Mid-term writing test

Part A. Short-answer questions. 40%

1. What is Louise Mallard’s opinion of marriage? Indicate the paragraph that suggests it?
Louise's opinion of marriage is a very negative one. I am pretty sure that she felt stuck and imprisoned while she was married to Brently. This I figured because after learning about her husband's death, Louise is relieved and realises that '' There will be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence in which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature. '' She is also glad because she will finally be able to live for herself. (You can find this information in the 12th paragraph.)

2. Why does Louise Mallard suddenly stop crying? Indicate the place in the text?
After going up to her room alone and sitting in the comfy armchair in front of the window, Louise finally starts to realise that living without her husband will not be that bad. At that point, she had started thinking of the rest of her life without her husband and started feeling free of him, free to live her own life. Unfortunately, this new thought was so overwhelming that '' She did not stop to ask if it were or were not a monstruous joy that held her. '' (This information is related in the paragrpahs 10 to 12)

3. How does she feel about her future as a widow? Cite the line in the text, using just the first few words, then a series of dots …?
Louise feels her future as a widow will be quite nice since she will be free of her husband. She even says how she feels aloud, to herself ; ''free, free, free!''. '' There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself, '' is what she thought.

7. Explain how Louise can feel joy and sadness at the same time?

At the end of the story when Louise sees her husband and realises he is not truly dead, she is happy to know the person she has lived with and been married to for so many years is alive. Her husband did not really die of a horrable train accident, which is great. Of course, Louise had already gotten so used to the idea of living alone for the rest of her life, that the sadness of not having that dream come true hurt her so much it killed her.

Part B. Development question. 60%

In Kate Chopin’s "The Story of an Hour," irony is used to great effect. Kate Chopin was a critic of some sort. For example, in this story, she criticizes marriage. Wikipedia says that "Kate Chopin experienced differentiated lifestyles throughout her time, which lent to her wide realm of societal understanding and analysis. " Therefore, criticizing marriage would make perfect sense, for it would simply be another understanding she had of society. Of course, most authors, while criticizing one of the many flaws of the society in which they live in, will use irony to send a more subtle message. Authors, like Chopin, usually do not look to offend anybody in particular. They simply want to make as many people as possible understand how horrible or hypocritical some situations are. In this case, the horrible situation would be marriage between two people no longer in love or who never loved each other, which Chopin represents through the marriage of Brently and Louise Mallard.

Right from the beginning of the story, something is not quite right between the Mallard couple when Chopin says that Louise did not take the news of her husband’s death the way most wives do: "with a paralyzed inability to accept its significance. " Instead, " She wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment, in her sister's arms...''
Afterwards, poor Louise starts to see the bright side of things. She realizes that maybe her life won’t be that bad after all. She might even be happier than she was while she was still married to a live man. She finally feels free and knows she can live for herself and that nothing will hold her back. Unfortunately, a part of the irony in the Chopin’s story, is that when Louise is finally getting used to the idea of being a widow and living alone, her husband comes back and causes her such a surprise that she dies.

A larger view of the irony in the story goes from the start all the way to the end. At first. we learn that Louise Mallard has a heart disease; therefore, her sister Josephine and her friend Richards are so very careful when telling her the bad news about her deceased husband. They want to avoid any dangerous health problems that may occur. It is sad, yet ironic to learn that no matter how hard they tried to break such news to her in a soft and calm manner, Louise Mallard died that day, of a heart attack.

Basically, Kate Chopin who must be in love with everything ironic, made sure that the irony in the story does not end until the very last word.

(442 words)