Response to Kate Chopin's Stories
The first thing that strikes me after reading Kate Chopin's three stories is that she is a realist. Her stories are fictional works but they represent the stark realities of life. She does not dramatize or make her characters look heroic but just portrays them as everyday, common characters. Marriage and motherhood seem to be the important theme in these stories. After reading through Kate Chopin's introduction and these stories, I can feel that Kate Chopin was trying to find her identity with her stories. I also agree that her writing is very unconventional and deals with the issues that women were suffering through in her time. During Kate Chopin's era, women were expected to do everything, like taking care of household work and the family while they did not get many chances to follow their own dreams or passions. Through the characters in these stories, I think that she wants to defy the conventional role of women in society during that period. All her women characters are shown to be strong willed and deep inside wanting to be independent and free.All the three stories are about regret in one way or another. In "The story of an Hour", the regret is on part of Mrs. Mallard that while Mr. Mallard was alive, she did not have
In 'Regret', Kate Chopin has portrayed Mamzelle Aurelie to be an extremely independent woman, who has never been in love, who is very determined, has her own farm and runs it as well as any man. Kate Chopin contrasts Mamzelle Aurelie's solitary and independent life to the more ordinary situation of Oldie, her neighbor, who has four children and has to tailor her life to adjust to her husband and her children. Mamzelle Aurelie has to care for the four children for a few days. Initially I find her behavior towards the children as if they are 'things' rather than being small kids. She has never been with children and finds it a struggle to cope with their various habits. But the presence of children finally has an impact on Mamzelle Aurelie. She is compelled to 'unearth white aprons that she had not worn for years' and to take down the 'sewing basket which she seldom used'. She also starts getting accustomed and attached to the habits of the children like Ti Nomme's 'moist kisses'. The going away of the children is symbolized as 'twilight' in contrast to 'fine summer morning' when they arrived. It symbolizes her emptiness when the children leave. Kate Chopin in this story has painted all the characters very vividly and I could feel the children doing what she has written. I found all the three stories very interesting and Kate Chopin has a wonderful way of narrating her stories along with a penchant for unexpected and thought
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 968
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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