Question

"what is the nature of mrs. mallard's "heart trouble," and why would the author mention it in the first paragraph? is there any way in which this might be considered symbolic or ironic?"

Answer 1

Although Mrs. Mallard's hear trouble appears to refer only to a physical condition, her true trouble is that, despite the fact that she is married to a good man, she is unhappy because she does not feel free. In this sense, it is symbolic of the unease that this lack of independence brings her. Also, the mention of her heart condiion at the beinning ofthe paragraph anticipates her eventual death. At first, the reader might think that it is the news of her husband's death that will cause Mrs. Mallard's own decease, but what triggers her heart attack is the revelation that the news were false, and that she has lost all the freedom that she had just begun to envision.