“The Story of an Hour” written by Kate Chopin in the late 1800s is an extraordinary

and moving short story of a woman’s liberation from a conventional male-dominated

marriage. In the Victorian era, when the tale was written, the society was ruled by
men who had the power over women in all aspects of life. They were not seen as
equal, being confined to their homes and could not own property or even have a say
in how to live their lives.
Ideologically, the Victorian era witnessed resistance to the idea that reality has an
intrinsically logical structure and turned towards intense emotion as an authentic
source of aesthetic experience. The title itself is an essential proof, being a
contradiction in terms; “story” makes the reader expect a tale spread over an
extended period of time, whereas “hour” reduces dramatically this expectation.
Louise Mallard, the main character, lives in the same male-dominated society in
which the story was written and travels in only a few hours (from the moment she
finds out about her husband’s death until she is revealed the truth) from sorrow to joy
and back, finally collapsing into death, which tragically and ironically at the same
time, liberates her from the strains of an unwanted marriage.
The message of this story is powerful: everybody should have the right to master
their lives and the author makes this statement very clear by highlighting Louise’s
strong will and determination to live her life on her own terms.
Kate Chopin uses antithesis, a romantic method, to emphasize Mrs. Mallard’s
feelings. Initially, her reaction to the news of her husband’s death is sadness: “She
wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment, in her sister’s arms.”, but, ironically,
she is relieved by his death, she is truly and unequivocally happy “it was the joy that
came to her after she heard the news”.

The open window is a literary motif which represents Mrs. Mallard’s freedom, not
only from her husband, but from the norms of the society of the time, as well. The
thought that her life is hers entirely fills her heart with joy. Ironically, she was
suffering from a heart condition and these extreme emotions, swinging from sorrow
to joy and back to sorrow (when she realizes that her husband is not actually dead),
causes her unexpected death.
The story ends with a paradox; what appears to be bad is in fact good. In Kate
Chopin’s vision death is not tragic, as many perceive, but a way to freedom, a
liberation from all the constrains of an unhappy marriage and an unfair society.
In conclusion, the author, a woman in a male-dominated society herself, speaks up
against oppression of all kinds, taking her idea of freedom to a unique and extreme
level, Mrs. Mallard’s death may have been a blessing in disguise.