Themes vs. Morals

Another example of a story in which themes and morals can be mistaken as synonymous is “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin. In this story, the character Mrs. Mallard is informed about the recent death of her husband. Mrs. Mallard is portrayed as a sensitive and emotionally weak woman. Although people were careful in breaking the news to her, she was still utterly devastated when she initially heard about her husband’s death. However, she eventually saw the good in the situation: that she was then free from her husband. When mrs. Mallard realized that she was free, she had a “feverish triumph in her eyes, and she carried herself unwittingly like a goddess of Victory" (Chopin 14). Mrs. Mallard feels liberated, as if she is no longer living under the shadow of her husband. Then, the story takes an unexpected turn and the indeed alive Mr. Mallard returns. Mrs. Mallard then ironically dies, of shock, and “a joy that kills” (Chopin 15). An instance of a theme in this story is freedom: illustrated in mrs. Mallard’s unexpected feeling of liberation after her husband dies. However, this is not a theme, or a lesson that one can take away from reading this story. An example of a lesson that a reader can learn from reading “The Story of an Hour”  is that although some marriages may seem perfect and joyful, they can be engaged with feelings of oppression, often especially felt by only one of the partners.