The Necklace Vs. Story Of An Hour: Be Happy With What You Have
Compare and Contrast
The Necklace vs. Story of an Hour: Be Happy With What You Have
ENG125
Kristen McClure
July 14, 2013
I have chosen to use Story of an Hour, written by Kate Chopin and The Necklace, written by Guy de Maupassant for this compare and contrast paper. My intentions are to show similarities as well as differences between these two pieces and provide comparison of the works to provide a deeper insight into the topic of this paper. The theme I find similar in these two pieces is greed: you should be happy with what you have. In both stories you have women that are not happy in their situations, seeming to always be wanting for more. While the stories are very different, they …show more content…
Story of an Hour was written from a female point of view and The Necklace was written from a male point of view. The time frame in which these stories were written is a significant factor in the style they were written. The late 1800’s was the beginning of the Women’s Movement. Many women longed for freedom, and men still viewed them as property. Kate Chopin was called a Liberationist during this time. Lewis Leary speaks of her writings in that “she wrote also of people (mostly women) caged by convention or lured toward freedom which brings at one time happiness, at another disaster or rebuff.” (Leary, 1970). He also discusses her personal views during this era.”Ms. Chopin was in revolt against tradition and authority. She saw sex as something which could or could not be conjoined with love or marriage, and she daringly – how daringly for her time and place! – undertook to give …show more content…
Our textbook says: ”Stories also reflect culture. The term culture refers to common characteristics of a group or a region. Culture is never static; it is a changing phenomenon, constantly reconfigured by human behavior, language, laws, events, patterns, products, beliefs, and ideals. To put it simply, culture refers to a way of life, an ethos. Writers often reflect a particular culture through the setting of a story or the spirit of the characters ' lives—providing insight, for example, into Southern culture, post–World War I culture, or global culture. In this way stories preserve culture: they freeze moments in time and create cultural awareness.”(Clugston, 2010). I believe both of these stories reflect the culture of the late 1800’s, from very different viewpoints, male and female, but provide a similar morality lesson. Both are short stories and contain a set up, build up and payoff. Short stories have a plot with conflict–driven, tied–together actions and events, a setting, clear time frame, characters, point of view, a theme and features that include tone, irony, and symbolism. Knowing or not knowing the terms presented in this paper does not help or hinder a personal connection someone may have with a particular piece. I know for myself, the personal message I received from these stories, was a reflection on my life and personal experiences. I see people
The Necklace vs. Story of an Hour: Be Happy With What You Have
ENG125
Kristen McClure
July 14, 2013
I have chosen to use Story of an Hour, written by Kate Chopin and The Necklace, written by Guy de Maupassant for this compare and contrast paper. My intentions are to show similarities as well as differences between these two pieces and provide comparison of the works to provide a deeper insight into the topic of this paper. The theme I find similar in these two pieces is greed: you should be happy with what you have. In both stories you have women that are not happy in their situations, seeming to always be wanting for more. While the stories are very different, they …show more content…
Story of an Hour was written from a female point of view and The Necklace was written from a male point of view. The time frame in which these stories were written is a significant factor in the style they were written. The late 1800’s was the beginning of the Women’s Movement. Many women longed for freedom, and men still viewed them as property. Kate Chopin was called a Liberationist during this time. Lewis Leary speaks of her writings in that “she wrote also of people (mostly women) caged by convention or lured toward freedom which brings at one time happiness, at another disaster or rebuff.” (Leary, 1970). He also discusses her personal views during this era.”Ms. Chopin was in revolt against tradition and authority. She saw sex as something which could or could not be conjoined with love or marriage, and she daringly – how daringly for her time and place! – undertook to give …show more content…
Our textbook says: ”Stories also reflect culture. The term culture refers to common characteristics of a group or a region. Culture is never static; it is a changing phenomenon, constantly reconfigured by human behavior, language, laws, events, patterns, products, beliefs, and ideals. To put it simply, culture refers to a way of life, an ethos. Writers often reflect a particular culture through the setting of a story or the spirit of the characters ' lives—providing insight, for example, into Southern culture, post–World War I culture, or global culture. In this way stories preserve culture: they freeze moments in time and create cultural awareness.”(Clugston, 2010). I believe both of these stories reflect the culture of the late 1800’s, from very different viewpoints, male and female, but provide a similar morality lesson. Both are short stories and contain a set up, build up and payoff. Short stories have a plot with conflict–driven, tied–together actions and events, a setting, clear time frame, characters, point of view, a theme and features that include tone, irony, and symbolism. Knowing or not knowing the terms presented in this paper does not help or hinder a personal connection someone may have with a particular piece. I know for myself, the personal message I received from these stories, was a reflection on my life and personal experiences. I see people