"The Story of An Hour" by Kate Chopin: Literary Analysis

In "The Story of An Hour" by Kate Chopin, when Louise Mallard is told that her husband was killed, at first she sat motionless and seemed to mourn him, crying and grieving till she was spent.

She then went to a room to be alone in her thoughts.

At the same time that she feels sadness over his death, she feels a much deeper, inner joy with the realization that she now has her own free life to live, without her husband's presence holding her back from truly experiencing whatever she pleases.

She looks forward with joy to her future, all the bright days ahead where she can do whatever she desires.

'"Free! Body and soul free!" She kept whispering…There was a feverish triumph in her eyes and she carried herself unwittingly like a goddess of victory."

After musing about her new-found freedom for some time, when she leaves the room and heads downstairs, she unexpectedly sees her husband walking through the door, alive.

At this point, she dies from a heart attack, which the doctors think resulted from a "joy that kills."

In actuality, in that instant, all the hopes of freedom in her future were dashed, and the realization of this killed her.

When she had thought he was dead, she had "breathed a quick prayer that life might be long. It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long."

The thoughts of widowhood had a positive effect on Louise, one of joy and hope for a bright and free future.

Her husband's death filled her with so much joy, that when she saw that her husband was actually alive, she had a heart attack from the disappointment.

More Analysis on "The Story of An Hour" by Kate Chopin:

• Analytical Approach- the Story of an hour
• Story of an hour- Analysis
• An Examination of Kate Chopin's The Story of An Hour

In Contrast, in the Short Story "In a Cafe" by Mary Lavin, Mary misses her late husband Richard.

This is clear because he is constantly in her thoughts.

She thinks about his opinion of the cafe and the paintings.

She also seems a bit unsure of herself, possessing low self-esteem, because rather than knowing what she thinks and likes, she is mostly thinking about Richard's and Maudie's likes.

She worries whether this is a place that Maudie would like.

This also shows that she would like to have her husband alive.

These Short Stories, and more, can be found in the book: "Women and Fiction: Stories By and About Women"

Reviews of Other Short Stories in This book:

• Margaret Drabble: Why "The Gifts of War"
• Welty's "A Worn Path": Analysis
• Welty's "A Worn Path" & Drabble's "The Gifts of War": Comparison

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