In Kate Chopin’s short story, “The Story of An Hour” and Tina Rathbone’s film version, “The Joy That Kills”, we are introduced to Louise Mallard. She is the wife of Brently Mallard. The two live in what seems at first as a harmonious life style set in the late 1800’s in the French Quarter of New Orleans. It is during this time that the Cult of Domesticity is hailed as the “proper” way for the white, upper middle class to live. This applies to the Mallards, who are celebrating their third wedding anniversary as the story begins. Ultimately, the combination of Brently Mallard’s selfish quest for status and success and Louise Mallard’s yearning for autonomy in her marriage will yield a tragic result. Brently’s inability to see and/or care about his wife’s needs as a woman is supported by the culture in which they live. White middle class women of this era, are not encouraged to expect to have their needs met by their husbands. This allows an opportunist like Brently to set up a perfect scenario in which his agenda can be fulfilled and patiently wait for the right time to serve the blow that will kill his wife. The period of 1820 to 1860 saw the rise in America of an ideology of feminine behavior and an ideal of womanliness that has come to be known as the ‘Cult of True Womanhood’ or ‘Cult of Domesticity.’ The features of this codeheld that women were designed exclusively for the roles of wife and mother and were expected to cultivate Piety, Purity, Submissiveness, and Domesticity in all their relations... arguments of biological inferiority led to pronouncements that women were incapable of effectively participating in the realms of politics, commerce, or public service. In return for a husband’s provision of security and protection, which by physical nature she required, the true woman would take on the obligations of housekeeping, raising good children, and making her family’s home a haven of health, happiness, and virtue (MacKethan 2). Adherence to these rules for living are met loosely by the Mallards and primarily in appearance only. For his part, Brently fits the image that the cult sets for the men. Louise on the other hand, only looks the part of a Goddess of Domesticity. In all other matters, Louise is the antithesis of anything close to the description fitting a woman of her position. Although married for almost three years, there is no mention of children or the desire to have them by either Brently or Louise. Ironically, it is Louise that presents as a child throughout the majority of the film; she perceives and processes things tantamount to that of an adolescent. As a child does, Louise lives in a predominantly fantastical life. In the beginning of the film only Louise’s voice is heard as she describes the “journeys” she takes with Brently, “We have been so many places. We have seen so many things. We saw the Sphinx. We saw the Great Wall of China and the Taj MahalTogether, Brently and I see all the world” (Rathborne Film). Louise says this with the glee of a child describing their favorite fairytale. Louise then goes on to explain, “You see. I’ve never even left the French QuarterI was born in this house. And I rarely leave it. It is all because of you. You tell me that because of heart condition, I have to be good” (Film). This statement paints a dim look into Louise’s life and Louise delivers it in a manner that an immature child might make. Louise does not take ownership of any part of this declaration, rather she blames someone else for her predicament and speaks of needing to be “good”. These are not pronouncements of a grown woman. Rather, this is an insight to the fact that Louise has no say in her own life. Louie’s problem lays within her spirit, which is her true “heart condition”. At the same time that Louise’s physical body summits to the tight boundaries of her life, there is a spirit inside of her that is held tighter than her physical body. The awakening of Louise’s spirit is what Chopin’s story is all about. Rathborne’s film takes it further in exploiting one of Brently’s goals, which is to dominate both Louise’s body and spirit. It is important to note that Brently does not desire control over Louise because he needs to in order to gain the material possessions he covets; Brently reveals in the mastery over his wife because he can. In Chopin’s short story, almost the entirety of the story shows the emergence of Louise’s spirit after she hears the news that Brently has been killed. In the film version, more is shown of the confines of Louise’s physical body and the slow awakening of her spirit which has been dormant since she was molested as a child by her father. The real question pondered in both Chopin’s s