Kate Chopin’s two short stories, “The Story of an Hour” and “Emancipation: A Life Fable,” are similar in that they share a common theme, the theme of freedom. In the “Story of an Hour,” Louise Mallard, who happens to be the main character, is overjoyed for being a free woman despite that her husband has died. Despite the fact that she loved her husband, she does only weep for a while for losing him, but the notion of not having to live for anyone but herself makes her overjoyed. Based on this, it is evident that Louise had endured some confinement in marriage, and it is like she had become a slave. Her marriage was oppressive, and this explains why she felt trapped and restricted by her husband. Like any other person, she became happy after learning of her husband’s death since she could now be free.
On the other hand, “Emancipation: A Life Fable,” has a common theme in that it talks of an animal that was born in a cage. When it woke up, it found confining walls above and about him, and before him, there were bars of iron through which light and air came into the cage. Based on this, the animal was in confinement, which means that his freedom has been denied; he cannot walk at will. Despite this, he was well-taken care of, in that he was given food and water, which saw him grow and throve in strength and beauty. However, after being caged for a long time, he was set free, the door to his cage had been opened, and now he was free to take a walk outside the cage, to him, emancipation had occurred, that is freedom.
Based on the two stories, the main goal of writing the works is to advocate for the plight of women in regard to freedom. Kate Chopin is a feminist, and this means that she advocates for women’s freedom. Women need not be confined in marriages that are oppressive and harmful to women.