In Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour" a young wife, Mrs. Mallard, with a heart condition finds out her husband dies in a railroad accident. Mrs. Mallard feels sas abut this but at the same time she feels a sigh of relief. This is her chance to live for herslef. In the story "The Story of an Hour" Kate Chopin uses symbols and irony to show that death may turn out to be a …showed first 75 words of 290 total…

…showed last 75 words of 290 total…hers [...]" (14). In other words, now she feels as though she was free. A second important symbol is the open window in Mrs. Mallard's bedroom. The open window allows her to experience through, "the sounds, the scentsm and the color that filled the air" (9) something new to her, freedom. The open window signifies a passage or doorway, an opporunity to leave her life of captivity and go toward a new life that is awaiting Mrs. Mallard.