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The story begins with the main character Mrs. Mallard being introduced. Her sister Josephine tries to break the news to her, knowing that she has a heart problem. Mrs. Mallard begins sobbing in front of her sister and everyone, but on the inside is secretly happy about the news.
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She locks herself in her room, able to be herself and be real with her emotions. She begins peering out the window, which symbolizes her newfound freedom. Mrs. Mallard begins shouting "free, free, free". She decides that from now on she can start living her life on her own terms, free of her. husband.
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Josephine begins knocking out the door demanding to know what Louise is up to. They begin walking downstairs, only to find out that there is an unexpected surprise waiting for them.
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As they walk down the stairs, a huge surprise overtakes Louise. She sees that and is informed that he wasn't even at the accident.
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Unfortunately, because of Louise's surprise and heart condition, she actually passes away from grief. She goes through the up and down emotions of finally getting her freedom, and then unexpectedly losing it. There are definitely cases of people having heart attacks from stress and grief, which probably compounded on her existing health condition and ultimately caused her death.