The Story Hour by Kate Chopin: setting as narrative function

¶ … evidence passages story stories discuss. Thinking Setting: Sometimes setting a backdrop, plays a greater role a story. Choose story setting plays important role, make a claim role thesis, explain conclusion.

I am writing with regard to Kate Chopin's short story "The Story of an Hour." I chose to write concerning this topic because of its complexity. The fact that the story is set in the nineteenth century in a society that is inclined to discriminate women makes it possible for readers to understand why the protagonist puts across particular attitudes.

I am exploring the question regarding how people in the late nineteenth century were influenced to adopt discriminatory attitudes toward women. Society generally promoted patriarchal thinking during the period and it was thus difficult and almost impossible for many women to feel free.

This essay enabled me to understand how Chopin wanted to raise public awareness through her short story. She used the central character as a means to emphasize the gravity of the condition and how it was essential for people to change much about their thinking in order for society to become healthy.

One of the biggest problems I've had while writing the essay was trying to decide whether it was best for me to side with Louise in thinking about her presumed freedom or whether to consider her a terrible person for being unable to mourn her husband in spite of their relationship.

The fact that the essay emphasizes that nineteenth century's society was patriarchal in character and that it attempts to denounce society's treatment of women are two of the strongest points of the essay.

The essay's weakness is owed to how it sometimes appears to put across my personal opinion with regard to Louise's behavior and concerning her general state of mind when she finds out about her husband.

I would like my instructor to provide me with the opportunity to understand what issues I ignored about the story's setting.

Essay

The setting in Kate Chopin's short story "The Story of an Hour" is the late nineteenth century's United States -- a place and time when people had trouble understanding the concept of equality. This meant that women were generally controlled by the men in their lives and that it was nothing abnormal with a man trying to prevent 'his' woman from putting across certain attitudes.

The writer does not necessarily attempt to say that a man would have to employ an oppressive behavior toward his wife in order for her to want to be free. The situation that Louise Mallard was in simply influenced her to want to be independent, even with the fact that this would mean that she would have to abandon her husband. "And yet she had loved him- sometimes." (Chopin) Her love for him was symbolic, as could not possibly feel attached to him to a level where she would be ready to renounce everything that was beautiful in the world in order to be with him. The setting that the two were in practically made it impossible for Louise to be able to express true love toward her husband.

While it would be difficult for a person in the contemporary society to understand the connection between Louise and her husband, things were very different back then. Louise did not only feel that her marriage prevented her from being able to appreciate the world from a physical point-of-view. "Free! Body and soul free!" she kept whispering." (Chopin) The situation she was in is much more complex. Louise virtually felt trapped from a spiritual point-of-view, taking into account that much of her actions and much of her thinking were controlled by her husband and by society's absurd restrictions. While society did not change as a result of her husband's presumed death, she was nonetheless confident in her own powers because she believed that she was no longer controlled through the institution of marriage. This had a strong effect on her and actually enabled her to see the world from the perspective of someone who could actually think freely.