The theme in the poem “The Wife” by Emily Dickinson is echoed in “The Story of An Hour” by Kate Chopin because they both have a part in womans roles and positions in society. On one hand you have a woman whos life changed for the better after a death, and on the other hand you have a woman who discounts her life for someone else. Both stories take place with both a husband and a wife. In “The Story of An Hour'”, the wife realized after all this time she didn’t really love her husband, but once her husband suddenly passed away she felt relieved in the thought of being a widow, which she claims “There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself”. In “The Wife”, the wife gave up all of her life and personal identity for her husbands petition, which she claims “She rose to his requirement, dropped the play things of her life”
Daily Archives: September 22, 2023
The theme in the nineteenth-century Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife’ is echoed in “The Story of An Hour” by Kate Chopin because these two readings show the complexity faced by women in that era, offering an understanding of their desire for independence and self-discovery. the two reading describe a female character who is married but they are not in love with their husband. In “The Story of an Hour” the female protagonist doesn’t love her husband and when she hears that her husband has died, she starts to realize that she is free from him and that “There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself.” (Kate Chopin). On the other hand, in “The Wife” the female protagonist sacrifices her joyful things in life to surrender to her husband’s petition. “She rose to his requirement, dropped the playthings of her life to take the honorable work of a woman and of a wife.” (Emily Dickinson).
The theme in the nineteenth-century Emily Dickinson’s poem “The Wife” echoed in “The Story of An Hour” by Kate Chopin because It portrays loneliness and the benefits and disadvantages that come with it. The events in Kate Chopin’s “The Story of An Hour” develop swiftly; it appears that a person’s life and personality may change significantly in just one hour. Less than an hour passes while Mrs. Mallard processes the death of her husband. By doing this, she quickly progresses through her sadness to reach a “dream” or “story” of what life would be like for her on her own. In the story it states “There would be no one to live for 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 private will upon a fellow-creature.” She has become used to the concept of a completely different future; one she looks forward to rather than one she fears. She later finds out that her husband is still alive, and destroys her brand-new vision for the future. Emily Dickinson’s poem “The Wife” it says, “She rose to his requirement, dropped The playthings of her life To take the honorable work Of woman and of wife.” Both the poem and the story convey the idea that women sacrifice their lives to be a wife to their husbands and experience less independence and freedom.
The theme in the nineteenth century Emily Dickinson’s poem” The wife echoed in “The story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin” related to women’s roles and expectations in the late nine -teeth century about the knowledge of marriage. They share similar themes and perspectives on the subject. In “Wife”, Emily Dickinson views of the marriage where particular roles that women were expected to be fulfill. The poem shows the loss of personal identity that happened when a woman becomes a wife ,Emily states “She rose to his requirement ,dropped the play things of her life”. “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin also explores the theme on the restrictions of marriage on women .The story about Louise Mallard a woman who receives news of her husband’s death but unexpectedly finds a sense of freeing and release in the thought of being a widow .Kate story focus on the growth and discovery when those constraints are removed as she state “Free ,free ,free!”(L,14) it was as though she catch a break.
As I was reading the writings of this week “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin’s and the poem “The Wife” by Emily Dickinson’s both address the theme of women’s roles and their boundaries in the 19th century. The theme in the nineteenth century Emily Dickinson’s poem “The Wife” echoed in the story “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin in the sense of how women were treated as someone who was expected to meet their husbands needs as the poem reads “She rose to his requirements” (Dickinson). The poem highlights the idea of a woman being nothing but a wife. Similarly Mrs. Mallard in the story “The Story of an Hour” grieves by listening to her husband’s tragic accident she realized that she was now free “She said it over and over under her breath: “free, free, free!” (Chopin para10). She was filled with excitement and joy for becoming free from being merely a wife”.
The story “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin and the poem “The Wife” by Emily Dickinson, both reflects freedom, , independence in women and the unfairness that marriage holds. In the poem, the poet seem to identify how a single women transform herself after marriage, as it seem in “The Story of an Hour” which mentions how free,relieved and excited Louise felt after finding out about her husband’s false death. In the poem says “dropped the plaything of her life to take the honorable work of a woman and of wife” and i believe the meaning behind this quote is that woman get married and become wife,where back in those times they were not free or being under the man’s command. Also in the story there is a quote that says “There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself” which means, that now Louise will be living for herself, free and independent and not under a man dominance. I think both the story and the poem echoed because both talks about how woman used not to be free when they got married in the 19th centuries, and how a person could find liberty by it’s couple’s death.
Emily Dickinson’s The Wife details a woman’s journey as she follows society’s expectations and takes on the role and responsibilities of a wife. A woman abandons her own desires and aspirations and fulfills her expected duties. Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” features Mrs. Mallard, a woman with problems with her heart and learns of her husband’s presumed death. She experiences a fleeting sense of freedom in place of her lingering sadness and envisions a future for herself in which she can live for herself. In conclusion, Emily Dickinson’s The Wife and Kate Chopin’s The Story of an Hour both explore the norms of marriage and the role of women in the 19th century. Chopin’s story depicts Louise Marard, who, after mourning the death of her husband for a while, feels an unexpected sense of freedom and opens her heart to a life free from the constraints of her marriage and society. Her reflections resonate with the message of Dickinson’s poetry, which expresses the hidden conflicts and repressed desires of a woman who conforms to the expectations of her marital life. However, Louise’s newfound freedom does not last long, as her husband’s unexpected return leads to Louise’s sudden death, depicting the tragic irony of her fleeting liberation. .
The theme in the nineteenth- century Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife’ echoed in the ” The Story of An Hour” by Kate Chopin because they focused on female gender. It demonstrated that men where the one who dominated the marriage. In “The Story of An Hour” Mrs.Mallard was grieving her husband death but then has a realization of what a future with freedom would be like. The quote “She rose to his requirement” ( Emily Dickinson) broke down that females in the 19th century had to put any type of emotions and privilege their husband first. The theme was described as a women’s role in society and marriage. A women won’t have time to think about the future desires she wanted and how it would only be to provide for the husband.
“The Wife” by Emily Dickinson and “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin both explore themes related to marriage and the role of women in the 19th century. In “The Story of an Hour” by Chopin, the story follows Louise Mallard, who initially mourns her husband’s death but then unexpectedly feels a sense of liberation. She thinks about the newfound freedom with lines like, “She breathed a quick prayer that life might be long.” This echoes the idea that marriage can be constraining, just like in Dickinson’s poem. It shows initial fear of a long life bound by marriage and societal expectations. “The Story of an Hour” takes a tragic turn when Louise’s husband returns alive and the shock of seeing him again leads to her demise.
