In this story Chopin conveys to readers that when Mrs. Mallard finds out about her husbands death she is overcome by a lot of emotions. She does this by using different literary elements throughout the story. At first she feels sad about her husband's death, but then she becomes overwhelmed with joy about her freedom. In the 19th century it was not uncommon for teenage girls to get married. There were a lot of arranged marriages back in those days, and usually to complete strangers. Now-a-days women have more freedom and get married because they want to, not out of a sense of duty. I completely agree win Dan Shen "The narrative is regarded as a positive representation of a woman's desire for freedom from patriarchal oppression at the news of her husband's death in a railway accident."(118) Chopin's "The Story of an Hour" was about the idea of women being free from marriage and not doing what's expected of them back in the 19th century. A very taboo idea at the time. That women could have a choice to what they wanted to do, and freedom. ".rebellious and revolutionary in its questioning of traditional women's roles." (97) .
The beginning of this short story starts off with the death of Mr. Mallard, Mrs. Mallard's husband. When she is first told of his death she is saddened by it and overcome with emotions. It wasn't until she went into her room, sat down into "a comfortable, roomy armchair."(293), and looked out the window, that she felt hope. The "new spring life."(294) that she saw in the tree tops was like the rebirth of Mrs. Mallard. I agree with Jamil, S. Selina when she said "Until her moment of illumination, Mrs. Mallard's emotions have been stifled and suppressed to fit into the mold of hollow social conventions."(215) It made her see the good that could come of this; all of the possibilities. She was no longer confined to the marriage and had a new found freedom.
