Monday, December 16, 2013

Does Louise of "The Story of an Hour" fulfill all the criteria of a convincing character in the story?There are various criteria for...

Good question.  Certain elements help create memorable characters; an examination of them will help determine whether or not Louise can be classified as a memorable literary character. 


Physical characteristics - we know very little about what Louise looks like.  We do know she has a weak heart, which is important to the ending of the story.  The fact that we know so little about her physical features tells us it's not the outside that matters.


Interaction with other characters - She doesn't interact much with anyone else in the story; in fact, she withdraws to her room for the majority of the time we know her. Her sister and a family friend try to console her, without success. The only real interaction takes place in a matter of seconds, as she sees her husband walk in the door.  Again, this lack of social interaction suggests what matters is what's in her mind.


Interaction with environment - As with several other elements here, Louise experiences little of this.  That probably means her literal environment doesn't matter.  In the truest sense of the word, this is accurate--though she feels like a prisoner, she is perfectly free in terms of her environment. 


Internal thoughts or philosophy -  This is the core of who Louise is, why readers sympathize or empathize with her, and why she dies at the end of this very short story.  She understands that, without the figurative shackles of her marriage, she can finally be "free. Body and soul free!"  Her husband is not cruel, and "she had loved him--sometimes"; but she will never be free to choose for herself or speak her own mind as long as she is married to him.



"There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature."



Louise Mallard is lost in the reverie of being someone new, someone she has not been allowed to be, now that her husband is gone.  "There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself."


Revelations about the past - Again, the readers are allowed to catch a glimpse of life as Louise must have lived it.  No particular specifics are given, but we certainly get the flavor of her life before the train wreck. 


Way of speaking - There is nothing distinctive about her words or sentence structure; however, the narrator's description of Mrs. Mallard's inner thoughts are quite unique.  She is expressive and intriguing and honest.


Considering those elements, Louise Mallard is a memorable character in a very, very short and potentially forgettable story.

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