Literary Analysis
The Story of an Hour
Thesis Statements, Topic Sentences, Body
Paragraphs, Introductions, & Conclusions
Thesis Statement
Thesis statement = An intellectual proposal –
your argument/position/stance
Thesis Statement
Examples:
Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” is a
good story.
Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” is an
entertaining story.
Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” is easy
to understand.
Kate Chopin creates a theme of
__________ in “The Story of an Hour.”
Kate Chopin is able to create a theme of
freedom in her story, “The Story of an Hour”, by
using dramatic irony, situational irony, and
symbolism.
Using your thesis to create topic sentences
Each body paragraph will begin with a topic
sentence.
*these are very simple examples
Kate Chopin is able to create a theme of
freedom in her story, “The Story of an Hour”, by
using dramatic irony, situational irony, and
symbolism.
One of the ways the author is able to create a
theme of freedom is by using dramatic irony.
Kate Chopin is able to create a theme of
freedom in her story, “The Story of an Hour”, by
using dramatic irony, situational irony, and
symbolism.
One of the ways the author is able to create a
theme of freedom is by using dramatic irony.
Another way that the author is able to create a
theme of freedom is by using situational irony.
Kate Chopin is able to create a theme of
freedom in her story, “The Story of an Hour”, by
using dramatic irony, situational irony, and
symbolism.
One of the ways the author is able to create a
theme of freedom is by using dramatic irony.
Another way that the author is able to create a
theme of freedom is by using situational irony.
A final way that the author is able to create a
theme of freedom is by using symbolism.
Body Paragraphs
One of the ways the author is able to
create a theme of freedom is by using dramatic
irony.
Begin with your topic sentence
One of the ways the author is able to
create a theme of freedom is by using dramatic
irony. Dramatic irony occurs when the audience
thinks or expects one thing and a character
does, thinks, says, or feels another.
Elaborate – Define the literary device: in your own words
One of the ways the author is able to
create a theme of freedom is by using dramatic
irony. Dramatic irony occurs when the audience
thinks or expects one thing and a character
does, thinks, says, or feels another. An example
of this occurs when Louise says, “free, free,
free!” (Chopin 1).
Provide evidence from the text – embed quotes – use a parenthetical (author’s last name + pg.#)
One of the ways the author is able to
create a theme of freedom is by using dramatic
irony. Dramatic irony occurs when the audience
thinks or expects one thing and a character
does, thinks, says, or feels another. An example
of this occurs when Louise says, “free, free,
free!” (Chopin 1). The reader expects Louise to
be distraught at the loss of her husband, when
in fact, she is actually happy about it.
Add explanation/analysis
One of the ways the author is able to
create a theme of freedom is by using dramatic
irony. Dramatic irony occurs when the audience
thinks or expects one thing and a character
does, thinks, says, or feels another. An example
of this occurs when Louise says, “free, free,
free!” (Chopin 1). The reader expects Louise to
be distraught at the loss of her husband, when
in fact, she is actually happy about it. Louise is
elated because she realizes that she is now
free.
Connect to thesis/topic sentence
Ellipsis & Brackets
These can be used to help embed your quotes
Original:
An example of situational irony occurs
when “it was Brently Mallard who entered” (Chopin 2)
alive.
Modified: An example of situational irony occurs
when “Brently Mallard…enter[s]” (Chopin 2) alive.
…  ellipsis to take away
[ ]  brackets to add or change
Introductions
General  Specific
Opening  Thesis
Introductions
Possible Topics
Short Story
American S.S.
19th Century S.S.
Female Author
American Author
American F. Author
Feminist Author
19th Century Author
Theme
Mini-biography
Gender inequality/oppression
Introductions
American Short Story
Begin with a blanket (general) statement:
Ex: Much of America’s greatest literature comes in
the form of the short story.
Introductions
American Short Story
Elaborate:
Much of America’s greatest literature come in
the form of the short story. Some of this country’s
most respected authors, such as Edgar Allan Poe
and Nathaniel Hawthorne, were short story
author’s.
Introductions
American Short Story
Get more specific:
Much of America’s greatest literature come in
the form of the short story. Some of this country’s
most respected authors, such as Edgar Allan Poe
and Nathaniel Hawthorne, were short story
author’s. One author that stands out was Kate
Chopin, for her focus on strong female characters
and individual freedom.
Introductions
American Short Story
Add your thesis:
Much of America’s greatest literature come in
the form of the short story. Some of this country’s most
respected authors, such as Edgar Allan Poe and
Nathaniel Hawthorne, were short story author’s. One
author that stands out was Kate Chopin, for her focus
on strong female characters and individual freedom.
One story in which she is able to create this idea of
freedom, through her use of dramatic irony, situational
irony, and symbolism, was “The Story of an Hour.”
Introductions
19th Century Short Story
Begin with a blanket statement:
Ex: A lot of great literature came from the 19th
century.
Introductions
19th Century Short Story
Elaborate:
A lot of great literature came from the 19th
century. From Edgar Allan Poe to Nathaniel
Hawthorne, some of America’s favorite short
stories came from this period.
Introductions
19th Century Short Story
Get more specific:
A lot of great literature came from the 19th
century. From Edgar Allan Poe to Nathaniel
Hawthorne, some of America’s favorite short
stories came from this period. One short story
writer from this era was Kate Chopin. Some of her
more popular stories include “Desiree’s Baby”,
“The Storm”, and “Rip Figs”.
Introductions
19th Century Short Story
Add your thesis:
A lot of great literature came from the 19th
century. From Edgar Allan Poe to Nathaniel
Hawthorne, some of America’s favorite short stories
came from this period. One short story writer from this
era was Kate Chopin. Some of her more popular
stories include “Desiree’s Baby”, “The Storm”, and “Rip
Figs”. “The Story of an Hour” is entertaining because
of how the author uses dramatic irony, situational irony,
and symbolism.
Introductions
Mini Bio
Begin:
Ex: Kate Chopin was born in St. Louis Missouri in
1850.
Introductions
Mini Bio
Continue:
Kate Chopin was born in St. Louis Missouri
in 1850. In 1869, she married her husband Oscar
and moved with him to a family plot in New
Orleans.
Introductions
Mini Bio
Add more details and work towards thesis:
Kate Chopin was born in St. Louis Missouri
in 1850. In 1869, she married her husband Oscar
and moved with him to a family plot in New
Orleans. After he died in 1882, Chopin turned to
writing to support her family. Some of the more
popular stories she wrote include “Desiree’s Baby”,
“The Storm”, and “Rip Figs”.
Introductions
Mini Bio
Add your thesis:
Kate Chopin was born in St. Louis Missouri in
1850. In 1869, she married her husband Oscar and
moved with him to a family plot in New Orleans. After
he died in 1882, Chopin turned to writing to support
her family. Some of the more popular stories she wrote
include “Desiree’s Baby”, “The Storm”, and “Ripe
Figs”. “The Story of an Hour” is entertaining because
of how the author uses dramatic irony, situational irony,
and symbolism.
Possible Topics
Short Story
American S.S.
19th Century S.S.
Female Author
American Author
American F. Author
Feminist Author
19th Century
Theme
Mini Biography
Gender inequality/oppression
Some of Kate Chopin’s Stories
“The Story of an Hour”
“Desiree's Baby”
“Ripe Figs”
“The Storm”
“At the Cadian Ball”
“A Pair of Silk Stockings”
“A Respectable Woman”
The Awakening: novel (not a short story)
Conclusions
No formula like intro & body paragraphs
Recap points of essay by restating thesis
Thesis no longer needs to be only one sentence
Tie back to intro/theme
End with sense of closure
NO NEW INFORMATION!!
Conclusions
These are matched with
the introduction examples
from earlier
Mini Bio
Even with the hardships she faced, Chopin was able
to create some great stories. Through her use of certain
elements such as dramatic irony, situational irony, and
symbolism, she was able to make this story entertaining.
Kate Chopin’s body of work was extensive, but “The Story
of an Hour” was one of the most memorable.
American SS
While not being one of the major authors like
Hawthorne or Poe, Chopin was able make a name for
herself through her powerful stories. Through her use of
various ironies like dramatic and situational, she keeps
readers on their toes. Her use of symbolism embodied a
theme of freedom in her strong female characters. Kate
Chopin will stand out as one of America’s great writers.