"The Story of an Hour," by Kate Chopin, was controversial by American standards of the 1890s because it features a female protagonist who feels liberated by the news of her husband's death. In her book Unveiling Kate Chopin, Emily Toth argues that Chopin "'had to have her heroine die' in order to make the story publishable."  “The Story of an Hour” is considered by many to be a hallmark of early feminist fiction.