The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin

In the short story, "The Story of an Hour," by Kate Chopin there are several symbols relating to the theme of freedom. One symbol is when Mrs. Mallard is in her room facing the window, which has some metaphoric meaning to it. Secondly, she has feelings of confinement, since she doesn't leave the house. Lastly, there is also irony having to do with her death. There is nothing worse than to lose than one's freedom. Mrs. Mallard shows signs of not having any freedom. Through out the story she is named Mrs. Mallard which means she is married, but really meaning that she is owned. She could have easily been referred to more offten as Louise, her first name, but Chopin makes the theme of ownership and inferiority clear and apparent from the beginning by using her last name frequently.

In the first symbol with Mrs. Mallard siting in her room where she is comfortable which is "Facing the open window"(28). This is one instance where she feels sad, yet free, as she looks at the free world outside of her prison. This comes from the sadness she feels from her husband's death, but she is also searching outside of her window for some kind of free soul that awaits her. Closely after that, she seems to feel like a free spirit, as "She could see the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with new spring life"(28). It's as if Mrs. Mallard was becoming that tree she saw outside of her window, so free. Since it was spring time, she believed this was her chance to let herself out of "prison" and live the free life of Louise. It was as if she can almost taste it; her freedom is so close, right outside her window. "The delicious breath of rain was in the air"(28). There is a lot of irony in her tears. To explain, as she is crying she can breath the rain outside. Her tears mean one thing which is the sadness she has for her husband's death. The rain outside may mean tears of joy that she yearns to breath.

Secondly, the feeling of freedom is something that Mrs. Mallard has never felt. When she hears of her husband's death, she doesn't know what to do. She has been used to being owned for so long all she can do is cry and sit in her chair looking through the window. It's