Read the passage. She did not hear the story as many women have heard the same, with a paralyzed inability to accept its signifi
cance. She wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment, in her sister’s arms. When the storm of grief had spent itself she went away to her room alone. She would have no one follow her. There stood, facing the open window, a comfortable, roomy armchair. Into this she sank, pressed down by a physical exhaustion that haunted her body and seemed to reach into her soul. In this passage from “The Story of an Hour” by Kate Chopin, Mrs. Mallard reacts to the news of her husband’s death. What does the open window symbolize?
The open window in literature can symbolize a new life, a new view of another world. It could bring new opportunities or gives hope. In this passage, the open window is used ironically. It could symbolize honesty, but this is ironically in this situation. There is the second explanation, also ironically. it can be meant appearance opposite from reality. The open window can present the reality of the view, the true picture in front of it, also the reality of the view opening from them.
