In the short story, The Story of an Hour, Chopin uses imagery, repetition, diction, and symbolism to show how independence is a forbidden joy. When Louise first hears the news of her husband's death she responds with grief, but when she is alone she comes to the realization that she is now an independent woman. This realization of independence excites her, but at the same time she tries to brush it off as if it was silly for her to think like that. Louise goes back and forth with how she feels about her newfound independence, and when she finally makes up her mind it's as though she didn't even have a choice to enjoy her independence in the first place.

Chopin uses imagery of new life to explain Louise's newfound feeling of independence. While Louise was still grieving she sat in an arm chair that was looking out the window and began to realize that she was now free. In the text it says, "She could see in the open square before her house the tops of trees that were all aquiver with new spring life. The delicious breath of rain was in the air. In the street below a peddler was crying his wares. The notes of a distant song which some one was singing reached her faintly, and countless sparrows were twittering in the eaves." (Chopin 223). All this beautiful new life surrounding Louise is symbolic of the new life that she has ahead of her. The images of "new spring life", "the open square", and "a distant song" are all suggestive of the new opportunities Louise has now that her husband has died. Now that her husband is dead she is a free woman and can finally live for herself. Louise is almost beginning to feel joy over her husband's death.

As the story continues Louise begins to acknowledge the feeling that is coming over her. The text says, "She was beginning to recognize this thing that was approaching to possess her, and she was striving to beat it back with her will " (Chopin 223). Louise is first starting to recognize that her husband's death could possibly be a good thing for her, but she tries to push that thought out of her head because she thinks that it is wrong. Chopin uses repetition to show the thought of independence fully coming over Louise when she begins to say the word "free" over and over again under her breath and finally starts to relax. Then the text says "She did not stop to ask if it were or were not a monstrous joy that held her. A clear and exalted perception enabled her to dismiss the suggestion as trivial." (Chopin 224). It is clear that the feeling coming over Louise is the joy of her newfound freedom and independence, so why does she easily dismiss that feeling as being trivial? This is yet another example of Chopin using repetition. This is the second time throughout the story that Chopin shows Louise starting to recognize the feeling of joy but completely disregarding it. It is as though she is not allowed to enjoy this feeling of freedom because she feels guilty about it at the same time.

Louise moves past this bitter moment and starts to see all the years ahead of her that would belong to her completely. She realizes that she can finally start living for herself and only herself.  Louise fully changes her mind about the future when the text says "She breathed a quick prayer that life might be long. It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long." (Chopin 224). From the diction in this quote you can clearly see that before her husband's death, Louise viewed her life with apprehension, seeing many years of monotony and oppression ahead of her. Now, conversely, she is free, and therefore her life is worth living. Louise is overwhelmed with joy and is ready to start her life anew, but just as soon as her happiness strikes, her sister Josephine knocks on the door with "good news". It turns out that Louise's husband Brently was alive all along, and the very sight of him causes Louise to drop dead. This is symbolic of how the joy of independence is forbidden.  

The doctors said that the cause of death was heart disease, which brings up the topic of Louise's heart trouble. In this story Louise's heart trouble is both a physical and symbolic disorder. Her heart trouble seems to represent the dissatisfaction of her marriage as well as the lack of personal freedom that she had. The way in which Louise dies is quite ironic. One of the first things we learn about Louise is that she has heart trouble. Great care was taken to make sure they broke the news of Brently's death to her as gently as possible, but in the end it is the same heart trouble that ends up being the cause of her death. The only difference is that she dies of the news that her husband is alive rather than dead. It says that she died of "the joy that kills", but it seems to me that she died of a broken heart, caused by the sudden loss of her newfound independence.  

  The Story of an Hour is a story of ups and downs. Louise goes from grief, to happiness, to death. All of these ups and downs are symbolic. They show the idea of independence being a forbidden joy. When Louise finds out that her husband is still alive, the joy of freedom is taken right out of her hands, and just the taste of it was enough to make her die. Louise's death is a metaphor of the forbidden joy of independence. In todays world you almost have to live your life for other people. It is pretty much unheard of for someone to go through life without ever having a husband, wife, children, or any other family members to care for. Through metaphors, symbolism, and repetition, this text calls to mind the fact that true independence is something that very few people experience, and that this experience can in fact turn out to be deadly.

