凯特·肖邦/Kate Choplin
凯特·肖邦（1851—1904），美国作家，生于密苏里州的圣路易斯。她从1882年起，开始从事写作，其作品包括诗歌、小说、文学评论。快四十岁时她出版了第一本小说《故障》，代表作有《阿卡迪一夜》《觉醒》等。她的后期作品，如本文《一小时的故事》，题材开始侧重于女性对独立和自由的渴望。
They knew that Louise Mallard had a weak heart. So they broke the bad news softly. Her husband, Brently, was dead.
"There was a train accident, Louise," said her sister Josephine. Richards brought the news, but Josephine told the story. She spoke in broken sentences.
"Richards...was at the newspaper office. News of the accident came. Louise...Louise, Brently's name was on the list. Brently was killed, Louise."
Louise did not hear the story coldly, as some women would. She could not close her mind or her heart to the news. Like a sudden storm, her tears broke out. She cried loudly in her sister's arms. Then, just as suddenly, the tears stopped. She went to her room alone. She wanted no one with her.
In front of the window stood an empty chair. She sat down and looked out the window. She was tired after her tears. Her body felt cold, her mind and heart were empty.
Outside her window she could see the trees. The air smelled like spring rain. She could hear someone singing far away. Birds sang near the house. Blue sky showed between the clouds. She rested.
She sat quietly, but a few weak tears still fell. She had a young, strong face. But now her eyes showed nothing. She looked out the window at the blue sky. She was not thinking, or seeing. She was waiting.
There was something coming to her. She was waiting for it with fear. What was it? She did not know; she could not give it a name. But she felt it coming out from the sky. It reached her through the sound, the smell, the color of the air.