Consolation Prize
A consolation prize is awarded to the loser of a battle in an attempt to give some joy to the loser’s joyless situation. It is not a choice; but a gift. “The Story of an Hour,” by Kate Chopin, depicts Mrs. Mallard receiving death as the consolation prize for her tortured mind. The fight in her mind was lost to the illusion of freedom. During the time period in which this story was written, women had absolutely no voice in the general public, unless they were widows. Widows, in general, had more freedom to engage in society than any women in any class. This freedom that Mrs. Mallard desired is an illusion because she did not think about any of the consequences that she may face in her life as a widow. She did not step back and view her current life and think about what additional steps she might have to take. Because of this, her freedom was based upon fantasy and not reality.
In the beginning, Mrs. Mallard is faced with the decision to either embrace her life as a wife, or give in to the false joy that she believes she will obtain by becoming a widow. This point is further proven by the quote, “It was not a glance of reflection, but rather indicated a suspension of intelligent thought” [emphasis added] (CITATION NEEDED). She received the consolation prize, because she fought the battle all the way to her breaking point, and at that point, she gave in to the illusion.
The development of Mrs. Mallard’s tortured mind stems from the news about the death of her husband. A mental storm ensued when the news about her husband was given to her, subtly, through her sister, Josephine. Although the clues were given “in broken sentences; veiled hints that revealed in half concealing,” Mrs. Mallard caught on quickly and immediately realized the severity of the matter (Chopin 1156). She began weeping “…with sudden, wild abandonment, in her sister’s arms” (Chopin 1156). Her mind started firing in an infinite number of directions, and that firing shattered her. She knew that she had lost something very special. A storm arose in her head which crippled her ability to think rationally.
Once the storm of grief and conflicting emotions subsided, she did the only rational action: she locked herself in her room so that she could further sort out what had happened. Secluding oneself in order to gather thoughts is a very logical response to sudden, immense struggle, because it allows for the opportunity to think clearly. During this time, she entered her breaking point. The moment that her grief left and the false joy entered is the moment she began losing her mental battle. The joy that she felt was false because it was selfish. She thought nothing of anyone around her and only thought about what she might be able to do because of her dead husband. She did not take into account what her husband’s family would think or her husband’s friends. She looked inward and only thought of what she could possibly gain. Further proof that her joy was false resides in the line, “She did not stop to ask if it were or were not a monstrous joy that held her” (Chopin 1157). She felt that her life had been inside of a small box and now the lid to the box had been opened, and she could explore the outside world without worry. This is evidenced by the line, “Her pulses beat fast, and the coursing blood warmed and relaxed every inch of her body” (Chopin 1157). From my experience, those physical feelings are signature of a human who believes they have walked into a new area of exploration.
The full extent of her breaking point happened when she pushed aside the significance of love in the lines, “And yet she had loved him—sometimes. Often she had not. What did it matter!” (Chopin 1157). Then she continued by saying that love was an unsolved mystery that paled in comparison to “…self-possession of self-assertion” (Chopin 1157). The reason that those feelings lacked logic was the fact that her husband never looked upon her with anything other than love. This meant that he probably gave her as many freedoms that he possibly could at the time, and, if he were allowed, he would have given her more. The freedom she realizes after the death of her husband only caused more strain on her mind because she thought nothing of what would actually happen to her and what troubles lie ahead. She did not realize that she could be forced into another marriage with a less-caring man, or she could have her home and things taken from her because she could not pay the mortgage. There are many different possibilities that she simply chose not to ponder.
Once her battle was completely lost to falsehood, she swiftly opened the door to meet her sister. Her sister immediately realized the severity of Mrs. Mallard’s situation and was shocked at how far she had fallen. Josephine was a kind sister, and because of that kindness, she allowed Mrs. Mallard to live in her falsehood until such time as she had come to her senses. The time allotted to Mrs. Mallard was cut short, though, when she saw Richards, her husband’s friend, attempting to hide her husband from her sight. As soon as she saw the figure of her husband, reality came flashing back to her at an alarming rate. The shock of reality and the loss of all those false dreams caused her heart to stop in its tracks, and when the human heart stops, life ends. Mrs. Mallard died instantly from the truth. Falsehoods always hurt, while truth sets you free. Reality took pity on Mrs. Mallard and gave her the only consolation prize it had to offer: death.
The prize for losing the battle of a tortured mind is death. From the news of her husband’s death, to the sight of her husband arriving home, Mrs. Mallard lived a life of falsehood. At least in death, Mrs. Mallard was free from the constraints of her self-imposed joyless life. Life is so much happier when striving for a better one, while, at the same time, being content with what has already been achieved.
Works Cited
Chopin, Kate. “The Story of an Hour.” Literature: The Human Experience.
Ed. Richard Abcarian, Marvin Klotz, Samuel Cohen. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2013. 1156-58. Print
