Gender roles in the nineteenth century played a major role in society with regards to actions and morals in the average household. Women and men played their own specific roles; however, at this time, Charles Darwin's pieces were read and thoroughly examined on their content and implications of gender and sexuality. Through the specific lens of gender roles in nineteenth century America and the diction used in combined works of The Story of an Hour by Kate Chopin and The Teeth of Desire: The Awakening and the Descent of Man by Bert Bender, which looks both at Kate Chopin and Charles Darwin's work, we can see the disconnect between men and women's views on their positions in society. This disengagement ultimately leads to oppression in marriage and the desire by the woman to become independent of any ownership from the husband, which is the central reason behind the feminism movement of woman's suffrage and rights.

The Story of an Hour written by Kate Chopin discusses Mrs. Mallard's marriage during the late 1800's and suggests the societal positions of men and a lack there of on the social position of women during that time period. In this short piece, Mrs. Mallard gets upset when she hears about her husband's accidental death. After grieving and mourning her lost, her outlook on this situation immediately changes from depressing to optimistic. She began to show signs of joy, independence, and confidence for her future as a woman without her husband to act as an influence on her life. With these new feelings, Mrs. Mallard began saying the words "free, free;" however, she was challenged to hold them back. After Mrs. Mallard accepted these feelings, which could be considered cheating toward her marriage, the narrator says, "But she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her absolutely. And she opened and spread her arms out to them in welcome. There would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself" (Chopin 224). This quote directly depicts Mrs. Mallard's feelings in her marriage now that she is free for the rest of her life and her belief that her husband was holding her back from a hopeful and promising life. Through the emotion felt in this story and the ways in which Mrs. Mallard welcomed her newfound freedom as seen in "she opened and spread her arms out to them in welcome" (224), it is evident of the position of women in society and marriage during the late nineteenth century. Ultimately, Mr. Mallard returns because there was confusion with who had died in the railroad accident and he was not one of them. Upon hearing the news, Mrs. Mallard had a heart attack and died because of "the joy that kills" (224). This joy that kills can be seen in two different lights, one light shows that Mrs. Mallard died due to the excitement upon her husband's return; however, according to Mrs. Mallard's previous feelings about the death of her husband, it is evident in this story that she was so joyful due to her new found freedom that when she saw him come in the door, she went from extremely happy to upset and had a heart attack. During this time period, women were visibly not able to have lives of their own once married, and generally, the husband was in ownership of the wife, as seen through: "she would live for herself" (224). This quote shows that with Mr. Mallard's death, Mrs. Mallard became free from his reign and thought that she would be able to live the life that the woman's rights activists were spreading and encouraging. Through these thoughts that Mrs. Mallard had, she suggests the oppressiveness in her marriage and is ultimately encouraging other women of this time to separate from the lives with their husbands in order to understand the opportunities that women should have. Although Mrs. Mallard had said that she loved her husband, it is apparent that in their marriage, he had held her back and she was happy to have independence and become self-assertive. 

In The Teeth of Desire: The Awakening and the Descent of Man, Bert Bender addresses Kate Chopin's work with regards to a previous work of Charles Darwin's and his general theories. In this piece, Bert Bender makes the claim that Kate Chopin had read Charles Darwin's works and ideas about sexuality more in depth than other writers had and that his views had directly shaped her work. Although Bert Bender talks mostly about Kate Chopin's work, The Awakening, he provides the reader with Kate Chopin's inspiration and ideas throughout all of her pieces, and many other authors motivation because of Charles Darwin during the nineteenth century. Bert Bender claims that Kate Chopin's works were all responses to Charles Darwin's ideologies on men and woman by stating:

"Chopin's women often manage in various ways to deny Darwin's definitions of the female inferiority. And Chopin was particularly interested in Darwin's interpretation of the evolutionary development among 'savage' human beings, whereby the male had 'gained the power of selection' by having kept the female in an 'abject state of bondage.' (Bender 461)

This view of Charles Darwin's and the response by Kate Chopin addresses and highlights the cultural views on the relationships between men and woman, and describes how the men were seen to be dominant in their relationships and society in general. Due to this view, it makes it easier to understand why Kate Chopin's stories are centered on this central Darwinian theory and promotes woman's independence and strength. Through "abject state of bondage," we can imagine the woman tied up, not literally, but figuratively in her marriage. The connection of Bender's phrases "abject state of bondage" and "evolutionary development" are important because it shows that throughout time, the relationships between a man and a woman have evolved to a modernized interpretation of "abject state of bondage." This quote can give opportunity and hope to the women of this time period reading because just like Chopin wanted them to, they are encouraged to develop these gender roles into an even more modernized manner. In Bert Bender's piece, he also addresses the main character, Mrs. Mallard in The Story of an Hour. While discussing Kate Chopin's piece in question, Bert Bender states:

In 'The Story of an Hour' on the other hand, Mrs. Mallard feels the ecstasy of being liberated from what seems an agreeable marriage Then, thinking that 'she had loved him- sometimes,' she wonders, 'what could love, the unsolved mystery, count for in the face of this possession of self-assertion which she suddenly recognized as the strongest impulse of her being!' (Bender 463)

In this quote, Bert Bender explains Kate Chopin's works and use of Mrs. Mallard in order to portray that her self-assertion is the strongest impulse of her being. This is significant because it shows how once her husband died, Mrs. Mallard was able to realize her independence and her self worth as her own individual, rather than being attached to her husband's name and his desires for her life. Through the diction used, such as "the unsolved mystery," Bender is able to show that Mrs. Mallard felt as if her love for her husband does not matter in this case and that liberating herself from her husband and their stereotypical gender roles has been the unsolved mystery throughout her life.  The manner in which Bert Bender describes this piece is to prove that Kate Chopin's works were meant to disprove the Darwinian thought of motherhood, womanhood, and the women's lack of ownership in marriage as the center of every women's life during this time in history

Through the support pieces written in the late nineteenth century, we can better understand the motive behind Kate Chopin's work and ultimately, gender roles of this time period. This shows how the normal activities of separate men and women's lives were encouraged or hindered by Charles Darwin's thoughts on sexuality and superiority. These pieces portray and encourage the feminism movement of woman's suffrage and rights throughout the nineteenth century, which continued into the twentieth century.

