Vocabulary in The Story of an Hour

Suffering from a serious physical or mental condition; here describing someone with a heart problem that makes shocking news especially dangerous to her health.

To prevent something from happening by acting ahead of time; to head off a problem before it occurs.

Hidden or partially concealed, as if covered by a thin fabric; not openly expressed or directly stated.

The act of holding back or suppressing a feeling or impulse so it does not show outwardly.

Difficult to grasp, name, or pin down; here describing a feeling or sensation that keeps slipping away before it can be fully understood.

So delicate or faint as to be hard to detect or describe; not obvious or straightforward.

Past tense of 'strive'; made a great effort to do or resist something.

Raised to a state of intense happiness or spiritual elevation; feeling a sense of triumphant joy far beyond ordinary pleasure.

Shockingly wrong or unnatural; here used to describe a joy that the character herself senses should not exist given the circumstances.

A sudden flash of understanding or inner clarity; a moment when something previously hidden becomes mentally visible.

Persistent, pressing demands or requests that are difficult to refuse; unwanted insistence from another person.

The quality of continuing firmly despite difficulty or opposition; here describing the unwanted continuation of another's will over one's own life.

In a wildly agitated, turbulent, or emotionally stormy way; with great inner upheaval.

Completely without the ability to act or resist; entirely under the control of an external force or another person's will.

A paradoxical emotional state in which sorrow and happiness are felt simultaneously; the text uses it to capture the character's confused mixture of mourning and liberation.

The act of claiming one's own rights, identity, or independence; insisting on one's own will rather than submitting to another's.