Chapter 13 - The Story of An Hour
B-com part 1 English Notes
Chapter 13 - The Story of An Hourhttp://karachiboardnotes.blogspot.com/
Summary
Mrs. Mallard was a heart patient. The news of her husband's death might take her life so her sister Josephine told the news of her husband's death in broken sentence. A friend of her husband who brought the news of the death of her husband. Friend of her husband was also there which he had got from the office of newspaper.
When Mrs. Mallard heard the news of her husband she did not react unusually but she wept bitterly in the arms of her sister and after few moments she went to her room and closed the room's door and she sat on an armchair. First she felt the great intensity of his grief and felt loneliness then she realized that its the beauty of nature. She felt herself free from all tensions. She knew that she would look at the face of her dead husband who never loved her. She came to know that she would not live for anyone but for herself now.
Josephine came to the door and called her sister by name Louise and requested to open the door. But after ward she came down stairs clasping her at the waist of her sister where Richard was waiting. When they reached there someone suddenly open the door and came inside unconsciously. It was Mr. Mallard who had been away at the home of the railway accident this his life was saved. Richard tried to keep away Mr. Mallard from there but it was late, she had been died of heart attack.
Difficult Words
Elusive ----------------- difficult to point out
Veiled ------------------ hidden
(To) haunt -------------- to return to mind mind repeatedly
Unwittingly ------------- unintentional
Tumultuously ------------ violent
Afflicted --------------- suffered from
Hastened ---------------- made a hurry
Twitter ----------------- chirp, sing (of birds)
Slender ----------------- weak
Exhaustion -------------- tiredness
Revealed ---------------- let out, disclosed
Distant ----------------- remote
Question and Answers
Q.1 What was Mrs. Mallard's first reaction to the news of her husband's alleged death?
Ans. She wept at once, with sudden wild abandonment in her sister Josephine's arms. She rushed to her room and she stood facing the open window and sank into the armchair near the window. The weather was bit cloudy and the spring season had set it. She looked outside the window with empty eyes. She threw back her head upon the cushion of the chair, calm and repressed. She expected that something was coming to her and she was waiting for it.
Q.2 What was her later reaction?
Ans. She felt a sense of freedom from bondage, as she did not lead a happy married life. She thought of the days ahead when she would live for herself.
Q.3 What words did she use to express her later feelings?
Ans. She said over and over under her breath with slightly parted lips. "Free, Free!" She was staring and had a terrified facial expression. Meanwhile her pulse was beating fast.
Q.4 What is the surprise ending of the story?
Ans. Although she was very badly shocked to hear the news of death of her husband death and was feeling that her unbearable grief would end her life, but she survived. She thought about the agony of lonely, dreadful of many years as a widow. Then all of a sudden Brently Mallard arrived from his outside tour. He was not on a train which faced accident. On his appearance Louise was so much overjoyed that she died by an extreme shock of joy. So she was killed by the great joy and not by the shock of alleged of her husband's death.
Q.5 What is the central idea of this story?
Ans. Sometimes extreme grief does not cause death but extreme joy can kill a person. Death is certain irrespective of the fact whether it occurs by the shock of grief or by the thunderbolt of an extreme joy.
Q.6 What is your idea about the married life of Mr. and Mrs. Mallard after reading this story?
Ans. Mr. Mallard and his wife were not passing the happy life. Mr. Mallard not love his wife and she felt her alone and normally she had deep attraction to her husband.