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Su Yin Oo
Professor Rakesh Swamy
English 101B-02
February 22, 2019
The Social Stratum of Women in Marital Hierarchy
In the Burmese language, the word marriage is eain-htaung, which can be directly
translated into house-prison. Thus, the word itself insinuates that to be married is to be under
house arrest. By observing marriages around one, especially marriages in the Asian culture, one
will be able to comprehend the conservative roots of where the word eain-htaung has originated.
As the harbinger of the present day’s feminist movement, the epitome of progressive and radical
views, Kate Chopin’s literary works are her medium of advocacy. By way of illustrating her
outlook regarding marriage, Chopin exemplified two female protagonists, Mrs. Louise Mallard,
and Calixta as victims of pernicious marital constraints in her two renowned short stories, “The
Story of an Hour” and “The Storm,” respectively. Throughout the two short stories, Chopin
conveyed the underlying notion of how women are subservient in the marital hierarchy by
imprisoning them within their homes, withholding their privileges, and indoctrinating them into
believing they are subordinate to their husbands.
The protagonists of the two short stories, Mrs. Mallard and Calixta, are the prime
paradigms of animals in an enclosure, whose sole purpose is to amuse their husbands, or in other
words, compliant to the societal norms. Both stories demonstrate a seemingly happy marriage,
with closet, monotonous lives. Thus, without the careful scrutiny of the marriages portrayed in
the two short stories, it is susceptible for one to overlook the despair of the women as the
shackles of marital vows tied them down. The protagonists’ subconscious craving for liberation
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is evident throughout their actions, whether it is in the form of celebrating one’s newfound
freedom after the passing of one’s husband or committing a passionate, ephemeral affair with a
past lover. According to the dictionary denotation of house arrest, it is the “confinement, often
under guard to one’s house, … instead of a prison” (Merriam Webster). Similar to politicians
that were wrongfully sentenced to house arrest, Mrs. Mallard’s marriage inequitably imprisoned
her within the walls of her home. The wedding vows clipped off her wings of freedom and
withheld her ability to fly. As a result, Mrs. Mallard’s reaction towards the news of her
husband’s fatal train accident undoubtedly contradicts the audience’s anticipated presumption of
her reaction. Instead of dolefully mourning her husband’s passing for days, Mrs. Mallard
lamented over the loss of her husband for mere minutes and immediately started to celebrate the
repossession of her youth and freedom. The fact that her marriage felt similar to imprisonment
