In my opinion, this story was heartbreaking and maddening. I felt for the woman when she lost her husband and was frustrated by her extremely short grieving process. I don't believe that she could have actually completed the process in an hour, because it takes people months, and even years, to grieve the loss of a spouse. I think that the author minimized this by giving the woman an attitude that looks beyond this present moment. "She did not stop to ask if it were or were not a monstrous joy that held her. A clear and exalted perception enabled her to dismiss the suggestion as trivial. She knew that she would weep again when she saw the kind, tender hands folded in death; the face that had never looked save with love upon her, fixed and gray and dead. But she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely. And she opened and spread her arms out to them in welcome."Making plans based on this sort of attitude is a dangerous thing to do, and Josephine learns this lesson quickly, but not soon enough at the same time. She receives immense joy from the thought of having freedom to live "for herself" and when her husband returns and her new world view is suddenly flipped upside down, she dies. She goes through a huge swing of emotion and experiences both the highest high and lowest low within an hour. To me, this just seems unhealthy, and is proved to be so in the story.
It is also clear through this story that the author, Kate Chopin, is of the feminist mindset. This was evident to me through the joy that Josephine found in the loss of her husband. The author chooses to make the situation more about Josephine's gain of freedom as opposed to her loss of a loved one. She also shows Josephine questioning her love for her husband. This idea an extremely feminist idea, as well as the idea of women not needing men, or even being worse off with a husband than without one. I don't typically take a feminist stance on issues, so I did not particularly agree with Chopin.
Overall, the story seemed to be a good avenue for thought on topics such as marriage, love and relational independence.
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Hi Holly, Great response, and thanks for responding to the other blogs too. Chopin was a feminist, and the idea that a woman could be "free" without a husband was certainly new to the time. And perhaps still is. The irony is that Louise can only be free for an hour. dw
ReplyDeleteHolly, this is a great post. "Story of an Hour" definitely exemplifies Chopin's feminine mindset. The story greatly circles Josephine's gain of freedom rather than the loss of her husband. It does not take her long to get over him, and I think this was the most obvious of ways for Chopin to state that men are suppressing towards women and their individuality. Her statement is extremely bold and very easily argued, making "Story of an Hour" quite a feministic tale.
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