which men and women feel they're
entitled to enforce a personal will upon a fellow-creature."

The weddings Kate observed, like the story, frequently concluded in an earlier or unfortunate
death. Her family's women, including Kate, all outlasted their husbands and did not remarry.
While history suggests Kate Chopin was content with her marriage, she was mindful that many
women were not. By depicting a marriage founded on control and current societal expectations,
Chopin's "The Story of an Hour" underlines the need for a culture that valued women as
important companions in marriage as well as capable people.

 Freedom and Repression:

The conflict between freedom and "repression" is the most prominent theme in Chopin's
narrative. Repression occurs when a person's thoughts, feelings, or desires are restrained. Internal
and external repression can occur. Women in the nineteenth century were frequently victims of
repression. They were expected to be demure, soft, and passive, which frequently contradicted
women's natural aspirations.

Given this, Louise Mallard is clearly a victim of social repression. She doesn't really feel free
until her husband's claimed death. Louise is restrained in their marriage. This is evident in the
fact that Brently is out and about, but Louise is restricted to her home. Brently travels by train on
his own, enters his residence on his own, and has his own belongings in the shape of a briefcase
and an umbrella. When Brently returns home, he will be free of the train disaster. Louise, on the
other hand, is confined to her home due to her gender and her heart ailment.

In this piece, Chopin contrasts what it means to be free for men and women. While independence
is an important component of what it means to be a man in America, it looks very different for
women. Louise's life is affected by society's expectations of what a woman should be and how a
wife should act. However, once Louise's husband "dies," she sees an opportunity for her to begin
taking some of the more "male" liberties for herself. In this way, Chopin demonstrates how vital
independence is in a woman's life when, in the end, it is not the shock of her husband's return
that kills Louise, but the idea of losing her freedom again.

Characters:

The best stories have developed characters, which is the case in “The Story of an Hour,” too.
Five characters make up the cast of “The Story of an Hour”:

1. Louise Mallard:

She is the protagonist of the story and the only dynamic character that appears in the whole
plot. She falls into a state of pure sadness after she hears the news of her husband’s death, but
then, after a moment of reflection, she realizes that a new, free and independent life has just
started for her, and that’s when the shift in her emotions begins in the story, therefore
becoming a round character.

2. Brently Mallard:
He is one of the three flat characters that appear in the story. He is Louise’s husband, and
he is presumed to have passed away in the story, as he was involved in a "railroad
disaster" and with his name "leading the list of killed"

3. Josephine Mallard:

She’s the second flat character that appears in the story, and she plays the role of Louise’s
sister. She is the first person who tells her of her husband’s presumed death. At first, she
tries to calm Louise down after the latter tries to cope with the devastating (later graceful)
news, but then starts to become more worried when she gets inside her room and starts
screaming "free, free, free!"

4. Richards:

He is described as Brently Mallard’s friend in the story and is also the last flat character
that appears in the plot. The only actions he performs in the whole plot are: to tell
Josephine of Brently Mallard’s death; and to be the first person who sees Brently Mallard
enter the house after her wife’s outbreak.

5. The Doctors:

Though the mention of them is brief, the final sentence of the story is striking. Chopin writes,
“When the doctors come, they said she had died of heart disease—of the joy that kills.” Just
as she had no freedom in life, her liberation from the death of her husband is told as a joy that
killed her.

In life as in death, the truth of Louise Mallard is never known. Everything the readers
know about her delight in her newfound freedom happens in Louise’s own mind; she never
gets the chance to share her secret joy with anyone else.
Settings:

The story may take place in a small mansion in England, probably at the time in which
Chopin published the manuscript, around the year 1894.

Plot:

The story begins when Ms. Mallard learns of her husband's death through her sister
Josephine. Louise Mallard immediately feels absolutely crushed by the news, but then her
feelings transition from terrible hopelessness to tremendous hopefulness. Chopin died of
a heart attack caused by "joy that kills" (Chopin, 1894), a few seconds after her husband
got home with his bag, unaware of the deadly accident in the first place.

Exposition:

 In Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour," we meet Mr. Mallard, Mrs. Mallard, her sister
Josephine, and Mr. Mallard's friend, Richard. Mrs. Mallard has a heart issue, so everyone
around her treats her carefully. Josephine had arrived with the tragic news. Mrs. Mallard
is comforted by Josephine, who is anxious that the strain will be too much for her fragile
heart.

Rising Action:

 Josephine informs Mrs. Mallard about her husband's death. She sobbed hysterically,
wrapped in her sister's arms. She shut herself up in her chamber as her tears dried. Mrs.
Mallard sat at her window, gazing out into the world. "The exquisite air of rain, the
sounds of a distant song, numerous birds twittering, patches of blue sky showing here and
there," she remarked.
Climax:

 Mrs. Mallard arrives, and Josephine coaxes her sister out of her chamber. Mrs. Mallard's
sister is concerned about her health, but what she is feeling is the aftereffects of drinking
an "elixir of life." She opened the door to her sister, still contemplating her future
existence without her hubby. As they ascended the steps, Mrs. Mallard carried herself as
a "victory goddess." Mr. Mallard, uninjured by the horrible event, comes to the door as
Josephine walks down.

Falling Action:

 Josephine informs Mrs. Mallard about her husband's death. She sobbed hysterically,
wrapped in her sister's arms. She shut herself up in her chamber as her tears dried. Mrs.
Mallard sat at her window, gazing out into the world. "The exquisite air of rain, the
sounds of a distant song, numerous birds twittering, patches of blue sky showing here and
there," she remarked.

Resolution:

 Mrs. Mallard collapsed, dead. The doctor said that she died from a heart disease called
"joy that kills". He thought she was too overjoyed to see her husband that she died. In
reality, she realizes she was never free and that killed her.

Point of View:

 "The Story of an Hour" is told in the third person by a narrator. This speaker is a
"narrative non-participant." The narrator never includes herself in the plot of "Hour," and
she has only "limited omniscience" when she tells the story.

Figurative Language:

There are four recurrent elements used by Chopin in “The Story Of an Hour”:
 1. Epiphany - Sybil Marcus describes it as "an unanticipated moment of deep
revelation" (Marcus, 1995, p. 15). This is demonstrated in the novel when Ms.
Mallard understands that, with the death of her husband, she is now able to begin
a new chapter in her life (one of her own), which she utters visibly to the reader
when she utters the words "Free! Free! Free!".
2. Personification - The readers can see that in the sentence: "The lovely breath of
rain was in the air" (Chopin, 1894, p. 12). In this scenario, the author provides a
meteorological event, which is normally thought to be inanimate, the ability to
breathe, thus humanizing the occurrences.
3. Metaphor - This may be seen in the story when the author attempts. The author
(p. 12) writes, "It was her sister Josephine who delivered to her, in broken
syllables, the news of her husband's death," "In broken sentences" tries to describe
how Josephine tried to break the news to her sister.
4. Simile - In this case, it is essential to look for parallels between real-world
occurrences and ideas. Here's an example: "There was a fiery victory in her eyes,
and she handled herself unintentionally like a goddess of victory" (p. 14).

Imagery:

When she realizes the ramifications of her husband's death on her life, she uses this literary
device: "Now her bosom surged and felt tumultuously" (Chopin, 1894, p. 13). It can also be
found in this portion when Mrs. Mallard starts saying a few words. When she abandoned herself,
a little murmured word escaped her slightly parted lips," (p. 13), which appeals to our sense of
hearing since it shows the reader how she is speaking this word.

Tone:

The overall tone of this novel is satirical, as the author mocks the reality that Victorian women
lived during the middle and late nineteenth centuries, which was to live a life for their husbands
and children, rather than the independent, free lifestyle that today's society lives, by depicting the
"pseudo freedom" that Ms. Mallard almost experienced but was unable to embrace due to the
heart attack she suffered, a product of pure joy and hope. She realizes her husband's death, but is
depicted in such a way that the reader does not divert from the basic "tone" of the story.

Symbolism:

The way men treated their wives during the Victorian era has a strong sense of symbolism. This
excerpt shows how women felt about men's chauvinistic attitude: "There would be no one to live
for throughout those coming years; she would live for herself" (p. 13).