Story Of An Hour

A detailed Summary of Story Of An Hour

In 1894, Kate Chopin wrote, "The Story of an Hour." In this fictional tale the author describes the experience of Louise Mallard, a woman with heart trouble, immediately after receiving news of her husbands death. Unlike the expected reaction, Louise actually has a moment of relief realizing the freedoms she now has, which were taken from her by an unhappy marriage. All the events of the story take place within an hour in Louise's home. In the final minutes of the hour, Mrs. Mallard is shocked to see that her husband walks through the front door alive and well, which causes her to have a heart attack and die. While her family believes she had a heart attack because she was overjoyed, the author leads us to conclude the heart attack was actually caused by her realization that the freedoms she looked forward too were no longer a reality. Kate Chopin's description of what the main character feels and sees shows us how this is possible.

The story is very well written as it flows from one paragraph to another each presenting a new idea or information for the reader. The story begins by informing us that Louise's husband, Brently Mallard, was killed in a railroad disaster. Bei

ng that Louise has a heart condition, her family was concerned with how she would react to the bad news. Her sister, Josephine, broke the news to her. She immediately cried as expected but the interesting part of the story is when she goes into her room and locks the door. While Mrs. Mallard is slouched in a chair her experience doesn't feel that tragic at all. The mood is rather peaceful and relaxing. The reader is reminded more of a sunny day than a gloomy sky. At this point it is almost confusing but Kate Chopin quickly explains the scenario. She explains of a feeling the main character feels approaching. It is then explained that Louise feels "free" (315) as a result of her husband's death. We learn that there is no feeling of guilt whatsoever in this moment.

There may be several explanations given as to why Mrs. Mallard reaction caused her death. What was the real reason she had a heart attack? The "obvious" and probably the easiest answer is simply that she was shocked as if she had seen a ghost. We can go a simple step beyond that and say that a wife who realizes her husband is alive after the thought of his death is filled with such a joy that a troubled heart could not handle. Both of these reasons are very possible, yet the details of this hour suggest there is a different reason for Louise's heart attack. The narrative reveals in several ways that her husband's death was a positive turn in her life that she was actually excited about. Once she saw her husband alive, it destroyed her future of freedom and happiness she had looked so forward to, which her heart could not handle.

This immediately suggests Louise was not feeling rage of any sort. The author proceeds to tell us about a specific feeling that comes over Mrs. Mallard. She whispered the words under her breath, "Free, free, free!" (315) She bega

Some common words found in the essay are:
Louise Mallard, Kate Chopin, Brently Mallard, Kate Chopin's, Richard Brently's, Eventually Louise, heart attack, husband's death, husband alive, John Doe, main character feels, seeing husband alive, brently mallard, due heart, joy newfound, heart handle, unhappy marriage, free 315, loved husband,

Approximate Word count = 1246
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English