Compare and contrast “A Rose For Emily” by William Faulkner and “The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin
“A Rose For Emily” by William Faulkner is a short story that demonstrates the Southern gothic genre. The story shows Miss Emily Grierson funeral that is attended by so many people in the town. She had been living alone and had no friends from the community. When Emily was young, her father forbidden her from socializing but she married a low class, Homer Barron. After some time, her husband disappeared, but after thirty years, the remains of her husband were traced under her bed in her house. On the other hand, “The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin features a brief emotional journey of Louise Mallard after she learnt that her husband was dead. Mallard locked herself in her room after she learnt that her husband was dead. In the room, her sadness began to disappear slowly and gave way to a new feeling of freedom as well as energy. She was filled with a lot of hope for freedom, but suddenly she saw her husband walking in the door, where she collapses for heart attack and die. I will be looking at the similarities and differences in the two stories “A Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner and Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour.”
Both stories have got the theme of death. In the “Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopins, the main character Louise Mallard in seen in very deep sorrow and pain after hearing of the death of her husband. She cries uncontrollably after learning of the death of her husband that led her to “a storm of grief (Chopins 16).” However, after sometimes she reacted normally as nothing has happened. She went to her bedroom, and she felt a sense of peace sweeps across her mind. She is happy that she is free from the bondage of marriage because she will never be mistreated by her husband again. According to her, the death of her husband does not lead her to a big loss, but she had gained a lot because she finally found freedom. Although there is a touch of sadness for losing her husband, she also has a touch of joy for getting her freedom (Chopin 26). It shows that she only experience a small amount of sorrow for losing her husband, but the amount of joy in her heart cannot be compared. On the other hand, Grierson sank into madness and depression that led her to kill her husband. The two women underwent a similar loss but had different experiences. Mallard shows positive qualities such as joy and enlightenment for losing her husband because she received her freedom, but Grierson is in deep sorrow and pain for losing her life partner (Faulkner 28). She feels that she will be lonely for losing her husband.
In both stories, there is a theme of marriage. In the “Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, there is so much repression that Mrs Mallard is going through. She is locked into a marriage that has no love. Mrs Mallard says “her husband never looked at her save with love” (Chopin 34). After the death of her husband, she is referred to as Louise, which is her first name that shows that she is now free from the bondage of marriage. She is trying to express that marriage makes many women feel depressed. However, though Louise thinks that she was in a bondage of marriage, it is not clear if her husband mistreated her because she looked at her with love. Moreover, she felt that her husband loved her though love was not enough for her to be in a marriage “, but that is never enough for her to feel any love from him as it says” and yet she loved him, sometimes,” (Chopin 34). Grierson had also been living alone for thirty years after the disappearance of her husband. She was also not happy in her marriage when her husband was alive. She had been living in isolation for years until her death when her husband’s skeleton was discovered under her bed (Faulkner 48).
One different seen in the two stories is the time that is describing the two stories. The story of an Hour by Kate Chopin lasts only for an hour while in the Rose for Emily by William Faulkner has describes the actions that have lasted for some years (Faulkner 12). In “The story of an hour”, the reader can only see the life of Louise for only one hour. And after that, the reader is left to guess what will happen in his life later. On the other hand, Emily’s life is presented in the progression, and the reader can notice that she has been living an unhappy life. Besides, Mrs Mallard felt that she was free only for a short time that led her to cry for being free, “free! Free! Free!”(Chopin 2). On the other hand, Emily was left to be free only the time she died.
Conclusion
The Short Stories “A Rose For Emily” by William Faulkner and the “The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin is showing how women have been treated as the second class citizens in the world. Omen is not respected and are used as puppets to make men happy. The theme of marriage and love has been portrayed in both stories. Women have been living in marriages without love, and where seems to be love it is all about pretence. The two stories are also set at different times, where “The story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin lasts only for an hour while in the “Rose for Emily” by William Faulkner has describes the actions that have lasted for some years
Works Cited
Faulkner, William, John Carradine, and Anjelica Huston. A rose for Emily. Paderborn, De: Verlag F. Schöningh, 1958.
Chopin, Kate. The story of an hour. Jimcin Recordings, 1981.