The Story of an Hour

When I read this story it reminded me of all those people out there who are stuck in a bad relationship, but in this story the wife gets out conveniently. Mrs. Mallard, who is young but has a heart problem, gets the news that her husband has passed away in an accident. She has pretty good control of her emotions, she weeps when it is appropriate but in her own privacy she experiences a joy that one may think she hadn't experienced since her childhood. She tries to reason with these feelings that overtake her as she realizes that she is now free from the burden of a loveless marriage (on her part). "There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself" (Chopin, 194). The statement seems to have two meanings, in one way it sounds like she is afraid she will be alone as she grows older, in another way it sounds like the weight has been lifted and she is free to do as she pleases living for noone but herself. The sex in this relationship seems to be more like work than of pleasure. "There would be no powerful will bending her in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow creature" (Chopin, 194). It seems like this would mean she had sex with her husband because he took care of her and provided for her, almost like room and board. The author does use foreshadowing in this story in paragraph 10, "[n]ow her bosom rose and fell tumultuously" (Chopin, 194). More on her physical excitement also appears in paragraph 11, "[h]er pulses beat fast, and the coursing blood warmed and relaxed every inch of her body" (Chopin, 194). The reader should pick up on this as one of the very first things you learn about her is that she has a heart condition.