Story of an Hour

Confusing happiness

As humans, it’s natural for us to be on a constant search for fulfillment and happiness in our lives. However, we often confuse true happiness with being content and comfortable in a less desired, routine oriented life. In “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, the reader should recognize that in order to obtain an ideal lifestyle, one must be willing to accept false happiness as it provides a sense of security and fulfillment in one's life, resulting in a lack of empathy towards others.

After discovering that her husband has died in a train accident, Mrs. Mallard faces conflicting emotions of grief at her husband's death and fulfillment with the prospect of freedom for the remainder of her life. When Mrs. Mallard enters her room and sits in the chair she is “pressed down by a physical exhaustion that haunted her body and seemed to reach her soul,” this exhibits that her marriage was very demanding, tiring, and also extremely stressful. This overwhelming amount of pressure in her marriage probably caused her lack of empathy towards Mr. Mallard's death, eventually her thoughts of joy rather than guilt take precedence in her mind which made her relieved that she would not have to wait on him hand and foot.

“Story Of An Hour” is written in a time period where women did not really have much power or say in anything that went on. Women stayed home, looked after the family and kept the house tidy, while the husbands went out and worked. If a woman were to decide to remain single, she would be ridiculed and pitied. The reason Mrs. Mallard got married; is not because she truly loved Mr. Mallard, it is because she felt the need to conform to the status quo. The reason many people including Mrs. Mallard choose false happiness comes from the feeling of superiority. We feel that happiness depends on proving to the world that we are better than other people, if Mrs. Mallard and Mr. Mallard could portray a happily married couple, others will often aspire to meet those standards in their own marriage. Another logic Mrs. Mallard would have taken into consideration is the security and interdependence that a marriage would bring, she wouldn’t have to worry about providing for herself and she would not have to face situations alone. Above all reasons, Mrs. Mallard would not be mocked for a different way of life. When people decide to accept false happiness they have a lack of insightful judgment and lack of being aware of long-term consequences they are focusing on the immediate gratification, obtaining an ideal lifestyle. Unlike true happiness, fake happiness only brings a temporary blip of joy-which is unsatisfying in the long run. Sometimes people must experience loss in a situation they believe pleases them, only to have a weight lifted off their shoulders realizing the pressure the position put them in and how much