In The Awakening and "The Story of An Hour" I've noticed two themes that seem to be a favorite of Kate Chopin. In the "Story of An Hour" the main character's name is Mrs. Mallard and her husband Mr. Mallard. It is no coincidence that Kate Chopin named gave them the last name resembling the fowl. If you’ve looked at the birds you would see that the male is very colorful, handsome even. The female is on the other side of the spectrum. She’s brown, dull, and little in size. In the short story, Chopin describes Mrs. Mallard as such, “She was young, with a fair, calm face, whose lines bespoke repression and even a certain strength” (Chopin). There are no discerning features, nothing to catch the eye. Chopin does this again in The Awakening when describing Edna. “Her eyebrows were a shade darker than her hair. They were thick and almost horizontal, emphasizing the depth of her eyes. She was rather handsome than beautiful. Her face was captivating by reason of a certain frankness of expression and a contradictory subtle play of features” (Chopin 4). Chopin didn’t use any flowery language to describe an alluring dream girl, she just described a plain, old girl. My thought is, are both Mrs. Pontellier and Mrs. Mallard outshone by their husbands?
Friday, February 5, 2016
Ugly?
In The Awakening and "The Story of An Hour" I've noticed two themes that seem to be a favorite of Kate Chopin. In the "Story of An Hour" the main character's name is Mrs. Mallard and her husband Mr. Mallard. It is no coincidence that Kate Chopin named gave them the last name resembling the fowl. If you’ve looked at the birds you would see that the male is very colorful, handsome even. The female is on the other side of the spectrum. She’s brown, dull, and little in size. In the short story, Chopin describes Mrs. Mallard as such, “She was young, with a fair, calm face, whose lines bespoke repression and even a certain strength” (Chopin). There are no discerning features, nothing to catch the eye. Chopin does this again in The Awakening when describing Edna. “Her eyebrows were a shade darker than her hair. They were thick and almost horizontal, emphasizing the depth of her eyes. She was rather handsome than beautiful. Her face was captivating by reason of a certain frankness of expression and a contradictory subtle play of features” (Chopin 4). Chopin didn’t use any flowery language to describe an alluring dream girl, she just described a plain, old girl. My thought is, are both Mrs. Pontellier and Mrs. Mallard outshone by their husbands?
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I didn't notice the description about Edna resembled the bird. But now that you said it, I can see it. That was a good observation, connecting both "A Story of an Hour" and "The Awakening". I forgot Ms. Lucia said to keep a look out for anything bird related.
ReplyDeleteI agree that there is a strong sense of male dominance and a focus on how men and all they do outshine the women. Women are more thrown into the background and portrayed as dull and grey a shadow of the mans greatness if you will.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, I also believe that Chopin described the women of these stories like fowls. To answer your question: yes I think the husbands of the story outshine their wives. This might be because women of the 1800s did not get much recognition for their work, while the men were praised.
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