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Argumentation Essay: The Story of an Hour

This essay will try to address the realities and questions of marriage; whether a man and his wife

are truly never to be separated once married. The real issue has been whether a marriage partner

should stay in a marriage when they no longer love the other person even though they used to

love each other. It is my opinion that no one should be forced to stick to someone who they

would not like to be with[ CITATION Sri18 \l 1033 ]. This paper will try to argue this regarding Kate

Chopin’s story, “the story of an hour”.

I believe that marriage is not just about loving each other but more about being compatible with

each other. This is necessary for a couple to stay together[ CITATION Wic20 \l 1033 ]. This is

especially true for couples who were brought together by love and not forced by circumstances

to get married. In our case study, Mrs Mallard was no longer in love with her husband while

Brently Mallard was still in love with his wife. It was expected of Mrs Mallard to react with so

much bitterness that her heart condition would have overtaken her, hence the cautious approach

in notifying her of her husband’s demise.

Partners in a marriage should be able to leave the marriage at their pleasure, with the thought that

an individual’s happiness takes the priority. The independence and freedom to do that must be

upheld by both partners[ CITATION Ral20 \l 1033 ]. Mrs Mallard should have decided to quit her

marriage long before the incident happened because apparently, she was not happy. She did not

love her husband anymore and died of a heart attack because her husband was still alive.

An opposing view of my argument exists and suggests that couples once married should never be

separated until death parts them[ CITATION Fel16 \l 1033 ]. This could have been the case with Mrs

Mallard, who did not receive the news of her husband's death with as much grief as it had

anticipated. She easily overlooks the tragic news of her husband’s death with a thought of a

happier future alone, one that nobody else lived for her. This view is largely held by those with

religious leanings who argue that a man and a woman should not be separated once married,

according to the Bible[ CITATION Fel16 \l 1033 ].

In conclusion, marriage results from a relationship of free will which anybody in it should be

able to walk off it because it is their right to[ CITATION Ral20 \l 1033 ]. Just like Mrs Mallard said

in the story, nobody has the right to impose their lifelong will on another person. However,

quitting a marriage is not always the best decision a couple can make in the case of conflicts.

Negotiations, often involving third parties like family members, should be the first step in

solving the conflicts. Whether a partner would like to stay in the marriage or not should be the

point of discussion. Talks and counselling act as ways of solving marriage conflicts amicably but

should not be used to block partners from exiting a marriage[ CITATION Ral20 \l 1033 ].
 Works Cited

Felts, Melvin Dennis. "Strengthening Marriages of Soldiers of Northeast Baptist Church

Clarksville, Tennessee." (2016): 12.

Raley, R. Kelly, and Megan M. Sweeney. "Divorce, partnering, and stepfamilies." Journal of

Marriage and Family 82.1 (2020): 81 - 99.

Srivastava, Mona. "Social Aspects of Marriage and Similar Affiliations." Social Psychiatry:

Principles & Clinical Perspectives (2018): 159.

Wickrama, Kandauda AS, et al. "Patterning of midlife marital trajectories in enduring marriages

in a dyadic context: Physical and mental health outcomes in later years ." Journal of

Social and Personal Relationships 37.5 (2020): 1472 - 1493.