大学英语高级写作A-Rhetorical-Analysis-of-“The-Story-of-an-Hour”.doc

如有侵权，请联系网站删除，仅供学习与交流大学英语高级写作A-Rhetorical-Analysis-of-“The-Story-of-an-Hour”【精品文档】第 3 页Professor ShuqingAdvanced English Writing 11 November 2014A Rhetorical Analysis of “The Story of an Hour”“The Story of an Hour” is a short story written by Kate Chopin in Louisiana 1894, it is considered as an outstanding work of feminist literature. In this story, the theme of the awakening and struggle of womens self-consciousness is throughout the entire essay by the use of multiple rhetorical devices. In the essay “The Story of an Hour”, Chopin uses the third-person narration along with several rhetorical devices to make the story such a success. By using third person narration the author knows every single thing of the characters, and she can reflect content as objectively as possible without the limitation of time and space. Therefore, she chooses the most typical scenes to show the protagonists psychological changes and plot the story in an impressive way. This helps readers to get more information from the authors description. For example, it is clear at the very beginning of the story that Mrs. Mallard is afflicted with heart trouble. This suggests that this trouble is both physical and emotional, a problem both with her body and unhappiness with her lack of freedom. This symbolism here also indicates her end. It is Mrs. Mallards heart trouble that influences all her reactions as well as other characters. The news of her husbands death is brought to her “as gently as possible”. The reason Mrs. Mallards sister Josephine and her husbands friend Richards break the news like this, is because that they fear the news could make her condition worsen. As expected, Mrs. Mallard “wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment” and “When the storm of grief had spent itself she went away to her room alone.” The word “storm” shows that it is an easy come easy go situation for Mrs. Mallard. It is ironic for a woman who loves her husband ends her crying so quickly. By using third person narration, Chopin freely changes the scene into Mrs. Mallards house and directly depicts the feeling and psychological activity of Mrs. Mallard. When she looks at the “new spring life” outside her window, a subtle and elusive thing from the “sky” comes into her bosom. “Her pulses beat fast, and the coursing blood warmed and relaxed every inch of her body” and “self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being!”. The “new spring life” and “sky” here symbolize the freedom and self-consciousness. Both Mrs. Mallard spirits and body are refreshed after her awakening of self-consciousness. Now, she is no longer a weak woman with serious heart trouble but a whole woman with confidence to face the true world outside her room. However, as soon as her stepped out her room and went down to the living room, her husband came back in a whole skin and crushes her dream. Her husbands death gives her a glimpse of a new life, and when that new life is swiftly taken away, the shock and disappointment kill her immediately. The doctors say she dies of joy and the story stops here abruptly. The irony of the ending is that Louise doesnt die of joy as the doctors claim, but actually from the loss of joy. The full text of "The story of an hour" less than 2000 words, but the use of irony and symbolism through the third person narration clearly shows the difficult situation for female to pursue the process of awakening self-consciousness in the patriarchal society.