All About Style Essay, Research Paper

Regina Kerbs

October 20, 1999

M/W 8:30 – 9:50

All About Style

Every writer illustrates a certain style in his/her work. Kate Chopin uses the same style in her short stories “The Story of an Hour” and “Ripe Figs.” This style includes her use of diction, imagery, and symbolism.

Chopin uses language that is comprehensible. Neither “The Story of an Hour” or “Ripe Figs” contains words that the average reader has difficulty in understanding. The sentence structure she uses is short, yet illustrative. “She wept at once, with sudden, wild abandonment, in her sister’s arms,” from “The Story of an Hour” and “Every day Babette danced out to where the fig-trees were in a long line against the fence,” are both perfect examples of Chopin’s use of simple diction.

Imagery is used throughout “The Story of an Hour” and “Ripe Figs.” The reader can almost hear the sparrows twittering outside Mrs. Mallard’s window. The reader smells the delicious breath of rain. “The figs were like little hard, green marbles,” allows the reader to visualize the figs Chopin describes. Chopin’s use of imagery also ties in with her use of symbolism.

Symbols are present all through Chopin’s works as well. The spring day in “The Story of an Hour” symbolizes the freedom Mrs. Mallard’s gains after her husband’s death. Maman-Nainaine is not making Babette wait to visit her cousins until the figs ripen, but the ripening of the figs represents Babette’s maturation. Chopin’s use of symbolism is visible in both pieces of work.

Kate Chopin uses the same distinct style in both “The Story of an Hour” and “Ripe Figs.” This style includes her use of diction, imagery, and symbolism. After reading one of her short stories a reader knows what style to expect in her other works.