Although brief in length, Kate Chopin's short work, The Story of an Hour, demonstrates the importance of surroundings, description, and setting. Through varying degrees of detail and attention to setting, Chopin is able to successfully relay the time the story takes place (which helps explain the main character's situation), and also casts a glimpse into the internal struggle of the character. .
"Knowing that Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble, great care was taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband's death- (Chopin 177). From the first line forward, Chopin is able to create a mysterious and changing image of the main character Mrs. Mallard. By using the vague description of heart troubles, the author leaves room to ponder and derive different meanings from the seemingly simple phrase. Could Mrs. Mallard have a physical ailment that limits her ability to handle issues, or perhaps she is suffering emotionally from an outside source that has not yet been introduced into the story? Since Chopin never specifies the trouble, interest is kept on the subject, and focus is drawn to the different stresses the main character is faced with.
Through "veiled hints that revealed in half concealing- (Chopin 177), much like the author's style, Mrs. Mallard's sister and husband's friend, Josephine and Richards, tell her of her husband's death in a train accident. The great care Josephine and Richards take to let Mrs. Mallard know about her husband's death suggests the idea that patronizing or maternal care is taken when dealing Mrs. Mallard. They dance around the facts, trying to soften the blow for her the way you would tell a child about the death of a beloved pet. The "veiled hints- (Chopin 177) also leave an uncertainty lingering around the subject of Brently Mallards death, as though the other characters do not know the truth themselves. When Mrs.
