2. At the beginning of the story, Mrs. Mallard
receives the news of the death of her husband
Brantley Mallard. It was her husband’s friend
Richards who brought the bad news and made
sure it was certain. Her sister Josephine told
her the news in a very gentle way because
Mrs. Mallard was suffering from a heart
problem. Mrs. Mallard wept at once because
of the surprise. But when the storm of grief
had spent itself she went away to her room
alone for an hour.
3. During this hour she kept thinking of the
freedom which the death of her husband has
brought her. She was overwhelmed by joy at the
thought of a new liberated life. Because she
recognized the possession of self-assertion as the
strongest impulse of her being, the death of her
husband signaled her release from the bondage of
marriage. “There would be not one to live for
during those coming years; she would live for
herself,” she thought. Ironically, her sister
Josephine was afraid that Mrs. Mallard would kill
herself with grief. She did not know that she was
living the only hour of happiness in her life.
4. Finally, Mrs. Mallard leaves her room and
descends the stairs with her sister when
suddenly the door opens and her husband
appears. He was not in the train that made the
accident. Ironically again, Mr. Richard tries to
hide him from the view of his wife. But Mrs.
Mallard dies. The doctors think that she died of
joy, which we know is a wrong diagnosis. In fact,
she died of sadness because her dreams of a
free life collapse.
5. The story is told from the point of view of a
third-person narrator.
6. The story happens in Mrs. Mallard’s
house, mostly in her room. The action takes an hour
and it’s springtime. This story is a masterpiece of
setting. The author creates the setting in such a way
as to reflect the feelings of main character. Upon
hearing the news of husband’s death, Mrs. Mallard
retreats into her room alone. There, she feels for the
first time in control of herself. She sits in front of the
open window, which represents the new free life. The
sights and sounds that reach her from the window are
all associated with spring life. Spring is the time of
renewal and rebirth, which reflects her state of mind
during that hour.
7. UNHEALTHY MARRIAGES THAT DEPRIVE WOMEN OF THEIR
INDEPENDENCE
This short story tells of the deep feelings of a woman who dislikes
the bondage of marriage and suffers from the suppression of her
husband. Mrs. Mallard welcomes the news of the death of her
husband with great joy. The news represents for her the end of the
time of repression and the new possession of her freedom and control
of her life. The hour between her receiving the news and the arrival of
her husband is the happiest hour in her life. She keeps thinking of the
freedom which the death of Mr. Mallard brought her. The story tells of
the women’s oppression by men. In some marriages, like that of the
Mallards,’ the husband tries to repress his wife’s feelings and hopes, to
impose his will and his own way of thinking on her, depriving her of her
independent selfhood. This story shows that some husbands treat
their wives as trivial objects, of no significance, and of no existence of
their own, revealing the harmful effect of this kind of relationship on
women.
8. Irony is the gap between what the characters know and what the
readers know, or the gap between what is expected to happen and what
really happens
The story begins with the irony that Mr. Richards and Josephine, Mrs.
Mallard’s sister, are very cautious in telling Mrs. Mallard the news of the
death of her husband. They did not know that the news will bring her
happiness.
It is ironical that her sister is afraid that Mrs. Mallard would die of grief
in her room alone. She does not know that this was the happiest hour in
her life.
At the end of the story, when the husband returns suddenly, Mr.
Richards tries to hide him from the view of his wife. This is ironical. He
thinks that the extreme joy may affect her troubled heart. He does not
know that the return of her husband is not a source of joy for her.
Ironically, the doctors’ diagnosis is that she died of joy. Actually, the
shock and the grief that she feels because of her husband’s appearance is
the cause of her death.
9. A symbol is something that represents or
stands for something else, especially a concrete
object representing something abstract.
The Open Window
The open window is a symbol of the freedom
that Mrs. Mallards thinks will have after the
death of her husband.
