Analysis of Kate Chopin’s “The Storm” Essay

Kate Chopins short story, The Storm, principally revolves around the subject area of adultery. This is depicted by the storys two main characters, Calixta and Alcee, who became involved in a momentary affair with one another. In the story, Alcee, who is Calixtas former lover, had to take refuge into her foot because of a strong storm passing by. Upon doing so, the two rekindled their past affections, which are mainly sensual, for each other. The reputation of adultery was first depicted the moment Calixta let Alcee into her home. This was also the first instance that the author showed that she whitethorn still have hidden desires for Alcee. This was vividly illustrated when Calixta was startled (Chopin) by Alcee as if she was in a day-dream (Chopin). Although she was mainly concerned for her husband, Bobint, and her son, Bibi, who both decided to remain on a store until the storm had passed, she finally gave in to Alcee when he hugged her and they subsequently had sex, which si gnifies that her feelings for him were still alive. However, despite the fact that adultery was evidently the main theme of the story, the actions of Calixta and Alcee had no negative consequences or adverse affects. This was shown when the author depicted that the sexual activity of the two heightened incisively as the storm ravaged the surroundings. In short, like any other storm, the author implied that adultery was commonplace and natural. This was further supported by the last sentence in the story which was So the storm passed and everyone was riant (Chopin). In other words, the storm symbolized, in a way, the adulterous acts of Calixta and Alcee. But the difference is, their actions did not adversely affect any character in the story as everyone remained happy.Works CitedChopin, Kate. The Storm. About.com. 2008. 27 September 2008 .