Stylistic devices of the story...  

          Among Kate Chopin’s most impressive works is the short story entitled “The Story of an Hour”. This work best displays the importance of literary elements on the overall unified affect. Through the use of irony, symbolism, foreshadowing and paradox, the reader can grasp a better understanding of the main focus of the story. These literary elements are essential in the artistic style of the story.
          The story opens with the foreshadowing of the main character, Mrs. Mallard’s, death. The author initially informs the reader of the woman’s heart condition to allow for further developments later in the story. Through the paradox, “the joy that kills”, Chopin alludes that in the end it will be Mrs. Mallard’s joy that is the cause of her demise. Mrs. Mallard’s reaction to the news of her husband’s death gives reason to believe that she had already accepted the “death” of her marriage. The end of their relationship did not come as a shock and she was able to accept its significance, something a devoted wife could not do. This is why Mrs. Mallard was able to instantaneously begin to grieve and to weep with “wild abandonment”. Within minutes, upon entering her room, she was struck by a calming peace, and was overcome by a feeling of control and serenity. The feeling that possessed her is symbolic of the change that she could not contest; the unrelenting factor that fate plays in a person’s destiny. The imagery that aids in the plot and meaning of the story is that of nature. There is a direct correlation between the time of renewal and rebirth in nature and the reawakening of the woman’s freedom. Although the death of a person is typically associated with seasons of death, Brently Mallard’s supposed death takes place in the spring. As she looks out the window, Mrs. Mallard is confronted by the freshly fallen rain, and the newly grown trees, all symbolic of her new-sprung freedom. The clouds, a metaphor for the shadows that hovered over her marriage, begin to part and make way for a fresh beginning. The structural symbols in the Mallard household, are further demonstrations in the struggle between dominance and submissiveness. Contrasting with the outside world, the interior of the house is a prison, meant to keep Mrs. Mallard withdrawn from the world.

Mrs. Mallard

At the beginning of the story, the author describes Mrs.Mallard as a woman having the distinctive trait of self-assertion which is constrained by her marriage. She seems to be the "victim" of an overbearing but occasionally loving husband. Being told of her husband's death, "She did not hear the story as many women have heard the same, with a paralyzed inablity to accept its significance." This shows that she is not totally locked into marriage as most women in her time. Although "she had loved him--sometimes," she unconsciously does not want to accept blindly the situation of being controlled by her husband. Mrs.Mallard is not a one-dimentional, clone-like woman having an expected, acceptable emotional response for every life condition.

Analyze the plot of the story...

In Kate Choplin story “ The story of an Hour” represents a negative view of marriage. Every individual takes a different approach when enduring the loss of a loved one. Whether, it is bursting into tears or being miserable. When a wife loses her husband, she typically tends to be in a state of depression. The feeling of losing your significant other is a piercing agony going through one’s heart, but in this case the feeling of lost can turn into someone’s freedom. 
For Louise Mallard she had an erratic reaction when she was informed that her husband has been allegedly killed in a train accident. She locks herself in her room and sits in front of the window in desolation. She begins to ponder how her life would be without her husband. The sorrow that Mrs. Mallard felt at the beginning; slowly turns into joy. “Free! Body and soul free!” (Chopin 40).

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She knew that she should grieve over her husband like a wife was supposed to do, but internally her new found independence takes over. Finally she gets to live for herself and do the things she had longed to accomplish. It is safe to say that she does not see this as a misfortune but as an opportunity, as if she were given another chance at life. Louise Mallard had been so close to being finally free but as it turned out Brently Mallard had not died. Ironically her sequence of emotions ultimately led to her death. The fact that she dies at the end of a simple “heart disease” shows that her misery stem from internally oppose to external emotions. The freedom that she nearly could of tasted was gone.

Gender Roles in the "The Story of an Hour"...

From ancient years to the middle of 20th century being a woman meant being a housewife. Women were repressed. Not only they did not have any rights, except to stay home, do the housework and take  care of a husband or children, women were considered only a half of human being. As one Russian saying says: “It would be very funny, if it was not so sad”. 

Nowadays, when there are so many feministic coalitions, it is hard to imagine that once upon a time, females were not considered a part of society. 

Of course, the roles of women were reflected in the literature. However, because women did not have any status and were not expected to work, more often than not, they were stuck in loveless marriages.

The first ancestor of feminism....

Kate Chopin was an American author of short stories and novels. She is now considered by some to have been a forerunner of feminist authors of the 20th century. From 1892 to 1895, she wrote short stories for both children and adults which were published in such magazines as Atlantic Monthly, Vogue, The Century Magazine, and The Youth's Companion. Her major works were two short story collections, Bayou Folk (1894) and A Night in Acadie (1897). Her important short stories included "Desiree's Baby", a tale of miscegenation in antebellum Louisiana (published in 1893), "The Story of an Hour" (1894), and "The Storm "(1898). "The Storm" is a sequel to "The 'Cadian Ball," which appeared in her first collection of short stories, Bayou Folk. Chopin also wrote two novels: At Fault (1890) and The Awakening (1899), which are set in New Orleans and Grand Isle, respectively. The people in her stories are usually inhabitants of Louisiana. Many of her works are set in Natchitoches in north central Louisiana.
 As for the literary themes, Kate Chopin had different lifestyles throughout her life. These lifestyles provided her with insights and understanding that permitted her to analyze late 19th century American society. As a result of her childhood upbringing by women with ancestry descending from both Irish and French family and life in the Cajun and Creole part of the nation, after she joined her husband in Louisiana, many of her stories and sketches were about her life in Louisiana and incorporated her less than typical portrayals of women as their own individuals with wants and needs.
 My information is based on the following sources (links):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kate_Chopin
http://visual.merriam-webster.com/

My impressions!

          I have read  the story written by Kate Chopin. As for the plot of this story. Because of Mrs. Mallard's heart condition, everyone basically tiptoes around her and treats her carefully. When her sister and family friend discover Mr. Mallard got killed in an accident, they take time to gently tell Mrs. Mallard that her husband has died. Mrs. Mallard cries her eyes out, then goes to her room to be by herself and locks the door.

Inside, she seems terrified of some knowledge that's coming to her and finally realizes that it's her freedom. Even though she and her husband loved each other, and she's truly saddened by his death, she feels liberated and free for the first time. She looks forward to the days ahead instead of dreading them. 

While Mrs. Mallard is having this epiphany, her sister keeps trying to check on her. Finally, Mrs. Mallard comes out of her room, newly resolved, and she and her sister start to go downstairs. Suddenly, the very not-dead Mr. Mallard comes in. When Mrs. Mallard sees him, she has a tremendous shock and dies.