The Storm

American writer Kate Chopin’s short story “The Storm” (1898) is set in the South during the nineteenth century. In that time and place, dangerous storms were frequent occurrences. “The Storm” did not appear in print during Chopin’s lifetime but was released in 1969 in the collection The Complete Works of Kate Chopin. The story is a sequel to Chopin’s story “At the ‘Cadian Ball.” Chopin is recognized as a primary force in paving the way for twentieth-century feminist authors, including Zelda Fitzgerald. Chopin’s work appeared in such publications as Atlantic Monthly and Vogue. It was often controversial and called immoral by some critics because of her subject matter.

“The Storm” tells of an adulterous affair; the setting creates an environment appropriate to the topic. Further, Chopin uses the storm as a symbol of the affair. The exact year is not given, but it is likely that the story takes place in the late 1800s. It is in the Deep South, and Calixta, the wife of Bobinot and mother of four-year-old Bibi, is involved in an affair with Alcee, the husband of Clarisse. A fierce rainstorm is taking place. The onset of the storm, its climax, and its ending parallel various points in the affair of Calixta and Alcee. Chopin uses the storm as a device to advance the unfolding story.

As the narrative gets underway, Bobinot and Bibi are at a local grocery store. They are preparing to leave the store and see storm clouds approaching their town. They decide to stay inside the store and wait for the storm to pass. Calixta is at home tending to some sewing and does not realize that a storm is brewing. When she eventually becomes aware of the storm, she quickly runs around the house closing windows and doors and collecting the laundry she had left on her porch. Meanwhile, a former beau of Calixta’s, Alcee, is looking for a place to get out of the storm and approaches Calixta on the porch. The storm is used to create a chance meeting between the two. To move the plot forward, the storm has forced Alcee and Calixta into her home. The storm increases in intensity, symbolizing the affair. Calixta, concerned about Bobinot and Bibi, and looks out her window. Just as she does, a lightning bolt hits a nearby tree.



The lightning bolt scares Calixta; she recoils and finds herself in Alcee’s arms. They recall the feelings they once had for each other. The author has used the storm to not only symbolically represent events in the story, but to literally propel Calixta into the waiting embrace of Alcee. Shortly after this first physical encounter, the affair reaches its climax. They both give into the passion they are feeling for each other at which point the author changes the way in which the storm is used. It still prompts the advancement of the plot, but it also represents and verifies the unfolding romance. As the storm reaches its most intense moment, Chopin describes Calixta and Alcee by saying, “They did not heed the crashing torrents and the roar of the elements made her laugh as she lay in his arms.” Here, Chopin has described the intensity of the storm as Calixta and Alcee reach the most intense moment of their encounter. With this, the implication is that the intensity of the storm is equivalent to the intensity of the passion between the two lovers. As the storm passes it brings with it the end the affair of Calixta and Alcee.

After Calixta and Alcee part ways, each feel that they have been refreshed and are happier than they were. When Bobinot and Bibi return from the grocery store Calixta is happy to see them and embraces them. Alcee meanwhile, writes a letter to his wife who has been away in Biloxi with their children. It is a loving letter in which he tells her to stay as long as she needs to. He tells her that her happiness is more important than the pain he feels in her absence. Clarisse is made happy by the letter. She is happy in Biloxi due to the freedom she feels. She says that she is devoted to her husband but is not in a rush to return to married life. The ending of the story indicates that things are better for all involved. “So the storm passed and everyone was happy.”

“The Storm” being primarily a story of raw sexual passion was ahead of its time in the nineteenth century. Such topics were not generally discussed publically. It was a time, however, when faith was increasingly being questioned making it perhaps not quite as surprising that the sin of adultery became a central theme in the story. Chopin presents the affair in the story as sinful and disloyal, yet at its conclusion, both Calixta and Alcee have better feelings about their spouses.