“The Storm” is a short story written by Kate Chopin in 1898 and published in 1969.
The story revolves around a married woman, Calixta, who cheats on her husband with
the man she truly loves, Alcée, during a tempestuous storm. Chopin’s description of the
storm is very emblematic and meaningful, using all sorts of imagery to portray what it
means to the plot. The storm signifies their adultery and betrayal towards their spouses,
but regardless of the fact that their disloyalty is disgraceful. Kate Chopin justifies their
perfidies by concluding the story with a happy ending for all of the characters.
In the beginning of the short story, Chopin introduces the characters Bobinȏt and
Bibi. Bobinȏt is Calixta’s husband and they
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This
demonstrates that in literature, committing adultery seldom contributes to a character’s
happiness, but in contrast to many literary works, this act of deceit in “The Storm” made
the characters much more content. The last sentence in the short story is “The storm
had passed and everyone was happy” (Chopin, page 55). This sentence implies that
after Calixta and Alcée made love, all of the restrains of their happiness were broken
into. This long awaited experience finally allows the ex-lovers to live their lives without
any regret of not knowing the feeling of physically, emotionally and passionately loving
their once significant other. Does this point mean that the author is suggesting that we
should have affairs in order to be happier in life? Chopin makes it perfectly clear
towards the ending of the story that Calixta and her family come off happier when
Calixta says: “J’vous reponds, we’ll have a feat’ to-night! Umph-umph!” (Chopin, page
55).
This is a remarkable short story, the hauntingly beautiful figures of speech
As a forerunner of the modern feminist movement, Kate Chopin explored bold new characterizations of her female subjects. Chopin is famous for her progressive depiction of the female characters in her stories. Two such stories, 'The Storm' and 'The Story of an Hour,' examine and refute the long held ideal of the subservient wife. 'The Storm,' written in 1898 but not published until later because of its provocative content, describes the passionate extramarital affair between Calixta and Alcee, a former lover. 'The Story of an Hour' follows Louise Mallard as she deals with the death of her husband. Chopin uses the extraordinary events in the characters' lives to bring them out of the coma of submissive living. In both stories, the female protagonist awakens from a marriage-induced trance and into a state of self-awareness as a person separate from her husband.
During this time a storm develops leaving them stranded seeking shelter. Alce, the character who appears to be Calixta first love suddenly appears at her house as she is alone seeking shelter from the storm himself. They had not laid eyes on each other since Calixtra was married which from a passage in the text indicated it had been five years at this points “She was a little fuller of figure than five years before” (The Storm, by Kate Chopin). Surprised to see him she invited him in which resulted in the room being filled with feelings and the sensation of flesh they craved for each other. Like the scene in Titanic they drift away making love to each other passionately. At the beginning Calixtra fights to resist the temptation “Bont! She cried, releasing herself from his encircling arms and retreating from the window” (The Storm, by Kate Chopin) but is ultimately overpower by temptation. Calixtra’s moment of awakening comes when Bobint and Bibi returns and she affectionately attends to her husband and effusively kissing her son. In this moment she see what she has, an amazing family. This is a women how just cheated on her husband with a man she has held feelings for but the love for her husband a family unit holds more values, weirdly it took her committing a wrong deed to realize this. Her moment of awakening in the case was positive though
Chopin, Kate. ?The Storm.? The Norton Anthology. Ed. Nina Baym, et al. New York: 1999. 1612-1615
All in all, Kate Chopin is able to combine two very different aspects of life and involve the relationship and symbolism of the storm to physical needs, sexual desires, and new and profound joy. By bringing these two parallel subjects together, the author is able to show the deeper meaning of one simple word, “storm,” and reveal a story that shows the attitudes and beliefs towards marriage and sex. In doing so, Chopin creates a strong point of view between these two subjects and allows for the view of regulations of sex and marriage to be shown throughout her short story, “The Storm.”
Effectively using foreshadowing in a piece of literature enhances the reader's curiosity. One clear example of such usage is seen in Kate Chopin's writing. Her use of foreshadowing in the short story "The Storm" adds an element of intrigue, holding the reader's interest throughout. In this story a father and son, Bobinôt and Bibi, are forced to remain in the store where they were shopping, waiting for an approaching storm to pass. Meanwhile, the wife and mother, Calixta, remaining at home, receives an unexpected visit from a former lover of hers, Alcée. The two lovers ultimately consummate their relationship. Alcée then departs once the storm subsides, at which time the father and son return home. No repercussions of the extramarital affair take place within the story.
Throughout history writers have offered readers lessons through themes and often symbolized. In the story, “The Storm” by Kate Chopin is quite different from “The Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid; both have a different theme, symbol, throughout the stories. “The Storm” in Kate Chopin 's story can symbolize a number of different things: temporary, fleeting and quick action, and without consequences.
...opin’s idea in each story was very contradictory. At first the women were almost held captivate and dissolved of happiness in their marriages, but without a man in their lives they almost become nonexistent. In each of the women’s lives they are looking for attention, lust, and freedom. Once each woman is given all or one of those things, she may enjoy them for a moment and then her victory is snatched away in a flash.
Soon after this, Calixta who is then feeling the situation gets up to look outside the window, as not to keep looking at Alcee for she knows what may come of it. Alcee then also gets up to look out the window so that he may stand close to Calixta, which shows how Alcee wants to be with her. While Calixta is looking out the window she sees that it is raining hard and there is strong winds and lightning, which clearly signifies how mixed up Calixta’s feelings for Alcee are at that moment. After this Alcee grabs Calixta close to him as she staggers back, she then retreats and immediately asks where her son may be. This also shows that Calixta is having mixed feelings with the situation. Which is the reason she gets loose but does not tell Alcee to control himself but yet like nothing had happened wonders where her son may be, “ Bonte! She cried, releasing herself from his arms encircling arms and retreating to the window… If I only knew were Bibi was!”
Chopin's short story, "The Storm," shows the reader some of the controversial issues she wrote about. It was written in 1898 and was one of the last stories that she wrote before Awakening. It tells of the struggles of one woman to find happiness and excitement in her everyday life. The reader really does not get much information on the relationship at the beginning of the story, but one can imagine that it was becoming monotonous and boring. The title itself lets the reader know that this storm is the result of a long chain of events that have built up over time, like a thunderstorm in the middle of the summer comes after many long days of intense heat. In the following paragraphs, I will discuss the events that lead to the apex of the 'storm,' the consequences that follow the decisions that are made, and how this short story could be seen as feministic.
Storytelling has been a common pastime for centuries. Over the years it has evolved into different styles containing different themes. Kate Chopin, a well-known author of the 20th century, wrote stories about the secrets in women’s lives that no one dared to speak of. Her work was not always appreciated and even considered scandalous, but it opened up a world that others were too afraid to touch. In Chopin’s story “The Storm,” a woman has an affair that causes an unlikely effect. The story’s two themes are portrayed greatly through an abundance of imagery and symbolism, along with the two main characters themselves.
Chopin gives off the impression that she is in favor of Calixta’s decision to actively engage in an affair. Chopin tackles the theme of female sexuality present at the time by allowing Calixta to crave sexual enjoyment with Alceé. In the 1800’s, like all women of her period Calixta grew unaware of her desires as a direct result of society. During that time women never acted upon their desires but rather played a submissive role in a sexual encounter omitting their needs to succumb to their male counterparts. Chopin identifies Calixtas’s ardent personality when she says: “she felt very warm and on her face perspiration gathered in beads” and “she unfastened her white sacque at the throat”(122). In this scene Calixta shows her devotion for sewing. Chopin parades Calixta as a very fervent woman who is eager to love and be loved when she says: “The generous abundance of her passion, without guile or trickery, was like a white flame which penetrated and found response in depths of his own sensuous nature that had never been reached” (123). In this excerpt Chopin alludes to the nature of their passion and the vigorous interaction that came with
... The affair brews, it happens, and then it is over. But as we know another storm will happen and so will the affair between these two characters. When Alcée sends a letter to his wife saying that she must not rush home, this is an indication that Alcée may expect to see Calxita again soon. “Mrs. Chopin may refuse to sit judgment on morals, but she covers only one day and one storm and does not exclude the possibility of later misery” (Koloski 145). Kate Chopin ends the story with the idea that this may have been first time but is certainly not the last time will this happen.
In“The Storm”, Bibi, a young boy, and his father, Bobinot, wait out a storm at a local store. They are both very concerned about the well being of a third member of their family, Calixta, but they cannot do anything about it until the storm is over. Calixta, at home, knows that there is a storm about to break out. An old boyfriend coincidentally stays with her while the storm is taking place. Calixta and her old boyfriend, Alce, see a spark in their lusts for each other then start to make out and the making out leads to sex. When the storm passes, the old boyfriend, Alce leaves. Bibi and Bobinot, Calixta’s husband, never find out that Alce was there. When the child and Babinot return home, Calixta is really glad to see them. In the end of the story, Alce writes a letter to his wife, Clarisse, saying that it’s OK with him if she wants to stay longer on her trip. She is relieved because she wants a break from her husband and the romantic aspect of their relationship. When the storm passes, everything works out well for everyone.
Chopin, Kate. "The Storm" .The Complete Works of Kate Chopin. Louisiana State University Press. 1969. Print.
In The Storm, the character of Calixta is unable to fulfill society's standards of virtue, despite her perceived purity by her lover Alcee. When Alcee professes, "If she was not an immaculate dove in those days, she was still inviolate" (p. 34), he is basically saying that just because a woman is not chaste, does not mean she is not pure of heart. After all, it was Calixta's marriage which had stripped her of her chastity status. So why should her morality be called into question? Of course the morality i...