How do fear and foresight interact when individuals make life-changing decisions? It's no secret: emotions play an important role in our decision-making process. Even though people try to be as unbiased and objective as possible, emotions will always play a role to varying degrees depending on the situation. It could be argued that one of the main ways emotions can affect our decision-making process is by distorting our perception and outlook of the future. While happiness can give us an optimistic view of the future and lead us to make decisions based on positive outcomes, sadness or fear can lead us to have a more pessimistic view and cause us to be more cautious in our actions. risk assessments when we make decisions. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why violent video games should not be banned"? Get an original essay In Kate Chopin's "The Story of an Hour," the author contrasts gender stereotypes with the desire for freedom and explores the conflict through the internal struggle of the main character of the story. While the main character, Mrs. Mallard, is in what appears to be an unhappy marriage which affects her foresight and outlook on life, the sudden death of her husband causes a new emotion of freedom to seep in, causing an internal conflict between control and The influence on her clairvoyance begins to shift from fear to the new emotion of freedom that comes from the death of her husband. Gender Stereotypes in the Context of the StoryIn the story, the gender norms and expectations in the main character's marriage act as the "emotion" or fear that initially affects the main character's outlook on life. “And yet she loved him – sometimes. Often no. The story may be hinting that the relationship wasn't the best and could lead to problems. Although she may have loved him, the inclusion of the last word "sometimes" and the following phrase "Often not" leaves the reader wondering what was wrong in their marriage and what caused Mrs. Mallard for not loving her husband. In addition to this, the idea that her life was repressed or in struggle is reinforced by a quote later in the story where she says: "It was only yesterday that she thought with a shudder that life could be long. “She knew she would cry again when she saw the kind and tender hands clasped in death; the face that had never looked at her except with love, frozen, gray and dead. » Although at this point in the story the main character begins the transition from contemplating her husband's death to a new vision of the future, it is important to note how much she still cares of her husband, as evidenced by the phrase “she knew she would cry again when she saw the tender and loving hands clasped in death; » ; the quote also mentions how Mr. Mallard was generally an amiable character, as evidenced by the phrase "...the face that had never looked at her except with love,..." This removes the idea that she had a problem with Mr. Mallard himself. Perhaps even more so with marriage, which was structured and imposed by gender stereotypes at the time. These stereotypes that the story refers to are that marriage should be a male-dominated relationship and that wives should be submissive to their husbands. “There would be no powerful will that would bend its own in a blind persistence with which men and women believe they have the right to impose a private will on a fellow human being.” Comment on gender stereotypeswhich existed at the time. The idea of ​​imposing a will on another reflects the gender stereotype of the time that the man dominated the woman and that wives should be subject to the will of their husbands. As the evidence above demonstrates, Ms. Mallard appeared to have a problem with the relationship and the way it limited her, "bending her will" in ways she did not want. Societal gender norms and the restrictive nature of the relationship could act as the influence of fear and emotion that affect one's outlook on life and subsequently affect one's decision-making process. Freedom regained From the beginning of the story, the author begins to sneak in the idea of ​​freedom. Throughout the short story, the author subtly grows and increases his influence until it becomes a real internal conflict within the main character. “There she stood facing the open window, a comfortable and spacious armchair.” Use of archetypes to represent the freedom present in the quote. The idea of ​​an open window is commonly used to represent freedom and the outside world. The window is later referred to as a source of freedom in the quote “No; she was drinking a true elixir of life through this open window. The “roomy” chair, as opposed to a “small” or “restrictive” chair, could also serve as another representation of freedom or space to breathe now that her husband is gone. “She could see in the open square in front of her house the tops of the trees all quivering with new spring life. The delicious breath of rain was in the air. In literature, the spring season generally represents a new beginning. In the context of the story, when the main character notices these details, it could foreshadow for the reader a new beginning that will come with the death of the main character's husband, Mr. Mallard. “She was young, with a clear and calm face, whose lines expressed repression and even a certain strength.” This line is important in exploring the conflict and struggle between the two emotions before Mr. Mallard's death. The "certain strength" mentioned in the last part of the quote in the context of the story could be interpreted to mean his feeling or desire for freedom. In conjunction with this, the "repression" mentioned earlier in the quote could allude to the restrictions and limitations the main character experiences because of his marriage. As a result, the “certain force” is suppressed by this. It is possible that death and the absence of fear did not so much create this emotion of freedom as liberate and liberate what was already within her. From the above evidence, we can see that the author is beginning to hint at something that might challenge the restrictiveness and fear posed by gender norms. Regarding the prompt, one could say that with the absence of fear and a new emotion to replace it, his clairvoyance has now changed and will perhaps cause him to re-evaluate his decision-making process and how from which she makes life-changing decisions. in the future. Internal conflict and struggle between fear and freedom As the transition between fear and freedom occurs in the main character, we can see how this has a profound effect on the main character as she realizes the ramifications of this discovery and this foresight. “When she let go, a small whispered word escaped her slightly parted lips. She repeated it over and over under her breath: “free, free, free!” “This is an important turning point in history. Meanwhile, as the fear and grip of marriage leaves her, a new..