Discuss the treatment of women in Kate chopins The Story of an hour and The Awakening - Research Paper Example

This enables her to ‘paint a picture’ of life in that moment. By focusing on key elements of the environment in which the characters move and through special attention given to just how the story is to be told, she enables the audience to experience the constraining forces experienced by women of her time and why they would want to escape from it. These ideas are easily discovered in a comparison between Chopins short story “The Story of an Hour” and her novel Awakening as both women experience an awakening to their own inner nature.

Awakening begins with consistent references to Edna Pontelliers position as part of the property held by her husband until the night she takes a liberating swim away from the life shes been trapped within. Her owned status is introduced on her first appearance at the beginning of the story in the way that her husband, Leonce Pontellier, addresses her as she returns from a swim. “’You are burnt beyond recognition,’ he added, looking at his wife as one looks at a valuable piece of personal property which has suffered some damage” (13).

Vague ideas of independence and self-awareness plague Edna, slowly building through the action of the novel until they finally break free on the night of the beach party: “that night she was like the little tottering, stumbling, clutching child, who all of a sudden realizes its powers, and walks for the first time alone, boldly and with overconfidence. She could have shouted for joy. She did shout for joy, as with a sweeping stroke or two she lifted her body to the surface of the water” (50).

This experience of freedom is something most women didnt have a chance to know. According to one of the experts on womens conditions in that time period, “Woman … was the hostage in the home” (Welter 21), subject to her husbands desires, vices,