Short Stories of Kate Chopin

 

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Outline

  • Introduction
  • Comparison
  • Contrast
  • Author’s Background
  • Conclusion

 

Short Stories of Kate Chopin

Introduction

Both “The Storm” and “The Story of an Hour” were written by Kate Chopin. In both stories, the author depicts suppressed emotions and passions of the women during that period. The two wives in “The Storm” and “The Story of an Hour” have desires that are hidden and they are both unable to act upon them or even openly express them due to the cultural beliefs as well as the society in which they lived in at the time. Unlike today, women in the two stories were not given opportunity in their lifetime (Reuben 33). The dominant role was therefore taken by men in marriages and women were left with the role of submissive housewives. Chopin in both stories takes the reader through the experience of each woman both at a time when their emotions were suppressed as well as when they were able to express their inner emotions, feel uninhibited and alive. The author conveys discontent of both women in the two stories and relates that discontent to the time period in which both women lived. Even though there are some differences between the women found in the two stories of Kate, both have hidden desires that they are unable openly express because of  the cultural beliefs as well as the society in which they lived in at the time.

Comparison

Both women from “The Story of an Hour and”The Storm” were married and the conditions of their marriage life were the same, in that they were both dissatisfied in their marriage. Mrs. Mallard was married to Brently Mallard and Calixta to Bobinot. In the text of both stories, both Mrs. Mallard and Calixta were evidently not satisfied with their marriages. In the story “The Story of an Hour” Mrs. Mallard for renitence never had affection for Mr. Brently Mallard, her husband (Reuben 36). This was evident after the death of her husband where she was hast to realize that she was free from him and could continue living her life the way she wanted without having to answer to anyone.

Even though Brently Mallard had a heart problem, the story mentions that she had all the intention to live a long life and that life would be hers alone. Like Brently Mallard, the matrimonial life of Calixta was not pleasing and she did not have a fondness for Mr. Bobinot her husband. At one time when her husband and son were in the store, a powerful cyclone held them up and they had to wait until the cyclone passed away. Calixta did not seem worried about the safety of her son and husband who were held up by the storm. Surprising, during this time when her husband and son were held at the store by the storm, Calixta was comfortably wrapped in the arms of her old lover Alcee.  Calixta enjoyed all the passion she and her older lover used to share (Tonette (b) 97). Not until the powerful cyclone has passed, did Mrs. Calixta and her old time lover Alcee decided to call it a day as Mr. Bobinot and the son arrived home. From both stories therefore, it is clear that both women Calixta and Mrs. Mallard were not pleased with marriage life and much less with their husbands.

In addition, both Calixta and Mrs. Mallard from “The Storm” and “The Story of an Hour” have very fascinating traits. In the case of Mrs. Mallard, when she was told the new of her husband death by Richard her husband’s friend and her sister, she mourned her husband for a while and she realized that she had got her freedom from the husband’s untimely demise. Nonetheless, her freedom did not last for long, and as coming down the stairs, she saw her husband at the entrance of the house. Mrs. Mallard die of heart attack on realization that the husband Mr. Brently Mallard was still alive. Calixta, on the other hand, stays alone in the house not worried about her husband Mr. Bobinot and her son despite the fact that they are both held up at the store by powerful storm. Calixta instead of being worried about her family, she is busy rekindling an affair with her long time lover and continues until the storm stops. Indeed, the two women in the two stories share some similarity; nonetheless, there are a number of differences exhibited by these women, which make them unique in their respective situations.

Contrast

One of the differences that can be pointed out between the two women is from “The Storm” and “The Story of an Hour” is the different reasons that caused matrimonial dissatisfaction in the women. In “The Storm”   for instance, there is enough evidence to indicate that Calixta was repressed sexually and that her husband, Mr. Bobinot was a great lover as Calixta had expected (Tonette (a) 49). The validity of the above statement may be confirmed by the fact that Mr. Bobinot has to buy Shrimp, which is used for sexual enhancement indicating that he was aware of his shortcoming particularly in bed. Additionally purchasing of Shrimp by Mr. Bobinot may also indicate that he was alive of the fact that their marriage falling apart and therefore he hoped to make amends wherever he could (Seyersted 43).

Nonetheless, not all that effort by Mr. Bobinot deterred his wife Calixta to give in to an affair with her long time lover Alcee as she considered him to be a more loving and passion man than her husband Mr. Bobinot. The marriage between Brently Mallard and Mrs. Mallard, on the other hand, in “A Story of an Hour” the situation was not the same as in the case of Calixta. Mrs. Mallard, though she did not mourn the demise of her husband, she was able to accept the situation as it was something that is very uncommon among other women. To her, the death of her husband was a great relive to her life and she realized that she would be free to live the rest of her life without a husband. It is clear that she did not love her husband since she thought he had dies, nonetheless, she did not have a lover like Calixta in the short story “The Storm”(Tonette (a) 54).

Author’s Background.

Both Mrs. Mallard and Calixta from “A Story of an Hour” and”The Storm”   are interesting characters developed in the two stories. They give the reader a perfect reflection of the life led by the author, Kate Chopin. While Calixta experience the reunion of her long time lover with whom she gets physically involved with thereby breaking her matrimonial commitment, Mrs. Mallard does not do such a thin when she got the news of her husband demise but rather she was quick to realize that there was a brighter side of her husband death and that was freedom (Tonette (b) 102). Ironically, Mrs. Mallard received the news of her husband’s death very calmly even though she had heart problems but the realization of the fact that her husband was alive led to her death.

The two short stories have can be related to the personal life of the other in the following context: Kate Chopin was born in 1850 in St. Louis, Missouri to Thomas O’Flaherty and Eliza. At an early age of five, her father passed away in a train crash (Toth 187).  After the demise of her father, Kate lived at her home for two years with her great grandmother, her grandmother, and her mother all of whom were widows. Victoria Verdon her great grandmother was responsible for her education and she taught her music, French, and other things that were necessary at the time. It is therefore clear that Kate grew up among single independent women who were intelligent and free from any kind of male dominance (Toth 188).

Those women surrounding Kate Chopin were ground breaking, for instance her mother was the first woman to obtain a legal separation from Kate’s father in St. Louis. Her mother had a shipping business and at the same time, she had five children to rise. It is worth noting that for sixteen years Kate never saw a married couple living in their home even though she had uncles, brothers, borders, and cousins living there. At the age of twenty, Kate was married to Oscar Chopin and they were blessed with seven children. Oscar died twelve years later living Kate as a widow to raise their children alone and to run the business of her husband.  She later moved back to live with her mother Eliza after selling her husband’s plantation and general shop. Unfortunately, her mother died a year later and this left Kate without anyone to support her in her children.  She ventured into writing and became very successful. Some of her work include: The Awakening, At Fault, Bayou Folk, A Night in Acadia, “A Story of an Hour”, and “The Storm”   to mention but a few.

Conclusion

One can rightly conclude that much of the Kate Chopin’s work especially the content of “A Story of an Hour” and “The Storm”   has some aspects that relate to the author’s personal life experience as a single and independent woman. It is evident from the two stories the desires of women were hidden and they were unable to act upon them or even openly express them due to the cultural beliefs as well as the society in which they lived in at the time. The role of a woman at that time was to be a submissive housewife and dominated by a man in the marriage. Tired of being dominated the women wanted freedom to live their lives without male interference.

 

 

 

 

Works Cited

Tonette, Bond (a). “Kate Chopin,” American Women Writers: Bibliographical Essays.       Ed.Maurice Duke, Jackson R. Bryer, and M. Thomas Inge. Westport: Greenwood Press,           1983, pp. 47-69.

Tonette, Bond (b). “Kate Chopin,” Dictionary of Literary Biography. American Short Story           Writers 1880-1910, volume 78. Ed. Bobby Ellen Kimbel. Ann Arbor: Edward Brothers,            1989, pp. 90-109.

Reuben, Paul. “Chapter 6: American Naturalism: Kate Chopin (1851 – 1904)” PAL:           Perspective on American Literature – A Research and Reference Guide. Retrieved      November 6, 2012 at http://www.csustan.edu/english/reuben/pal/chap6/chopin.html

Toth, Emily. “Kate Chopin,” Oxford Companion to Women’s Writing in the U.S. Ed. Cathy N.      Davidson, Linda Wagner-Martin. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995, pp. 187-188

Seyersted, Peter.  Complete Works of Kate Chopin.  Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University       Press, 1969.

 

 

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