Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin Essay

“Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin "She said it over and over under her breath: 'free, free, free!' The vacant stare and the look of terror that had followed it went from her eyes. They stayed keen and bright. Her pulses beat fast, and the coursing blood warmed and relaxed every inch of her body"(Chopin). Women were completely controlled by the men in their lives. First, by their fathers, brothers and male relatives and finally by their husbands. Their sole purpose in life is to find a husband, reproduce and then spend the rest of their lives serving him. If a woman were to decide to remain single, she would be ridiculed and pitied by the community. After the death of a husband women experienced little freedom. Kate Chopin the author of “Story of an Hour”, wanted to show the lack of freedom women had through Mrs. Mallard's conflicted emotions. Catherine (Kate) O’Flaherty was born in St. Louis, Missouri on February 8, 1850. She was the second child of Thomas O’Flaherty who is from Ireland, and her mother Eliza Faris of St. Louis. Her parents came from different backgrounds, so she was bilingual. She grew up speaking both English and French. From 1855 to 1868 Kate attended the St. Louis Academy of the Sacred Heart, with one year at the Academy of the Visitation. As a girl, she was mentored by woman–by her mother, her grandmother, and
At the beginning of the story, Mrs. Mallard who was Kate's character played as the wife, was delighted to hear the terrible rumor of her husband's death. Mrs. Mallard is relieved to be free of the oppressive institution of marriage. It is not so much that she disliked her husband, but that she was thrilled by the liberty his death would confer on her life. The happiness comes more from her being able to live independently, to be able to make her own choices and decisions and, as a widow, to have the means to live well enough without relying on anyone