Read the excerpt from "the story of an hour." there would be no one to live for during those coming years; she would live for herself. there would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature. a kind intention or a cruel intention made the act seem no less a crime as she looked upon it in that brief moment of illumination. which universal theme is expressed in the excerpt? romantic relationships are a burden rather than a blessing. all women are suppressed by the men they marry. marriage is usually about business rather than true love. arranged marriages will leave both partners unfulfilled.

I believe the correct answer is: All women are suppressed by the men they marry.

     In this excerpt from "The Story of an Hour", written by Kate Chopin in 1894, the universal theme that is expressed is that all women are suppressed by the men they marry, which made this short story extremely controversial at the time:

     “There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature.”

     The fact that best supports this universal theme is that Mrs. Mallard actually dies when she realizes that her husband isn’t dead and that her freedom only lasted for one hour, which would suggest that she was suppressed by her husband to the very end.