The Story of an Hour- Unit 2

In “Story of an Hour”, Kate Chopin writes of a woman with a heart condition (Mrs. Mallard) who learns of her husband’s death.
As one would expect, the story possesses a sad overtone through the first four paragraphs, as she weeps and retires to her room alone. I feel the mood changes in paragraph five as it hints to what she perceives to be her future, a “new spring life”, a lifting storm. It is also important to note the cultural context of the story which describes the setting in a time where women had no domestic rights whatsoever. This is also supported by the text in paragraph eight(p.193): “She was young, with a fair, calm face, whose lines bespoke repression and even a certain strength.” I suspect Mrs. Mallard, though never beaten, lived under the thumb of her husband for a number of years and is finally experiencing freedom. This leads to her “suspension of intelligent thought,” which I believe should be taken literally as, she was dumbfounded, she was happy to be freed from her marriage, but uncertain what was to come.
I think the most significant passage in this story comes in paragraph 19(p.194). “She breathed a quick prayer life might be ling. It was only yesterday she had thought with a shutter that life might be long.” I feel this most accurately describes the human condition and the irony of life…that everything can be changed in an instant. Just as Mrs. Mallard experiences as her husband walks through the door.