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  1. This answer was edited.

    Mrs Mallard is a middle-class woman living at an age where the women were expected to follow a set of social norms and expectations imposed upon them. Middle-class women like Louise led repressive and limited life under the control of their husbands. They were not free to do what they want and the oRead more

    Mrs Mallard is a middle-class woman living at an age where the women were expected to follow a set of social norms and expectations imposed upon them. Middle-class women like Louise led repressive and limited life under the control of their husbands. They were not free to do what they want and the only supposed way they could actually taste freedom was through the death of their husband as seen here in the story. Class plays an important role in understanding how middle-class Victorian women suffered during that time and were bounded to their husbands and certain rules, leaving their freedom behind.

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  1. Kate Chopin did not disclose all the characters’s names in the story. Though she revealed the full names of the protagonist, Mrs. Louise Mallard and her husband, Brently Mallard, Chopin however addressed Louise’s sister by her first name and her husband’s friend by the last name. Revealing the firstRead more

    Kate Chopin did not disclose all the characters’s names in the story. Though she revealed the full names of the protagonist, Mrs. Louise Mallard and her husband, Brently Mallard, Chopin however addressed Louise’s sister by her first name and her husband’s friend by the last name. Revealing the first name showed intimacy and close relation with a person as seen through the naming of Josephine, Louise’s sister. However, Brently’s friend is named by the last name, Richards, meaning a formal relation. For Mr. and Mrs. Mallard, the word “mallard” means a kind of duck who mated for life but are not steady as seen here through the main couple.
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  1. The dramatic irony of the story came from the last paragraph when the doctors said that Mrs. Mallard died “of the joy that kills.” It’s ironical that even joy and happiness can kill someone like in the case of Louise Mallard. The characters believed that she was so overjoyed with the news of her husRead more

    The dramatic irony of the story came from the last paragraph when the doctors said that Mrs. Mallard died “of the joy that kills.” It’s ironical that even joy and happiness can kill someone like in the case of Louise Mallard. The characters believed that she was so overjoyed with the news of her husband’s death, that when she saw her husband again, those strong emotions were too much for her. Another irony also occurred when Mrs. Mallard, suffering from heart trouble, after hearing her the news of her husband’s death, wished to be alone in the room as she was so grief stricken. She did not even take the help of her sister to climb up the stairs, even though she was suffering from repression, a trouble of the soul.
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  1. In the story, “wild abandonment” for Louise meant freedom. No more living under the oppressive control of her husband. There will be no powerful will bending over hers as men are accustomed to impose control over women. Both men and women have a right to impose a will upon someone and this time it wRead more

    In the story, “wild abandonment” for Louise meant freedom. No more living under the oppressive control of her husband. There will be no powerful will bending over hers as men are accustomed to impose control over women. Both men and women have a right to impose a will upon someone and this time it will be Louise’s own will.
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    The “monstrous joy” meant happiness of self fulfillment. Louise knew that she had loved her husband sometimes and often she had not but that did not matter anymore. She would grieve for her husband when she saw the body but that was it. She realized, with a hidden glee, that after the funeral, she wRead more

    The “monstrous joy” meant happiness of self fulfillment. Louise knew that she had loved her husband sometimes and often she had not but that did not matter anymore. She would grieve for her husband when she saw the body but that was it. She realized, with a hidden glee, that after the funeral, she would be free to do what she wanted. This monstrous joy of living for herself, away from the repressed  love and toxic marriage, was appealing to her. Louise was torn between two emotions as whether to express happiness for her new found freedom or sorrow for her husband’s death, and hence, the use of monstrous joy.
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    The chair in the story symbolizes Louise’s new found freedom and new hope for life. When Mrs. Mallard, out of exhaustion, went to her room and sank into the armchair, it symbolized her seeking solace, away from all societal expectations and the repressed life she was used to lead. She was sitting inRead more

    The chair in the story symbolizes Louise’s new found freedom and new hope for life. When Mrs. Mallard, out of exhaustion, went to her room and sank into the armchair, it symbolized her seeking solace, away from all societal expectations and the repressed life she was used to lead. She was sitting in an armchair, facing an open window, looking forward to embrace her freedom and throw away her oppressive life.

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  1. In the short story, The Story of an Hour, the doctors had said that Mrs. Mallard died “of the joy that kills.” The characters believed that Mrs. Mallard was so happy to see her husband alive and healthy that those strong emotions were too much for her. However, we the readers know the real reason foRead more

    In the short story, The Story of an Hour, the doctors had said that Mrs. Mallard died “of the joy that kills.” The characters believed that Mrs. Mallard was so happy to see her husband alive and healthy that those strong emotions were too much for her. However, we the readers know the real reason for her death. Mrs. Mallard did not really die out of joy but of shock on seeing her husband alive. She was ecstatic at her husband’s death and when she saw him alive it was the sudden shock on her happiness that killed her. Here, Louise’s momentary joy caused her death.
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    The elixir is a mythological medicine that cures all sickness and bestows immortality to people. In this story, when the author said Louise Mallard “was drinking in a very elixir of life through that open window”, it meant that Louise was drinking her new found freedom that came through that open wiRead more

    The elixir is a mythological medicine that cures all sickness and bestows immortality to people. In this story, when the author said Louise Mallard “was drinking in a very elixir of life through that open window”, it meant that Louise was drinking her new found freedom that came through that open window. She felt as if she was bestowed with eternal youth filled with new opportunities and freedom.
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