A Sense of Loss and Loyality

The two literary works I have chosen to compare and contrast are "The Story of an Hour" written by Kate Chopin in 1894 and "Dog's death" written by John Updike in 1953. I will be evaluating the differences and similarities between these two literary pieces under the theme of death. I will discuss how these two pieces of literature both explore life through the experience of death. Although death is such a sad emotion connected to an immense feeling of loss which is conveyed in both works, sometimes there is a feeling of thankfulness or relief and even joy when a life lived was one of suffering. There are many thematic similarities throughout these pieces such as the intensity of emotion conveyed, loyalty, and the narrator's response to death as well as some literary similarities such as metaphor and tone. There are differences as well such as the point of view, and the format or the writing. All these elements will be discussed with in this paper to provide a proper analysis of the similarities and differences between these two pieces.

These two pieces of literature have a tendency to send the reader on an emotional journey. The short story "A story of an Hour" is a tragic tale of a woman with a weak heart finding joy in the loss of a husband she does not love. The story speaks more about the emotional state of the woman who is experiencing a spectrum of emotions as she accepts the idea that her husband is gone forever. In the poem "Dogs Death" there is a similar feeling of great emotion as the writer expresses great sadness over the loss of a suffering family pet. Both of these pieces make the reader feel sad, very sad within the reading but both for different reasons. In the short story the writer makes you actually feel happy for the woman because of the death of her husband but when the news come that the husband did not make the train and he is actually alive she has a heart attack. This is where the terrible sense of sadness come sin. The writer, through imagery, within the writing gives the reader such a strong feeling of hope for this woman and to see that all taken away as the husband arrives home gives the reader a terrible sense of loss. As within the poem the dogs death gives the reader a strong feeling of sadness and at the end when the owner realizes the struggle the dog went through to make the owner happy by relieving itself on the paper conveys that same feeling of overwhelming sadness and both pieces leaves you feeling sad for the two that have passed. Through the use of good literary devices and excellent writing the authors have helped to evoke a strong emotion with in me and although that emotion is an unpleasant one it still helps for the reader to feel connected to the writing thus making it an enjoyable reading experience.

One element that makes reading enjoyable is feeling connected to the story (Clugston, 2010). Although both these pieces are sad we enjoy reading them and it is kind of awkward to enjoy reading something sad. Many people enjoy watching a sad movie over and over again. These two pieces of literature invokes an emotion of empathy or sympathy in us that we share with the charterer in the story thus growing the connection with them and the reader and leading to a better reading experience (Skelton, 2003). The reader will enjoy reading both of these pieces due to the elements used to write them which give the reader a feeling of connection. As the reader we possibly shared the experiences of these pieces which would make us empathetic or we have a husband or dog and feel sympathetic at the thought of losing one of them. Either way these two pieces of literature invoke a certain emotion that helps with us feeling connected to it simply with its content.

In both of these pieces imagery is a key factor that helps in the reader's connection to the reading. Within the poem: Dog's death" the author, John Updike, uses symbolism, to help to create a feeling of empathy for the dogs family. The same device is used within the short story that also makes you feel empathic for the woman that had originally had had hope that is by the end of the strong loss. Imagery is created in both these works using metaphors.

A metaphor is, "An image that imaginatively compares one thing with another, showing how each has qualities that resemble the other." (Clugston, 2013) In "Dogs Death" Updike use the phrase "her heart was learning to lie down forever" (Updike, 1953). This gives the idea that the heart was lying down as if it was going to sleep forever; it is a metaphor for dyeing. Rather than the author saying, "The dog died" he uses this metaphor to create imagery thus adding to the complexity and enjoyment of the writing. Imagery is also created through metaphor in "Story of an Hour" where Chopin says," When the storm of grief had spent itself," (Chopin, 1894) you can understand the quick and rugged wave of emotions that would overtake someone when they would hear such news as the passing of a husband. Again, rather than the author simply stating that the wife was overtaken with grief he uses the metaphor of grief coming on her as a storm to give a more vivid emotional experience to the reader.

Another literary device that is used within both works it theme. I think that both works illustrate the theme of death and not only death but our human response to death. In "the Story of an Hour" Mrs. Mallard is at first griped with grief at the news of her husband passing away. The story gives great detail about the emotional response she goes through as she hears this terrible news. As the story continues we hear more emotions yet they turn from sadness to almost joy in the idea of freedom Mrs.