He then becomes afraid of the consequences of his actions and denies the action. He repressed his own feelings about telling the truth about the mule. This in turn gets him into more trouble. He appears to be childish to others and does not prove that he is an adult. “The Story of An Hour” portrays mental oppression through a woman who is married to an overbearing husband. When Louise learns that her husband has been “killed”, she seeks solitude to grieve, but instead finds comfort in the realization that she is “free” to live her own life. She realizes she is out from under the strong hold of her domineering husband. When she returns downstairs to the support of her sister and friend, only to find her husband walking through the door. She is startled that she drops dead. She had repressed her own feelings for so long that death held more appeal for her than continuing the life her husband had insisted she live.
The stories portrayed repression by a family member, also. In “The Sky is Gray”, James was repressed by his mother because she always wanted him to learn by tough love. She was always teaching him lessons on how to become a man; therefore he rarely enjoyed his childhood. In “The Story of An Hour”, Louise was repressed by her sister, Josephine, because she viewed Louise and weak because of her heart condition. This resulted in Josephine not wanting to break the news of Louise’s husband’s death. In “The Man Who Was Almost a Man”, Dave was repressed by his mother because she would always call him dumb and would not let him keep his own money from his job.
All three stories exhibited repression by society. In “The Sky is Gray”, James was repressed by society because of racism he endured while on their trip to the dentist. In “The Story of An Hour”, Louise was repressed by society because she was lead to be a divorce is a disgrace and a wife should always remain married to her husband. In “The Man Who Was Almost a Man”, society repressed Dave by treating him like a child, and not allowing him to become a man.
- Conclusion
Although repressed by self, family and society, these characters had a chance to escape repression and in there own way, they accomplished this task. James, in “The Sky is Gray”, realized the value of hard work and is being responsible for self and family.
Dave, in “The Man Who Was Almost A Man”, decided to attempt to become a man in a new and different town. Louise, in “The Story of An Hour”, was unable to enjoy her newly discovered freedom due to death. Ironically, James, Dave, and Louise were able to overcome their repression through different means.