Analysis of The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin

Analysis of The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin The Story of an Hour  by American author Kate Chopin is a mainstay of feminist literary study. Originally published in 1894, the story documents the complicated reaction of Louise Mallard upon learning of her husbands death. It is difficult to discuss The Story of an Hour without addressing the ironic ending. If you havent read the story yet, you might as well, as its only about 1,000 words. The Kate Chopin International Society is kind enough to provide a free, accurate version. At the Beginning, News That Will Devastate  Louise At the beginning of the story, Richards and Josephine believe they must break the news of Brently Mallards death to Louise Mallard as gently as possible. Josephine informs her in broken sentences; veiled hints that revealed in half concealing. Their assumption, not an unreasonable one, is that this unthinkable news will be devastating to Louise and will threaten  her weak heart. A Growing Awareness of Freedom Yet something even more unthinkable lurks in this story: Louises growing awareness of the freedom she will have without Brently. At first, she doesnt consciously allow herself to think about this freedom. The knowledge reaches her wordlessly and symbolically, via the open window through which she sees the open square in front of her house. The repetition of the word open emphasizes possibility and a lack of restrictions. Patches of Blue Sky Amid the Clouds The scene is full of energy  and hope. The trees are all aquiver with the new spring of life, the delicious breath of rain is in the air, sparrows are twittering, and Louise can hear someone singing a song in the distance. She can see patches of blue sky amid the clouds. She observes these patches of blue sky without registering what they might mean. Describing Louises gaze, Chopin writes, It was not a glance of reflection, but rather indicated a suspension of intelligent thought. If she had been thinking intelligently, social norms might have prevented her from such a heretical recognition. Instead, the world offers her veiled hints that she slowly pieces together without even realizing she is doing so. A Force Is Too Powerful to Oppose In fact, Louise resists the impending awareness, regarding it fearfully. As she begins to realize what it is, she strives to beat it back with her will. Yet its force is too powerful to oppose. This story can be uncomfortable to read because, on the surface, Louise seems to be glad that her husband has died. But that isnt quite accurate. She thinks of Brentlys kind, tender hands and the face that had never looked save with love upon her, and she recognizes that she has not finished weeping for him. Her Desire for Self-Determination But his death has made her see something she hasnt seen before and might likely never have seen if he had lived: her desire for self-determination. Once she allows herself to recognize her approaching freedom, she utters the word free over and over again, relishing it. Her fear and her uncomprehending stare are replaced by acceptance and excitement. She looks forward to years to come that would belong to her absolutely. She Would Live for Herself In one of the most important passages of the story, Chopin describes Louises vision of self-determination. Its not so much about getting rid of her husband as it is about being entirely in charge of her own life, body and soul. Chopin writes: There would be no one to live for her during those coming years; she would live for herself. There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a will upon a fellow-creature. Note the phrase men and women. Louise never catalogs  any specific offenses Brently has committed against her; rather, the implication seems to be that marriage can be stifling for both parties. The Irony of Joy That Kills When Brently Mallard enters the house alive and well in the final scene, his appearance is utterly ordinary. He is a little travel-stained, composedly carrying his grip-sack and umbrella. His mundane appearance contrasts greatly with Louises feverish triumph and her walking down the stairs like a goddess of Victory. When the doctors determine that Louise died of heart disease of joy that kills, the reader immediately recognizes the irony. It seems clear that her shock was not joy over her husbands survival, but rather distress over losing her cherished, newfound freedom. Louise did briefly experience joy the joy of imagining herself in control of her own life. And it was the removal of that intense joy that led to her death.

Sui Dynasty Emperors of China

Sui Dynasty Emperors of China During its short reign, Chinas Sui Dynasty reunited northern and southern China for the first time since the days of the early Han Dynasty  (206 BCE - 220 CE). China had been mired in the instability of the Southern and Northern Dynasties period until it was unified by Emperor Wen of Sui.  He ruled from the traditional capital at Changan (now called Xian), which the Sui renamed Daxing for the first 25 years of their reign, and then Luoyang for the last 10 years. Accomplishments of the Sui Dynasty The Sui Dynasty brought a great number of improvements and innovation to its Chinese subjects.  In the north, it resumed work on the crumbling Great Wall of China, extending the wall and shoring up the original sections as a hedge against nomadic Central Asians.  It also conquered northern Vietnam, bringing it back under Chinese control. In addition, Emperor Yang ordered the construction of the Grand Canal, linking Hangzhou to Yangzhou and north to the Luoyang region.  Although these improvements may have been necessary, of course, they required a huge amount of tax money and compulsory labor from the peasantry, which made the Sui Dynasty less popular than it might otherwise have been. In addition to these large-scale infrastructure projects, the Sui also reformed the land-ownership system in China. Under the Northern Dynasties, aristocrats had amassed large tracts of agricultural land, which was then worked by tenant farmers.  The Sui government confiscated all of the lands, and redistributed it evenly to all of the farmers in what is called the equal field system.  Each able-bodied male received about 2.7 acres of land, and able-bodied women received a smaller share.  This boosted the Sui Dynastys popularity somewhat among the peasant class but angered the aristocrats who were stripped of all their property.   Mysteries of the Time and Culture The second ruler of Sui, Emperor Yang, may or may not have had his father murdered.  In any case, he returned the Chinese government to the Civil Service Examination system, based on the work of Confucius.  This angered the nomadic allies that Emperor Wen had cultivated, because they did not have the tutoring system necessary to study Chinese classics, and thus were blocked from attaining government posts. Another cultural innovation of the Sui era as the governments encouragement of the spread of Buddhism.  This new religion had recently moved into China from the west, and the Sui rulers Emperor Wen and his empress converted to the Buddhism before the conquest of the south.  In 601 CE, the emperor distributed relicts of the Buddha to temples around China, following in the tradition of Emperor Ashoka of Mauryan India. The Short Run of Power In the end, the Sui Dynasty only held on to power for about 40 years.  In addition to angering every one of its constituent groups with the different policies mentioned above, the young empire bankrupted itself with an ill-planned invasion of the Goguryeo Kingdom, on the Korean Peninsula.  Before long, men were crippling themselves to avoid being conscripted into the army and sent to Korea.  The huge cost in money and in men killed or injured proved the Sui Dynastys undoing.   After Emperor Yangs assassination in 617 CE, three additional emperors ruled over the next year and a half as the Sui Dynasty crumbled and fell. The Sui Dynasty Emperors of China Emperor Wen, personal name Yang Jian, the Kaihuang Emperor, ruled 581-604Emperor Yang, personal name Yang Guang, the Daye Emperor, r. 604-617Emperor Gong, personal name Yang You, the Yining Emperor, r. 617-618Yang Hao, no era name, r. 618Emperor Gong II, Yang Tong, the Huangtai Emperor, r. 618-619 For more information, see the complete list of Chinese dynasties.