Story of an Hour

In “Story of an Hour” written by Kate Chopin, the author uses external images to describe how Mrs. Mallard felt about her husband death. Although Mrs. Millard received the news of her husband’s death with mixed feelings, of which one part of her showed sadness and the other part of her expressing her freedom. In this story, the author uses “the open window” to symbolize the breath of a new life into Mrs. Mallard. According to Chopin, “She could see the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with the new spring life. The delicious breath of rain was in the air” (193). The author uses “suspension of intelligent thought” to describe Mrs. Mallard as being in a confused state of mind because different thoughts were flowing in and out of her head. The reader’s noticed the opposite part of this state of being when Mrs. Mallard said, “Free, free, free!” (194). The reader’s understands that Mrs. Mallard was filled with joy of her freedom, which can be compared to everything beautiful in sounds, beautiful trees, blue skies and in songs of the birds. The passage that epitomizes the story was the end result of the joy that took her life when she realized her husband's return.