Comparing Kate Chopin's The Story Of An Hour And The Awakening

For the past two weeks, my English class has been studying Kate Chopin. I am almost ashamed to admit that I was ignorant of Chopin until this course. Her writing style is so natural, precise, and detailed that it makes me feel like an observant background character instead of just a reader. I love it. The endings to Chopin's stories, however, are undeniably my favorite part of her writing. She is known for delivering surprising, almost twisted endings. The Story of an Hour and Desiree's Baby left me feeling bewildered, saddened, and oddly amused. Of course, I was saddened and bewildered by each of the women's lives and deaths in both stories. Poor Louise Mallard was so ready to live her life only for herself. Then, ol' Brently came back a knockin' from the dead... Do not even get me started on the treatment of Desiree in Desiree's baby. The discovery made by her husband, Armand, gives me only the slightest sense of justice. Frankly, the amusement I receive from Desiree's Baby stems from that same slight sense of justice. Naturally, the amusement felt from The Story of an
(I am only a little over a half way through, but I do expect a classic Chopin twist...pls no spoilers.) It has only reinforced the belief in me that I should live my life on my terms. Recently, I felt pressured to study something in college that does not interest me at all. I understand that I need to study something that will prove itself financially rewarding, but I also have to think of my interests, talents, strengths, and personality. I know who I am and what I want, so for now I am just going to trust myself and not let anyone try to tell me who I am or who I should be. Also, not to worry, although I do believe I should live life on my terms, I know better than to incessantly skip class because I do not feel like going. I am pretty sure inspiring students to skip class is not what the professor had in mind when assigning this