Kate Chopin
Although brief, as the title might suggest, "The Story of an Hour" packs incredible tension into a very specific event. Mainly through situational irony, Chopin conveys the woes of an unloving marriage by presenting both the joys of its termination and lethal nature of its return.
The story commences as many other tragedies might. Minor characters report the untimely demise of the main character's spouse and the widow retreats in grief. However, several eccentricities stand out. The spring setting typically promises new life, not death, and Josephine Mallards reaction to her husband's death comes without disbelief. Eventually, the purpose of these incongruities is revealed. Instead of grief, Josephine rejoices in her loss: "'Free, free, free!' The vacant stare and the look of terror that had followed it went from her eyes," (Chopin).
This sudden irony unlocks one of the central themes of this story: unhappy marriages imprison those trapped. Josephine clarifies her dreadful engagement by declaring that her marriage had rarely been happy and his funeral would free her forever to a life dedicated to her. The seemingly out of place spring weather now serves a purpose; her husband's death granted her new life.
Nevertheless, Chopin decided to extend the irony once more to illustrate the other side of the coin. As Josephine ventured out of her room into a new great unknown, a too familiar face reappeared. Her husband Brently returned home unaware that people thought him dead. In place of hugs or kisses, Josephine greeted him with a cry and a heart attack which took her new life. The final paradox, "joy that kills", which the doctors meant to reassure Brently that her relief put too much stress on her frail heart, in fact describes unhappy marriages as having the appearance of loving union while destroying the hearts and hopes of the miserable participants.
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