Revising and editing of midterm writing exam (5%)

Midterm writing test

Drop dead joyful

In the late 19^th century, women didn’t have the same place in society as they do today.  They mostly followed male authority rather than take the lead. Kate Chopin did just the opposite of what was expected. She exposed disappointments in her life, through poetry, short stories and novels.  She was harshly criticized because of the audacity of her work. Exposing concerns about the quality of women’s lives, was not a popular subject in those days.

“The Story of an Hour” is a powerful tale of one repressed womans short lived liberation from her husband. It depicts the emotional evolution of a woman with a “heart  trouble”, that receives news of her husband’s  recent passing from her sister.  At first, she reacts as most people would, with sadness and tears, weeping. As the story evolves, the reader comes to understand that the joy she feels from learning this news  surpasses her pain. She becomes stronger, more liberated and free...”body and soul free”.  She quickly comes to terms with her husband’s passing and seems to flourish. Ironically, her supposed “dead” husband walks through the door, much alive and she dies.

“It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long”. This statement is an excellent example of the use irony in the story. On one hand, the main character believes that life, the way she knows it, might be long, when in fact, it is taken from her so suddenly. The author repeats this sentence, giving more importance to it and creating an impact on the reader. We expect the woman to live a long life filled with freedom and pleasure: “she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her”. In reality, the long years ahead of her became only but a short hour.

The ending of the story in itself is ironic. The protagonist, who now feels free to live her life, is greeted at the door by the very person who enables her to do so. She dies “of joy that kills”, when moments before, she was consumed with the joy of finding the strength inside her,“like a goddess of Victory”. It’s as though the death of her husband would allow her to finally live. Ironically, this new life of hers would be short lived.” When the doctors came, they said she had died of heart disease-of joy that kills” as though her heart simply couldn’t handle the joy she felt of becoming a widow.

Some might say this story depicts a self centered woman who finds pleasure in her husband’s death, but it is much more than that. It tells the tale of a woman, who, oppressed by society and the man she married, is finally given a chance at life. She is given the opportunity to taste freedom of thought  “...self-assertion...as the strongest impulse of her being!”and imagine the possibilities that life has to offer to her. Unfortunately, her freedom and new found female empowerment lasted only but for an instant.

 

1. What I liked most about my text is the vocabulary that I used

2. What I liked least about my text is my failure to use good topic sentences.

Here are my suggestions for improving the:
 

4. thesis statement
I could find concrete examples of the use of irony in the text
5. topic sentence of each paragraph
Use quotations from the text, or questions.
7. organization of the text

I should have more structure in my writing. My sentences should flow and make sense with the main topic of the text 
494 words

Midterm writing test

Drop dead joyful

In the late 19^th century, women didn’t have the same place in society as they do today.  They mostly followed male authority rather than take the lead. Kate Chopin did just the opposite of what was expected. She exposed disappointments in her life, through poetry, short stories and novels.  She was harshly criticized because of the audacity of her work. Exposing concerns about the quality of women’s lives, was not a popular subject in those days.

“The Story of an Hour” is one of the works that influenced the modern feminist movement. It depicts the emotional evolution of a woman with a “heart  trouble”, that receives news of her husband’s  recent passing from her sister.  At first, she reacts as most people would, with sadness and tears, weeping. As the story evolves, the reader comes to understand that the joy she feels from learning this news  surpasses her pain. She becomes stronger, more liberated and free...”body and soul free”.  She quickly comes to terms with her husband’s passing and seems to flourish. Ironically, her supposed “dead” husband walks through the door, much alive and she dies.

“It was only yesterday she had thought with a shudder that life might be long”. This statement is an excellent example of the irony depicted in the story. On one hand, the main character believes that life, the way she knows it, might be long, when in fact, it is taken from her so suddenly. The author repeats this sentence, giving more importance to it and creating an impact on the reader. We expect the woman to live a long life filled with freedom and pleasure: “she saw beyond that bitter moment a long procession of years to come that would belong to her”.

The ending of the story in itself is ironic. The protagonist, who now feels free to live her life, is greeted at the door by the very person who enables her to do so. She dies “of joy that kills”, when moments before, she was consumed with the joy of finding the strength inside her,“like a goddess of Victory”. It’s as though the death of her husband would allow her to finally live. Ironically, this new life of hers would be short lived.” When the doctors came, they said she had died of heart disease-of joy that kills” as though her heart simply couldn’t handle the joy she felt of becoming a widow.

Some might say this story depicts a self centered woman who finds pleasure in her husband’s death, but it is much more than that. It tells the tale of a woman, who, oppressed by society and the man she married, is finally given a chance at life. She is given the opportunity to taste freedom of thought  “...self-assertion...as the strongest impulse of her being!”and imagine the possibilities that life has to offer to her. Unfortunately, her freedom and new found female empowerment lasted only but for an instant.

494 words

Midterm writing test

Essay title