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Discuss how the theme of the Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife” relates to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state in “The Story of an Hour.” In order to receive credit, you must refer to the totality of the poem, not just the first four lines. Please include direct quotes from the poem to support your points. Please avoid repetition of what others have already noted.
Please address comments to others by name so we can all follow along.
73 thoughts on “Week 9 Discussion”
The theme of Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife” and how it relates to Mrs. Mallard emotional state in the “The Story of an Hour” is being able to challenge being a wife and a woman of womanhood at the same time. You still wish upon your freedom as a woman but understand you took the vows as a wife. How challenging it can become and that it’s not for the weak. Mrs. Mallard never implied she didn’t love her husband but she showed through audial imagery that she was in fact happy to be free from being a wife because now she gets to be independent like how she used to be before marriage so when she heard that he her husband was deceased she came to the senses that she could in fact be free. For example it states in The Wife “She rose to his requirement, dropped the playthings of her life to take the honorable work of woman and of wife” (Dickinson 1-4) This shows Mrs. Mallard took the vows to be a woman and a wife but apart of her had to let go of certain things she enjoyed because now it’s no longer just about her but that she now is a wife to a husband and have to act as so. Mrs. Mallard emotional state goes through three stages and that’s losing her husband so she holds a grief, then realizing a new-founding freedom that she can potentially have, and realizing the freedom that is once again striped away from her. This relates to her emotional state because trying to challenge being a woman and a wife is not as easy as one thinks and it can destroy your mental health and cause you to want to be free but realizing you have no way to be free can potentially lead into death.
you could suggest that she has a very trouble heart throughout the years of marriage and her mental being in a very poor state being that she was just told her husband has died but then feels joy from the freedom of feeling free again as a young woman for once.
Samijahrodriguez
I agree with yo, I think those lectures are relates for the new role that a women get when become to a wife. Now there is another person that have more or the same power that you, you don’t depend on yourself anymore. Women stop doing thinks that enjoy to play the role of a wife and this i where the desire for freedom comes.
Samijah, thank you for starting things off this week, Your comments are very well taken. I especially like your observation about how in both the poem and the story, the wife is asked to relinquish things. In one case it is “the playthings of her life,” which suggests the activities that might give her personal pleasure. In the case of Mrs. Mallard, what she feels she must relinquish is not a plaything but freedom itself. What comes across in both works is that the relinquishments are never spoken of but remain buried like the pearl and weed at the bottom of the ocean.
Hello, Samijahrodriguez
I agree with you. In that age, women’s status in the home was slightly lower, and there was no freedom before marriage. And Mrs. Mallard only wants to pursue freedom, but their status are too small as like as the pearl and weed. The purpose of the author’s writing was to improve women’s power and strive for equal treatment.
Hey Samijahrodriguez,
I agree with everything that you said in your response. Like you said Mrs. Mallard never implied that she did not love her husband but she felt relieved and happy that she was able to be independent after her husband passed away. She never threw any disrespect towards her past husband because she believes as it says in the story that “she rose to his requirement, dropped all of her playthings to take the work of a wife”.
The theme of Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife” captures what it is like to have your life revolve around someone other than yourself. As a wife you have little independence, little freedom. You cook, you clean, you don’t follow up on any ambitions or dreams because that isn’t your right or at least not yet. This theme relates to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state in “The Story of an Hour” because like the wife’s life in Emily Dickinson’s poem, Mrs. Mallard’s life revolved her husband too. She was never free, there was no independence no freedom. Mrs. Mallard’s life revolved her husband, he was the center of the universe not her and when she had found out that her life was finally hers to live freely, there was no better feeling. In the poem it says, “It lay unmentioned, as the sea develops pearl and weed, but only to himself is known the fathoms they abide.” I believe that Emily Dickinson was trying to tell the story how the wife’s role meant taking a step back to put forth what the husband wanted, the wife lived by the rules the husband. In “The Story of an Hour” it says “. She knew that she would weep again when she saw the kind, tender hands folded in death; the face that had never looked save7 with love upon her, fixed and gray and dead. But she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely. And she opened and spread her arms out to them in welcome.” It seemed as if Mrs. Mallards life was stripped of freedom when she had married her husband, as if all his aspirations and needs overtook her own and that feel disappeared when she thought he had died. Much like the wife from the poem, her role in the marriage meant giving up her independence to essentially become a caretaker and caterer to her husband and what he wanted.
Hi Giovanni, I agree. Specifically, when Dickinson writes “the sea develops pearl and weed” (Dickinson), she is referring to women as the sea, and the pearls as who they are. However, many pearls are never discovered, as they are left covered by weeds far into the depths of the ocean. Similarly, as women are covered by the standards of society, their inner pearls are buried.
Hi Giovanni,
It is such a great post about how a wife was expected to live according to the social norms. She had to hide away her feelings and what she wants because her husband’s needs are to be considered a priority compared to hers. She had given up her whole life by marrying her husband and finding out that her husband died brought her great joy, because she is finally free from this life as a devoted wife.
Giovanni
I agree with you on everything but most of how wife live or have to be for the social rules. Wife forget about herself to prioritize what her husbanded needs. She have to stop doing things that she enjoy by marrying her husbanded so then when she knew that her husband die, it was the great opportunity to be free.
Giovanni, it’s interesting what you write about how it seems that the women in the literary works are expected to adopt the aspirations of their husbands as they leave their own behind for “the honorable work of woman and of wife.” There is the sense that the things the women once cared for do not matter once they are married. In both works, we see the repression of these aspirations. No one speaks of them. They are held inside. It would be unthought of that a married woman would express discontent with her “new day” as a wife.
Hi Giovanni, I agree with your analysis of these two pieces of writing. They do a great job conveying just how tough the “job” of being a wife can be, especially if you still desire freedom and growth of your own. Additionally, the poem, “The Wife” tells us how thankless a job this can be, how its more of a social norm and expected in society rather than something the husband might appreciate uniquely.
The poem “The Wife” by Emily Dickinson depicts the challenges of being a woman, specifically the boundaries in which Dickison believes a woman has to live in. For example, Dickinson writes, “the sea develops pearl and weed, but only to himself is known” (Dickinson). The sea represents a woman, who is mentioned in the beginning of the poem. Dickison uses this comparison of the woman to the sea, to show that just as many pearls are left undiscovered in the sea, many treasures, or inward pearls, of a woman are left unknown, and only she knows who she really is on the inside. Dickinson concludes her poem by mentioning the “fathoms,” or the depths, of the ocean. In doing so, she shows that just as a pearl farther out into the ocean is less likely to be found, a woman buried under more societal pressures, is less likely to live out all who she is on the inside. In the same way, in “The Story of an Hour,” by Kate Chopin, Mrs. Mallard feels the lack of freedom from her marriage to Mr. Mallard. For example, upon hearing about her husband’s passing, the widowed Mrs. Mallard envisions “a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely… there would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself” (Chopin). Instead of grieving, Ms. Mallard celebrates her newfound freedom, one that she hadn’t felt since her marriage. She now has her whole life to look forward to. As the story concludes, however, upon learning her husband is actually alive, Mrs. Mallard dies of a heart attack, as when her freedom is taken, so is her will for life. In both of these pieces, Dickinson and Chopin write about the desired freedoms of two specific women, who can’t live their lives the way they desire. The writers use these women as a representation of all women, as Dickinson and Chopin feel they are being confined by society, which is a man’s world.
Anna, thank you for the very thoughtful comments. I hadn’t thought of the idea that the women were also buried, along with their aspirations and desires, but this is true. It is particularly paradoxical to note, as you write, that only when her husband is dead can Mrs. Mallard really be alive; and when her husband is found to be alive, she succumbs to death. Interesting too that it is her heart that is the problem.
Hi Anna. Your post was very well written and I greatly enjoyed reading it. Your interpretation of her quote was very interesting and enjoyable. I had struggles understanding that line and finding the connection but your post made it very clear. You wrote,”…a woman buried under more societal pressures, is less likely to live out all who she is on the inside.” Which I think perfectly describes the fear Dickinson felt regarding marriage and becoming a wife. Both women wanted to be free and independent which could not happen in marriage and being a wife.
The poem, “The Wife”, displays the devotion and sacrifice of a woman once she is married off. In the short story “The Story of an Hour”, we can see the emotional state of an unhappy wife, who was brought to life by the news of the death of her husband. When she was married off, Madam Louise Mallard give her life away to her husband; to being a wife and a mother. It is said in the story that there would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself (13) when her husband died. This means that women back in those times, had to give full devotion to their family, but their opinions were treated with disregard. Marrying her husband had prevented her from all future possibilities of her life and all the accomplishment that she can have in life. She most certainly hated her husband for robbing away this opportunity from her. But then again, she also loved him. “She knew that she would weep again when she saw the kind, tender hands folded in death; the face that had never looked save with love upon her, fixed and gray and dead” (11). The death of her husband had finally set her free, ““Free! Body and soul free!” she kept whispering,” (14), both physically and emotionally. In the end, knowing that her husband was not dead, left her dead. This just proofs how truly, deeply unhappy Madam Louise Mallard was in her married life.
Thin, thanks for the good comments. Yes, we do see in the story how very unhappy Mrs. Mallard is, but these feelings have been deeply buried—even to herself. For me, it is a very powerful moment when realization begins to dawn on her that she is now free. At first, she tries to push the emerging feelings away. They must be so alien to her. She apparently is not even aware herself of her deep yearning for freedom until it appears to her. Then she experiences a sort of ecstasy she has never known in her marriage.
Hello Thin, I completely agree with you and think everything you presented was accurate. Though I can say she didn’t hate her husband for stripping away her freedom she started to realize as years went by the drastic change of her not being able to live her life as a free woman is what made her feel emotionally, mentally, and physically trapped and ill. Yes the outcome of his supposed death made her happy in the areas of new found freedom but she was also destroyed because she deeply loved her husband. I do like everything else that was stated from you.
Hey Thin Yadanar Su,
I agree with your point that in the poem “The Wife” the wife sacrifices her independence when getting married. I also believe that the widow was very unhappy with her marriage prior to her husbands death because she had a sense of relief when she heard the news of her husbands passing. She felt relieved because she feels like she does can have freedom now and not be in a situation where she needs to listen and love her husband.
I completely agree with you train of thought in my opinion I think everything you discussed regarding it all was on point. Even though I cannot completely discuss how much she despised her significant other for basically robbing his wife for her independence and freedom , the wife came to recognize with the passing of time the factor of change which she never experienced or allowed to live her life in any way shape and form and had an off guard were all these emotions came flooding in like a broken dam
Then while trying to interpret that and her friends not knowing what’s was going she harmed those people it. Even though , the wife became joyful In the lost of her significant other and gaining newfound freedom the ultimate result of her alleged death, but she was feeling that pain of the person she had been with so many years in her life.
The theme of Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife” relates to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state in the “The Story of an Hour” for what it means to be a woman and a wife. These two readings are related to the freedom desired by a wife since this “role” lacks much freedom because you stop being a single person to become a couple, which makes things not only depend on you and also demands a change. in your personality as in the things you like to do that are no longer appropriate for your new “role” as a wife. A perfect example is when Emily Dickinson says “She rose to his request of her, dropped the plaything of her like to take the honorable work of woman and wife”.Here it allows us to see how Mrs. Mallard left the things she enjoyed to fulfill the requests of her husband. This is why when her husband died she felt free. She felt that she depended on herself and that she could do whatever she wanted; as she says “there would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself. There would be no powerful will that would bend her ”(Mr.s Mallard’s line 33-34). No one could give an opinion or impose something on her, she would be free to fulfill her own requests. The death of her husband, which, although it hurt, also gave her a new life, freedom; Likewise, when he found out that she lived that there would no longer be freedom, she died of emotion because of her heart problem.
Ivanna, yes! As you write, “the death of her husband . . . also gave her a new life.” This is Mrs. Mallard’s realization, which seems to shock even herself. She has a short period of bliss as she contemplates the possibilities ahead of her. Then her heart gives out when this sudden sense of freedom is abruptly cut off. I have read some literary criticism that berates Mrs. Mallard and says she is narcissistic, and that everyone knows that marriage brings compromise. The literary critic was a man, which I think in this case, matters. But I think this story shows that not everyone is suited to marriage. In the historical context of these literary works, an unmarried woman would be a figure of pity. She would not be regarded as a healthy free spirit , nor would she have a respected role in society, which an unmarried man might be able to enjoy.
Hi Ivanna I hope you’re doing wonderfully. I think you described what the poem and the story were trying to convey perfectly. Back then expectations for women were so low, they had to be house wives who stayed at home all day. They’re only source of fun and productivity was cooking and cleaning so it’s extremely understandable why Mrs. Mallard was having such a strong revelation when she heard that her husband may have died. She finally understood what it felt like to live and love for herself again and it was also understandable how she had a heart attack when that freedom was ripped from her hands.
Hello Ivanna, I completely agree with you and personally think everything you stated was great. The death of her husband gave her new life through the eyes of her, and it was so ironic how when she seen he was still breathing and living his new life she died. The freedom that’s desired lies so deep for Mrs. Mallard because she’s been seeking for her own personal life and now that she thought she has it she was able to live her new life with new found freedom. I also like the quote you stated from Emily Dickinson’s poem about the “honorable work of woman and wife”. This is nicely put together.
Ivanna, I am totally agreed with your comment that both of these reading The Story of an hour” and “The Wife” is exactly correlate to the freedom of women. When a woman make a bound relationship than she has to obey and depend upon the husband to fulfill their needs. She has to play a new “role” being a wife. Mrs Mallard became contented after the death news of her husband she called “there was something coming to her and she was waiting. It also means that she was waiting for his liberty because she has to do every chore and task according to his will “she would live for herself” it did not mean that she did not grieved for her husband’s death. She definitely cried and isolated herself but after a while she came to realization of her new and independent life. Now she did not need to make compromises and pledges for her future life. But both readings gave positive and as well as negative theme about the married and spinster life. Dickinson compares a married woman to Czar because she has complete dignity and status in the society compare to an unmarried woman.
In the Story of an Hour,” she utilizes various types of abstract components to unmistakably characterize her story and to demonstrate the majority of the implications behind what occurs in the story. There is a wide range of sorts of abstract components utilized in this short story however I accept the most significant one is incongruity. Incongruity is the thing that she utilized the most all through the story right into the end which was by the far what gave the story a grievous and unexpected completion. On the off chance that she didn’t utilize the majority of the scholarly components that were utilized in this story then the story would not be an entire and it wouldn’t all meet up and bode well. Womens are debilitated by adjusting to social jobs. We realize that Louise Mallard opposed her longing for opportunity through a functioning restraint of musings that disregarded the particulars of female family life. Sarah Penn likewise opposed normal driving forces by devoting herself to the perfection of household womanhood that included quiet accommodation to her significant other and a flat-out refusal to gripe. Louise and Sarah at first stifle any unmistakable affirmation of despondency, regardless of how incredible the inner drive to revolt is. This prompts a significant split between the outward life and the inward experience that is ruinous to oneself and to the encompassing society.
Hi Luis Taveras Mateo,
I was particularly interested in your post because your analysis is notably different from the others. I would like to ask you to expand a little further your thought that the most significant abstract component was incongruity. Now I see that I had analyzed this story through the historical context rather than pay attention to literature components since nothing in that regard was prominent for me. However, I agree that the end of the story was unexpected and sad. Once again, the story directed me to reflect on the historical background, where more women must have the same feeling towards their husbands as our protagonist.
The poem “The Wife,” written by Emily Dickinson, is about the transformation that undergoes in a life of a woman after she becomes a married woman. Note that “The Wife” and “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin were written in the late 19th century. Currently, society has another perception about marriage, and therefore the way the poem may sound too extreme for the young generations.
In “The Story of an Hour,” Mrs. Mallard, the main character, illustrates how heavy this change can be. First, she cries out of shock when she receives the news that her husband is dead. However, after having a chance to be far from society’s eyes, she whispered that she is “Free! Body and soul free!” (Chopin 14).
Perhaps the marriage started well. Mrs. Mallard mentions that “she loved him sometimes, although not often” (Chopin 13). As time passes, feelings are left behind, as “gold is gets worn away” ( Dickinson 8).
The last four lines of Dickinson’s poems best describe this possible decay which proof is unmentioned to us in the same way “the sea does not mention how pearls and weed are formed” (10). Therefore only Mrs. Mallard knew how deep the married life was inflicting her and how much she had to renounce.
Deanne, thank you for exploring some of the more metaphorical elements in the Dickinson poem and connecting them to the story. Sometimes students stick to the easily understandable first lines of this poem without approaching the two important metaphors you mention here. Yes, the line which mentions “the gold in using wore away” (Be sure you quote correctly) is something we all know about. When such a wearing away of affection or excitement wears away, the wives in these works do not speak of it. And this leads into the other quote you offer here. That feeling of disappointment and loss is never spoken of but lies deeply buried “as the sea develops pearl and weed, but only to himself is known the fathoms they abide.” Some students new to this poem think the word “himself” refers to the husband, but it really refers to the sea, where the secret things are deeply hidden.
Hello, Deanne
I agree with you, and in the two articles you have used the elements to mix and connect them very well. Although Mrs. Mallard loves her husband very much, she desires freedom more. Between the story and the poem, it is implied that a woman will lose her freedom after becoming a wife, marriage has become an obstacle to to their pursuit of freedom.
ShiHao, just a note. These are not articles. One is a poem and one is a short story.
Hi Deanne,
I like that you noted both Chopin and Dickinson’s work are both from the late 19th century. A woman’s role was sharply defined. Domesticated, feminine, graceful, and complicit. A woman’s limited role led to bitterness and resentment. Ideas of womanhood have obviously changed, but more is to be learned and understood. Independence is power. Pearls are the result of a defense mechanism/form or protection. It is strong and beautiful in the remnants of conflict.
And in “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, the author claims that Mrs. Mallard was free when his husband Brently Mallard was on the list of Killed. She believes that all women and men oppress each other. Although Mrs. Mallard has love for Brently Mallard, she thinks it is not important anymore. She discovered that independence is ecstatic. Mrs. Mallard is immersion her fantasy, but when Mrs. Mallard’s husband came back, she died for heart disease of the joy that kills. In this “wife” by Emily Dickinson, the author compares a single woman’s life to a wife’s. In the process of becoming a wife, you must put down your playthings to be competent for the job of a wife. In both cases, life is bound by the title of wife. To achieve a new thing, you must abandon something that belongs to you. They all became wives, but the price is that they have no freedom at all. In Kate Chopin and Emily Dickinson they both want to fight for a position on behalf of women, to make gender equality, and freedom without restrictions.
Hi Shihao, thank you for this unique insight. Also I loved when you said she has love for Mr. Mallard, but she “thinks it’s not important anymore”. It was a unique way of saying that she chose her freedom over her husband (or over grieving), which is true. I also enjoyed the following sentence about independence being ‘ecstatic’. Personally, I had to search up the word because I had no knowledge of it, but now that I see the meaning, I completely agree that her realization of being free gave her the ecstatic, or joyful, feeling.
In “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, the author claims that Mrs. Mallard was free when his husband Brently Mallard was on the list of Killed. She believes that all women and men oppress each other. Although Mrs. Mallard has love for Brently Mallard, she thinks it is not important anymore. She discovered that independence is ecstatic. Mrs. Mallard is immersion her fantasy, but when Mrs. Mallard’s husband came back, she died for heart disease of the joy that kills. In this “wife” by Emily Dickinson, the author compares a single woman’s life to a wife’s. In the process of becoming a wife, you must put down your playthings to be competent for the job of a wife. In both cases, life is bound by the title of wife. To achieve a new thing, you must abandon something that belongs to you. They all became wives, but the price is that they have no freedom at all. “It lay unmentioned, as the sea Develops pearl and weed, But only to himself is known”. After they became wives, no one knew what their situation was like. This sentence means that men are like the sea and wives are as small as pearls and weeds. The fathoms they abide. In Kate Chopin and Emily Dickinson they both want to fight for a position on behalf of women, to make gender equality, and freedom without restrictions.
In “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, the author claims that Mrs. Mallard was free when his husband Brently Mallard was on the list of Killed. She believes that all women and men oppress each other. Although Mrs. Mallard has love for Brently Mallard, she thinks it is not important anymore. She discovered that independence is ecstatic. Mrs. Mallard is immersion her fantasy, but when Mrs. Mallard’s husband came back, she died for heart disease of the joy that kills. In this “wife” by Emily Dickinson, the author compares a single woman’s life to a wife’s. In the process of becoming a wife, you must put down your playthings to be competent for the job of a wife. In both cases, life is bound by the title of wife. To achieve a new thing, you must abandon something that belongs to you. They all became wives, but the price is that they have no freedom at all. “It lay unmentioned, as the sea Develops pearl and weed, But only to himself is known The fathoms they abide.” After they became wives, no one knew what their situation was like. This sentence means that men are like the sea and wives are as small as pearls and weeds. The fathoms they abide. In Kate Chopin and Emily Dickinson they both want to fight for a position on behalf of women, to make gender equality, and freedom without restrictions. (sorry, there is some mistake in the poem I copied above.)
Both “The Wife” and “The Story of an Hour” center on the theme of wives giving up their personal freedoms and lives for their husbands. Ms Mallard, for example, when met with news of her husbands supposed death, reacts with, at first, tears and sadness, but later joy and excitedly whispering “free, free, free!” to herself. Ms Mallard said “Free! Body and soul free!” which really emphasized how much she gave up for her husband. Prior to the news, she considered her body and soul to not be free, but rather to be devoted to her husband. Ironically, she was so excited of the news that she had worked herself up to a heart attack and passed away, despite the fact that her husband had not really even died in the end. In “The Wife,” the excerpt of –
“She rose to his requirement, dropped
The playthings of her life
To take the honorable work
Of woman and of wife.”
also emphasizes the duties of a wife in this time, and “It lay unmentioned, as the sea” tells us that this was so normal and expected, that most people wouldn’t even think about it.
Emily yes I agree with you that there is a lack of freedom for the women after being the wife which is so challenging. And in the story “The Story of an Hour” how the wife dies at the end when her husband arrives that’s the happiest death of her but that is heart touching for me and I really enjoyed reading this story and this is also kind of the message to everyone that life is bitter but the truth. Emotions are also deadly if we don’t control them so we can bear them.
The theme of the Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife” is a heart-touching poem where we can see the sacrifice of a wife to her husband is never-ending where she dropped her all plaything to serve her husband and be adorable to him she accepts all the works and trouble even though. In the poem, a quote, “dropped The playthings of her life
To take the honorable work Of woman and of wife” mean the Wife gives all their heart of love and sacrifice their life to their husband. and always stay in their boundary created by their husband only being their wife in lack of freedom. From the poem “It lay unmentioned, as the sea Develops pearl and weed, But only to himself is known The fathoms they abide”, Wife gets a lot of trouble and also deal with it to make her husbands life better similar like Sea Develops pearl and weed which only she knows the reason why this was developed.Where the wife is compared to the ocean and the creation of the sea, which is a mystery. A real wife knows how to face problems, deal with them, and protect her husband in any situation. From the poem “The Wife”, Emily Dickinson introduces how the wives are ready to leave everything behind them only for their husbands, which is hard to believe in this real world.
Hello Saroj,
you are right in pointing out the sacrifice of the wife was ‘never ending’. In marriage, full commitment requires a lot of sacrifices. In their day, I am sure many women did not make these sacrifices willingly but out of obligation. Due to the limitations of womanhood, and especially of a wife, it is safe to say many women were indeed robbed of ‘freedom’ as you mentioned. I agree that the poet successfully illustrates that wives pay heavy prices in order to fulfill wifely duties. And I also agree that a wife who loves her husband is ready to shield him by all means possible.
The theme of the Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife” relates to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state in “The Story of an Hour” because it relates back to times when women weren’t as free from men. To elaborate, woman during the 1800s and some of the 1900s were seen as just house wives. It may not sound as bad, but at the time it’s stopped women from doing what they really wanted. They were obligated to stay home to cook and clean while their husbands worked and claimed their dominance. First, I would like to add that the theme of Dickinson’s poem may revolve around independence, or womanhood. That being said, in Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour”, Mrs. Mallard is devastated at first, as any woman would be about her husband dying. But soon later after she’s spent lots of time alone, she’s come to the realization that it’s not grief, it’s relief. This emotion of feeling ‘free’ has come from her past experiences with her husband and she seemed to feel joy from being able to finally express this. “There will be no one to love for during these coming years; she would love for herself” (Chopin). Now, I’m not implying that she feels joy from his death itself, but she certainly was ready to claim her womanhood back. Dickinson states in poem “It lay unmentioned, as the sea develops pearl and weed, but only to himself is known the fathoms they abide” (Dickinson 10-12). I’ve realized that Emily was simply describing the life of a wife and the life of a one who isn’t a wife. However, I believe that these last few lines were about women who’s whole lives are taken and wasted by being married because they don’t get to do what they truly want in life. I only say this because “pearl” and “weed” developing in the sea may represent the time going by as a woman is stuck taking care of a man. Overall, Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state in “The Story of an Hour” may have been justified, considering that she dropped dead from seeing her husband is alive. It was said to be “joy that kills”, but this was just the devastation that rose upon her as she realized she wasn’t free anymore.
The sonnet, “The Wife”, shows the commitment and penance of a lady whenever she is offered. In the brief tale “The Story of an Hour”, we can see the passionate condition of a miserable spouse, who was rejuvenated by the information on the demise of her significant other. At the point when she was offered, Madam Louise Mallard part with her life to her better half; to being a spouse and a mother.in the sonnet a quote which stood to me was when smiths narrator says “ she would live for herself when her husband died.” This implies that ladies back in those occasions, needed to give full commitment to their family, yet their viewpoints were treated with dismiss. Wedding her better half had kept her from all future prospects of her life and all the achievement that she can have throughout everyday life. She definitely loathed her significant other for ransacking away this chance from her. However at that point once more, she likewise cherished him. I think it goes way further in the sonnet when you read line 14 and the narrator says “ The death of her husband had finally set her free, “Free! Body and soul free!” she kept whispering,” Eventually, realizing that her significant other was not dead, left her dead. This simply verified how much genuinely Madam Louise Mallard was miserable in her hitched life.
In both literary texts, we read about two women who assumed the ‘honorable’ position of being a wife. They ‘rose’ to the ‘requirements’ of their new assignments and discarded the ‘playthings’ of their lives. Although possessing a husband was considered as the success of womanhood, the pitiable emotional states of both of these women communicated that many women wore fake smiles. They were ‘successful’ but not happy. Upon realizing that her husband’s death released her of the duties of a wife, the longevity of life no longer cast a net of misery upon Mrs. Mallard. Even she was taken aback by her excitement. I imagine that she did not realize that she was repressed until she had been set free. Nor had she comprehended the depth of her unhappiness until she experienced exhilaration.
In both texts, I learn that both of these women were used to bottling up their emotions. In the poem, the woman’s feelings remained ‘unmentioned’. I understand that they considered their emotions insignificant. It did not matter what adventures she had ‘missed’ out on in her life or would in the future. For there was no point nor any reward in expressing any contrary desire to be anything but a wife. On the contrary, such honesty would cause them shame. This reality is proven by Mrs. Mallard’s immense effort to ‘beat’ down the ambiguous sense of thrill that was rising within her. She was used to repressing her emotions. But in that room, her truth refused to be denied.
Mrs. Mallard’s uncontrolled spillings of the words ‘free, free’ exposed that she had been confined beforehand. Although her husband loved her so, she was probably not happy as a wife. For she only loved him ‘sometimes’. I believe that she must have had dreams. Dreams that could not be actualized due to her status as a wife. Likewise, it was only known to the lady in the poem the ‘fathoms’ that lay within. The ‘amplitude’ of thought, dreams, hopes, and aspirations floated around the tank of her heart. Unlike her, Mrs. Mallard gained an opportunity to let herself go. Free to admit that she had considered herself in ties and had now been set loose by her husband’s demise. I wonder how the woman in the poem would have responded to the news that her husband had passed away. Would her grief also last but a moment?
The theme between Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife” relates to Mrs.Mallard’s emotional state in the reading of “The Story of an Hour” because they both show how woman give up their own personal interest and their dreams in order to settle down and marry a guy. In both these readings it shows how the woman is unhappy in the marriage for example according to the reading of The Story of an Hour it states “ There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself” (paragraph 12). This shows how Mrs. Mallard is coming to a realization that even though her husband is “dead” this meant she was technically free and was able to live her life the way she wants to. This compare to Emily Dickson poem because in the poem it states “ She rose to his requirement, dropped The playthings of her life
To take the honorable work Of woman and of wife” (Lines 1-4). This part of the poem shows how the lady feels like she is trapped as well because she had to throw everything away in order to be a wife to her husband. Both reading theme shows how woman give up so much of there personal dreams and goals in order to be a perfect wife to there husbands.
The topic of the Emily Dickinson poem, “The Spouse”, identifies with Mrs. Mallard’s passionate state in “The Narrative of 60 minutes” since it relates back to times when ladies weren’t as liberated from men. To expand, lady during the 1800s and a portion of the 1900s were viewed as house spouses. It may not sound as awful, however at the time it’s prevented ladies from doing what they truly needed. They were committed to remain at home to cook and clean while their spouses worked and asserted their predominance. To begin with, I might want to add that the subject of Dickinson’s sonnet might rotate around freedom, or womanhood. That being said, in Kate Chopin’s “The Account of 60 minutes”, Mrs. Mallard is crushed from the outset, as any lady would be about her better half passing on. Yet, soon later after she’s invested heaps of energy alone, she’s gone to the acknowledgment that it’s not pain, it’s help. This feeling of feeling ‘free’ has come from her past encounters with her better half and she appeared to feel satisfaction from having the option to at long last communicate this. “There will be nobody to adore for during these coming years; she would cherish for herself” (Chopin). Presently, I’m not suggesting that she feels enjoyment from his demise itself, however she positively was prepared to guarantee her womanhood back. Dickinson states in sonnet “It lay unmentioned, as the ocean creates pearl and weed, however just to himself is known the spans they stand” (Dickinson 10-12). I’ve grasped the concept that Emily was essentially depicting the existence of a spouse and the existence of a wife. In any case, I accept that these last couple of lines were about ladies who’s entire lives are taken and squandered by being hitched in light of the fact that they don’t will do what they really need throughout everyday life. I just say this since “pearl” and “weed” creating in the ocean might address the time passing by as a lady is stuck dealing with a man. Generally, Mrs. Mallard’s passionate state in “The Narrative of 60 minutes” may have been legitimized, taking into account that she fell down and died from seeing her better half is alive.
The theme of “The Wife” relates to Mrs. Mallard ‘s emotional state in “The Story of an hour” because it is about a woman who is giving up everything that she does to serve her husband and make him feel loved. She is losing all of her freedom when married. In the story it states ” She dropped the playthings of her life to take the honorable work of woman and of wife”. This text basically shows how she seems forced to lose her freedom just to make her husband happy and do a “wife’s role”. In “The story of an hour” the author never states that she lost love for her husband but when he died she was happy to regain some freedom that she once had before she was married. You can tell from her enjoyment of her husband passing that she was in a unhealthy mental state while married.
Hey Alexsander,
I wanted to add on to your analysis of “The Story of an Hour”.
The magic of this short story is what isn’t written down in the story, but the reader must assume. There are hints of certain elements of what life must have been like for Ms. Mallard, but none are definitive. We can assume that the marriage was for something other than love, like money or power. Perhaps there was a big age gap between them, or he worked so much that they hardly spent any time together. Or maybe that honeymoon phase was over for them.
When she enters her bedroom and looks outside, the death of her husband and the signs of life that she sees are great contrasts. Life seems more pleasant, or at least she begins to notice life around her. Before the appearance of her husband at the end of the story, Richards, a friend of the husband, tries to shield himself in front of Ms. Mallard. Why he would do this is not stated, but he must have known how she would react. Perhaps they were having an affair? That is unclear. But what is clear is that Ms. Mallard felt trapped and for a moment, felt freedom.
From “The Story of an Hour” it’s not about word count, but making each word count.
Gamby, two of your ideas here come together beautifully for me. The story is so compact. As you write, there is a description of how Mrs. Mallard begins to come alive when she believes her husband is dead. There is a particularly vivid section where each of the five senses is evoked as she sits at the window. It is as if she is fully alive for the first time in her life. And all this is accomplished by the writers in a few sentences. Your comment about the word count is also relevant to the compactness of this wonderful story. We are taken on a rollercoaster ride of emotions in two pages. We feel the dread, the rising fear, the new joy, the euphoria—and then the crash. So much emotion is explored in this very short story.
Hello Alexsander, I agree with some your analysis. In the story, she never stated that she hated her husband. If anything, she stated the opposite, that she loved him dearly. And she was very happy to regain some of the freedom that she lost when she married. But I’m not sure if she was in a unhealthy mental state while she was married. She may have been restricted with duty she had to take up but I’m not sure if that would had led to an unhealthy mindset.
In this poem, “The Wife”, Emily Dickinson describes a tragic faith of married in the society and how their lives are drastically changed, and their desires pressed after they step into the married life. Dickinson in her poem describes women who gave up on her playful life “to take honorable work of woman and of wife”. The women who lost her freedom just to “rose to her requirement” as it is acceptable in the society. Likewise to Mrs. Mallard, her desires are being unnoticed, unmentioned, and only her husband knows what she had to give up and sacrifice for him to be a “good wife” “… only to himself is known the fathoms they abide”. She gave up her life and her dreams to live the life her husband wants like Mrs. Mallard did who, in the end, got sacrificed from emotional rollercoaster, knowing her husband survived the crash and all her dreams that she dreamt of during that one hour never had a chance to become a reality.
“Knowing that Mrs. Mallard was afflicted with a heart trouble, great care was taken to break to her as gently as possible the news of her husband’s death” (Choppin 1). This heart trouble is symbolic of the emotional and love problems Mallard has been having before the story begins. This is comparable to the second stanza of “The Wife” where the honeymoon period has “wore away” (Dickerson 1) and Mallard is essentially trapped with someone she couldln’t care about. The line “She did not hear the story as many women have heard the same…” (Choppin 3) is enigmatic of the period Choppin resides in – she views marriage, not men, as oppressive, a view many women did not subscribe to. Mallard’s displesure with her husband is never outright stated, instead she has a sense of relief wash over her after she has dealt with her grief. “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” (Choppin 4). This along with the last stanza of “The Wife,” “It lay unmentioned, as the sea. Develops pearl and weed” (Dickerson 4), are both the quotes that define their themes, that marriage is pushing a will onto the other spouse, the unmentioned rule of marriage. However, is the force of will necessarily negative? No, the relationship is never presented as animus or abusive with Mallard expressing grief for her husband, instead both works portray that in 19th century society women and were supposed to act a certain way and their roles in that marriage are already defined.
Hello Gamby,
I liked how you stated your point that it’s not so much the individuals but the institution of marriage itself, with its societal expectations, that stifled women in Victorian society. The heart condition is very symbolic, as you pointed out. So is the fact that she can cry in public, as it fits her role as mourning wife, yet has to hide from the world to express her forbidden joy, the expression of her deepest, repressed feelings. Neither text is utterly black-and-white, although Chopin’s short story, despite the death of its protagonist, is somehow more nuanced and less bleak than Dickinson’s poem.
Themes in Emily Dickinson’s “The Wife” include identity, death, and despair. In “The Story of an Hour”, Mrs. Mallard is faced with self-discovery and new-found freedom.
These are stories of women and the higher power they carry.
There are secrets within a marriage. Layers and layers, buried beneath. “It lay unmentioned, as the sea develops pearl and weed.” (Dickinson 9)
Mrs. Mallard was somewhat relieved by her husband’s death. “And yet she had loved him – sometimes. Often she had not.” (Chopin 49)
“The Wife” describes a woman devalued, and possibly considered a child with her “playthings”. “She rose to his requirement, dropped the playthings of her life” (Dickinson 1)
Mrs. Mallard believes she no longer has a “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.” (Chopin 45)
She is strong and has hope for her future.
Hi Ilana! Great analysis. I agree that the first lines of “The Wife” are quite similar to how a husband subconsciously imposes his will on their wife. Also the line about what lays unmentioned, could imply secrecy which would explain Mrs. Mallard’s dissatisfaction.
Hi ilana I really like how you explained making paragraphs and the whole writing.I totally agree with the description of the poem and the story you gave.Kind of relates to mine. Marriage has its own pros and cons and the poem shows the sacrifices a wife has to make.Thankyou for explaining it.
Hello llana, this is a great analysis to the theme of the stories. In both readings it shows how marriage can be both good and bad. Mrs. Mallard gave up her life to marry someone who she loves but sometimes she doesn’t as well. Woman give up so much in order to be a great wife to their husbands and a lot of husbands don’t see that sacrifice they make.
“The wife” by Emily Dickinson and “The Story of an Hour” both contain themes of the deep dissatisfaction felt by the women of the 19th century. In “The Story of an Hour,” Mrs. Mallard discovers he husband has passed away in a train accident. While she does feel sadness, her predominant emotional reaction is that of joy, particularly a sense of freedom. It is also implied that she didn’t particularly love her husband and at times being a wife was more of a responsibility or chore. Possibly something she didn’t choose. This reminds me of the opening lines of “The Wife,” “She rose to his requirement, dropped
The playthings of her life
To take the honorable work
Of woman and of wife.”
Here it is implied that being a wife is more of a sacrifice and a responsibility than a choice or a wholesome desire. This can explain why Mrs. Mallard felt this overwhelming sense of freedom upon discovering the news of her husband’s death. As it was not likely something she desired. This would lead to a relationship filled with repression and discontent, which reminds me of the final lines of the poem.
It lay unmentioned, as the sea
Develops pearl and weed,
But only to himself is known
The fathoms they abide.”
These lines are referring to an unspoken discontent. This was a time in history where it was uncommon for women to speak their truth when it came to their marriage as men had all the power and women were expected to be very submissive. As stated previously, the life of discontent and repression is likely what lead to Mrs. Mallard’s feeling of freedom and unfortunately her death when she discovered her husband was still alive and her freedom was once again gone.
Hi, Charran. This is wonderful comments. I agree your most opinions in the comments. However, there is one opinion that I don’t agree with you is she does not love her husband. In the third paragraph of the story an hour, after she heard the death of her husband, she is crying. It is obvious if they don’t love each other, why would they get marries.
One of themes between the Emily Dickson poem “The Wife” relates to Mrs. Mallard’s emotional state in “The Story of an Hour” is freedom. In “The Story of an Hour”, after hearing of Brently’s death, Louise’s first reaction is that she is free and happy. For most female, when they get married, they give their rest of life to their husband and family. As it mentioned in the poem by Emily Dickinson, “To take the honorable work, Of woman and of wife.” After they get married, they don’t have much time to mind their own business. “Free! Body and soul free!” (The Story of an Hour) What a relief! Louise feels depressive for the past years. However, at the end of story she had died of heart disease. The story don’t mentioned too much about her life. Just as The Wife “it lay unmentioned, as the sea develops pearl and weed.
Kate Chopin’s short story and Emily Dickinson’s poem explore the contradictions inherent to gender roles and social expectations for western women of the 19th century.
Chopin’s story is set at a turning point in the protagonist’s life, where news come that she has lost her husband. This leads her to confront her contradictory feelings and to realize that the freedom she lost by marrying was more valuable to her than the affection she felt for her husband. This freedom consists of the agency over her own life and the liberty not to conform to the role of the caring, submissive wife. This realization is accompanied symbolically by the setting outside her window, where she takes shelter to process her emotions. Ironically, this symphony of happy sounds, lights, and scents, is received with apprehension. The realization is “creeping out of the sky, reaching toward her through the sounds, the scents, the color that filled the air.” All this positive imagery, that will be associated with her feeling of freedom, is contrasted by a vocabulary of fear, symbolizing the repression of said feelings in Victorian-era wives.
This contradiction is echoed in the more archetypal subject of Dickinson’s poem. The woman, becoming a wife and later a mother, loses something. Or at least, it becomes repressed, “lay[ing] unmentioned” at the bottom of the sea. The imagery evokes something submerged, fading, yet not quite extinguished. This beauty is “only to [it]self is known” as the inner life of a woman is not allowed to be expressed in Victorian society.
Hello Anastasiia,
You Beautifully interpreted the poem “The Wife” and Chopin’s story. I agree that these poems show how women are so repressed since childhood, that they are taught they do not want a life of free will. I had not realized the importance of the irony in the imagery versus the vocabulary, a great interpretation. These stories show how women lack the ability to express what they want in life. Its saddening to think freedom was connected to fear for women, when it should be the direct opposite.
The theme of Emily Dickinson poem “The Wife” co relates to Mrs.Mallards emotional state in the “The Story of an Hour” in every manner. Poem “The Wife” is about every women’s freedom before and after marriage.Their job, their duty and how their life revolves around this whole commitment. “ She rose to his requirement, dropped the playthings of her life.To take the honorable work Of woman and of wife”.Here the Poem talks about how a wife has to live two lives.One where she is a woman and other as a wife and all the sacrifices she has to make to be a wife.And “The Story of an hour” is about the freedom from this commitment.The husbands news of death makes the wife sad but the womanhood and freedom that was trapped inside the soul comes out which cant stop her from being joyful.One is about the commitment while other is the freedom of hope that might come.
The theme of Emily Dickinson’s poem “The Wife” relates to Mrs. Mallard’s “The Story of an Hour” in that it shows the untapped potential of a fur filling life that women tie away when getting married, and conditioning of women to fit into society’s role for women. In the 19th century, a women is never just her own. Before she is married she is owned by her father and given away to the husband. Without control of where your life leads their comes emotional turmoil. In “The Story of an Hour” we see women are taught to hide their opinions and want for free will when she says, “She was beginning to recognize this thing that was approaching to possess her, and she was striving to beat it back with her will — as powerless as her two white slender hands would have been. ” Mrs. Mallard was forcibly pushing back her own feeling of free will even after she had thought her husband was gone. Her sense of relief was berried deep under the cultural conditioning brought upon women. This is also shown in “The Wife” when Emily Dickenson said, “She rose to his requirement, dropped The playthings of her life”. Women are fed the idea of their “role” in life first through their mothers. They are taught to get married, make your husband happy, and have children. Calling the life a women has built prior to marriage “playthings” goes to show how little they were taken seriously and how conditioned women are to fulfill their role given. Women were only left to daydream about a life on their own, and most did not get to. Both women in the stories never got to see what could have happened with their own free will, expect their imagination. In “The Story of an Hour” Mrs. Mallard said, “Her fancy was running riot along those days ahead of her. Spring days, and summer days, and all sorts of days that would be her own. She breathed a quick prayer that life might be long. It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long.” Thinking her husband had gone, she had felt her life had finally begun. Life felt like less a burden when she had control over her own path. This untapped potential is also seen in “The wife”, when Emily says “It lay unmentioned, as the sea Develops pearl and weed,” The possibilities of her own life will forever be un explored, much like the bottom of the sea.
Hello Caroline, I enjoyed reading your post as you thoroughly discussed the issue around the topic. I am glad that you mentioned how women were in the possession of their fathers and eventually they were “given” to their husbands. When I read this line, I thought that I would share something interesting. In my language, if we are talking about a woman, the phrase “she got married” is said in one word and that one word would translate something like “lending something to someone”. If we are talking about man, that is not the case – the word “lending” is not mentioned. With given information, all I want to say is that the social role that we have for “wife” is not desirable – it’s more like serving someone else rather than enjoying your womanhood. Fortunately, situation has been changed since, let’s say, 19th century. However, in many cultures, such expectations towards woman remains the same. I brought all these up since it shows diminished role of free will in many women’s lives.
The theme of “The Wife” is exact narration of Mallards emotional mental state in the short story “The half an hour”. Dickinson like other American writers tried to show the tough and rough routine of married women’s life. Mrs Mallard is centralized in the state of matrimony. But after the death of her husband she feels free, independent and consoled. “The wife” is a poem by Emily Dickinson that makes a comparison and contrast of an unmarried woman to a wife. “I m married— and I m finished that” this line described the emotional and sentimental state of womanhood. “The folks in heaven” metaphorically depicted the routines of a wife. Dickinson preferred the life of wife “the other” and life of a “spinster was pain”. On the one side Dickinson make a comparison of a wife to “Czar” She compared the life of a woman to Czar because she gain freedom and individuality after the marriage and she ruled the house. She called the marriage a heavenly state of condition in which woman make secure and gain comfort. Lastly She used the word “was pain’ and ‘stop there” is direct demonstration of women’s deprivation, illness and suffrage. She became sad “she cried herself unwittingly like goddess of victory”. But after sometimes Mrs Mallard feels freedom and individuality. Both work described the oppressive story of a married woman like mostly women writers elaborated in their works. The duality of feelings in “the Story of an Hour” and “The Wife” is explicitly mentioned. Both works are amalgamation of positive and negative views about married life. Both work left the reader to the answerable conclusions either marriage is shelter or liberation of women’s feelings.
“The Wife” by poet Emily Dickinson is a short poem that explores the theme of sacrifices made by women who become wives. This poem describes the fear Dickinson felt about becoming a wife, which is why she never married or had children. Dickinson writes, “or the gold In using wore away”(Dickinson lines 7-8), which I interpreted as gold referring to her goals and dreams and due to marriage they were worn away and disappearing over time. Similarly, Louise Mallard in “The story of an hour” by author Kate Chopin, also feels that she had made scarifies and lost herself and her dreams because of her marriage. When Louise is told that her husband passed away she is first overcome with grief only to realize that his death made her feel freedom and independence; something she wasn’t aware she was missing until she felt it in that moment. Chopin writes, “There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself.” (Chopin line 47) and “Free! Body and soul free!’ she kept whispering.”(Chopin line 54). Both women would never truly feel freedom and independence in marriage.
Hi Shadai,
I couldn’t really pinpoint what “The gold in using wore away” was. I think what you’re saying is a good way to think of it. I’m sure both women had goals and dreams, and soon after marriage realized that these goals and dreams would never come to fruition. They were more like servants, with no say over what they wanted. I feel that Mrs. Mallard in particular had a very tragic case, as she was at first elated with the idea of freedom, only to see that her husband was in fact alive, which may have played at her heartstrings physically and ultimately killed her. We take for granted our “positions” in relationships, and may not realize the effects that we have on each other. Thankfully times have changed, but we still have a ways to go.
In a short narrative “The Story of an Hour” by Mrs. Mallard, we can see a sorrowful wife’s emotional state, which was shaken by the news of her husband’s death. Which connects to a short poem “The Wife” by Emily Dickinson that shows a woman’s commitment and suffering leading to many hard choices. In the poem is says “She rose to his requirement, dropped the playthings of her life to take the honorable work of woman and of wife”, This demonstrates that Mrs. Mallard learns and accepts to be a wife, but she also has to change her life around because she is now a wife to a husband and must act in a way she never was. Mrs. Mallard’s inner condition gives us a glimpse of all the things she went through. Losing a husband while gaining freedom to open up her life. This pertains to her condition since attempting to confront being a strong wife and a woman . Someone’s emotional state gives them a desire to be free but it may lead to many other consequences.
I feel that the theme of “The wife” relates to Mrs. Mallards emotional state in the fact that Mrs. Mallard feels that marriage is more servitude than it is a pleasurable thing. In “The Wife”, Emily Dickinson writes,
“She rose to his requirement, dropped
The playthings of her life
To take the honorable work
Of woman and of wife.”
In this the words “Rose to his requirement” foreshadows any elation to being married, but more of being the spouse she is needed to be by her future husband.
In the next part, Dickinson writes,
“If aught she missed in her new day
Of amplitude, or awe,
Or first prospective, or the gold
In using wore away.”
My perspective on this is that in the beginning she may have been built up, looking forward to the marriage imagining that it would be something happier, but those feelings wore away, Much like Mrs. Mallard wasn’t happy soon after being married feeling that she had no freedom or independence.
Lastly, Dickinson writes
“It lay unmentioned, as the sea
Develops pearl and weed,
But only to himself is known
The fathoms they abide.”
I believe that what is being said here is that the wife is unhappy, but just as the sea “hides” seaweed and pearls being developed, the woman, wives, are holding the secret that they are unhappy in marriage, feeling no independence or freedom. As if they have no voices of their own.
The theme of Emily Dickson poem ” The Wife ” and how it relates to Mrs. Mallard emotional state in the short story ” The Story of an Horror” by Kate Chopin is being able to take on the role of being a wife even if you have to mourn about you’re feeling in silent. Mrs. Mallard never stated how she didn’t love her husband she just didn’t like the freedom that’s taken away from her so when its announce that her husband Mr. Mallard had died in an accident she gets a feeling of freedom and she starts to wish for a long life so she can start to actually live for herself and not as Mr. Mallard’s wife. Towards the end of the story Mr. Mallard appears and she realizes her husband isn’t dead this shock causes her to drop dead. I feel like the author made her died to show readers her soul died right along with her freedom so quickly. Although Mrs. Mallard doesn’t tell anyone how she feels this brings me to the poem ” The Wife” where the poet states “If aught she missed in her new day Of amplitude, or awe,
Or first prospective, or the gold
In using wore away,
It lay unmentioned, as the sea Develops pearl and weed,
But only to himself is known The fathoms they abide.” The poet is saying although she might feel down about her womanhood that she has to hold up a role such as being a wife her feeling goes unmentioned just like the pearls and weed in the sea, while on the other hand so does Mrs. Mallard feelings about not being able to be free with her husband alive goes unmentioned.
Hi, Giovanna
I agree with how Mrs mallard managed to still keep her composure as a wife even though her husband had died when she thought that he had died she was then able to feel a sense of freedom because she no longer had to be labeled wife of a man. Women in that time had no equality and to men, they were more like possessions rather than human beings.
The poem “The wife” relates to Ms. Mallard’s emotional state In “The Story of the hour an hour” because it shows the difficulties of being a woman during that time and the responsibilities that came with being a wife. Mrs. Mallard wanted to be free from being a wife, and when her husband died she was able to experience the feeling of being free which she longed for. In the poem” the wife”, Emily Dickinson says ”She rose to his requirement, dropped The playthings of her life To take the honorable work Of woman and of a wife.” Women don’t have the ability to do other things than be a wife because women are looked down upon as less than men. Ms. Mallard when she became a wife had to in a twisted way by her husband’s object or property. The author of “ The story of an hour was a feminist who fought for women’s rights because they were limited in ways to express themselves and what they could do. When Ms. mallard finds out that her husband is alive, she died because of her heart. In the poem “ The wife” Emily Dickinson says “ Or first prospective, or the gold In using wore away.” This shows that she had to abandon any hope of chasing any dreams and that having a husband will stop her from having free will. All the freedom that she thought she was about to obtain was then taken away from her in an instant. Mrs. Mallard struggles with finding her identity because of whats society expects of women and what she wants for herself. Both of these readings teach a valuable lesson that you have to enjoy moments because you never know how long they are going to last.
In the poem, “The Wife” By Emily Dickinson, relates to the emotional state in “The Story of an Hour.”, in which both characters realize they’re trapped under the restraints of being a wife to their husband. In the first verse of the poem, it’s made clear, the wife “dropped the play things…to take the honorable work of..wife”. “Something that “In the Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, Mrs. Mallard shared. She was sadden but also in a state of excitement because she realized she no longer had that role. The poem also helps support this idea because, in the 2nd and 3rd verse, it describes the amount of potential that the wife has, the potential that only the husband had an idea of. That’s why Mrs. Mallard is so overjoyed that she dies of a heart attack. She believed that she was finally free, out of the system. Which is ironic because, the doctors arrived to the conclusion that she died of a heart attack out of joy because her husband was still alive.