Examining the Life of Kate Chopin

Examining the life of Kate Chopin

When people read a novel they don't expect it to be based on passed events in the authors life. That's not the case in Kate Chopin's short story "The Story of an Hour". Kate's background played key parts into putting together the story. Through life changing experiences she learned much and integrated them into her short story. The life of Kate Chopin growing up was rough but from this she became an independent woman and wrote based on her past.

Kate Chopin's life began in St. Louis, Missouri on February 8th, 1851. Growing up came quickly for her because of the death of her father who died in a railroad accident. As a result of this she was raised and mentored by mostly women. Being raised by women is where her free spirited, independent, feministic views came. In the late 1800's Kate fell in love and married a man named Oscar Chopin in which they ended up having six children together. Not too long into the marriage her husband died unexpectedly, and so she became an independent woman as in her short story "The Story of an Hour".

Her short story "The Story of an Hour" is about a woman named Mrs. Millard who had a hear condition. She ends up finding out that her husband had passed away in a railroad accident. The same way Chopin's father had died. After the death of Mrs. Millard's husband she embraces her independence as a single woman saying "There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself" (Chopin 206). Again this relates to Chopin's personal life because once her husband passed away she embraced her newly found independence as a single woman. In the end Mrs. Millard realizes her husband never died in a railroad accident and due to her heart condition she passes away because of the joy of seeing him or was it a broken heart knowing that her freedom had now been taken away.

It's evident that Chopin's short story is influenced by past tragedies in her life. She went through much growing up and through life changing experiences it has influenced her writing. Chopin's writing style is extremely feministic, portraying the lives of women as independent in her short stories. "The Story of an Hour" was written in 1894, a period where women did not really have much influence or say in anything that went on. Women stayed home and took care of the family and managed the household, while the men went worked. Chopin went ahead and wrote about women and there problems even though it was not a popular topic in those days, she wrote about these issues because she wanted other women to stand up and be free spirited and independent women as she was.

Through her writing she portrayed herself in stories that goes unnoticed unless researched. She expressed what she thought and made readers think things through. More