The Storm by Kate Chopin - Essay Example

?“The Storm” by Kate Chopin has been one of the most intriguing and controversial short stories in my personal account. It tackles the story of the two main characters that was beyond the norms of the society, and I must say it jumped off the issue of morality concerning marriage as it dealt with adultery between two people who were both married. This paper focused on several themes explored in the story: sex, women and femininity and marriage. To begin with, let me implore what “The Storm” symbolizes. Metaphorically, it refers to the strong and intense sexual urge of a person. In the story, the two main characters, Calixta and Alcee, who were both married “were forced together by a titular storm” (Pope A., 2010). When the storm happened, Calixta’s husband and son were in town while Alcee’s wife was away. Despite their marital status, they had this intense sexual relationship that they could not find in their spouses. This presented a very liberating idea of the author about adultery. How could sex and love be different? Was she trying to say that a person can be emotionally faithful and committed but physically not? If that was the case, then any married person who could not find sexual satisfaction from his/her partner could deliberately have sex with anyone as long as it was just physical contact and mere sex, and as long as you do not get caught as the part “the actual storm passed by without doing any real damage, leaving the city as it had been before the storm” (Pope, 2010). Therefore, adultery would just be a normal thing in the society. One can always justify that having sex is just an act of fulfilling his/her sexual needs with someone who can satisfy it if that person cannot find it from his/her own partner. What is the essence of marriage at this point? Moving on, another crucial issue in this story was femininity. First, the character of Calixta was described to be “unable to conform to the society’s standards of acceptable conduct” (M, 2012) especially in the 19th century setting. Symbolically, it goes with the issue of chastity as Calixta was a married woman which went favourably with Alcee. Looking closely at it, a sexually mutual relationship compromised the affair of the two main characters. Calixta had her sexual longing and desire as a woman beyond her role as a wife and mother. Her marriage was seemingly repressing her and having a passionate sexual encounter with Alcee released her from the pressures of her married life. Giving in to Alcee was not because of love for this man but for the love of herself. It was her human nature that she needed to satisfy. This part of characterization was very liberating although not in a vulgar way, yet it made a negative impression among women in a patriarchal society. Taking into account that women have their own needs, let us say that they have the right and the freedom to voice them out and seek for their satisfaction, at what extent should they attain it? It is just to cheat on their spouse just to fulfil the physical and sexual fantasy and longing? How can the society or the women themselves distinguish their feminine satisfaction from immorality? Contrary to the first two themes, marriage that was supposed to be of high moral was given a different treatment in the story. It set boundaries among the characters instead of giving them space to grow as different individuals. Calixta found pressure in her marriage having a husband described to be undependable. Alcee, on the other side, being far away from his wife did not have a spouse to answer his sexual passion. At the end of it all, the elements lacking in their marriage pushed them to cheat on their spouses. Dishonesty in a marital relationship is immoral and sinful, but in the story, the sexual bliss served as a therapy both for Calixta and Alcee to be kinder and sweeter to their spouses. Ironically, their so called hypocrisy seemed to help strengthen rather than destroying their individual marriages. Personally, one thing I noticed in this story was the act of deception. The forbidden affair shared with Calixta and Alcee was left unknown by their respective partners. They treated it as if it never happened without even guilt or shame. I can relate it to the innocence or ignorance of other people when it comes to their physical or sexual desires. Evidently, there was no mention of Calixta’s husband’s, Bobinot, significant characterization. He played the same monotonous role of a husband and father upon returning home after the storm surpassed. As for Alcee’s wife, Clarisse, she did not have much significant role as well. The distance she had away from her husband had given her a chance to enjoy her social life with friends. Similarly, both for Calixta and Clarisse, marital life created such an oppressive limbo they both need to break through. “The Storm” was a very bold exposition of its author Kate Chopin in opposition with the norms of the 19th century society where women played a subordinate role. Using symbols and metaphors, it dealt mostly with the theme of sex, femininity and marriage. Having illicit affair is never a norm even at the present time although women are more open and liberated nowadays regarding sexuality and equal treatment in the society. It expressed the daring points of view of the author that attempted to broaden the horizon of “a woman’s point of view of marriage – both the psychological and physical aspects” (M, 2012). It gave women independence when it comes to sexuality considering them as social animals. To sum it up, this story left a very challenging and liberating message among women. Would they conform to the norms and social standards or would they go beyond morality to satisfy their sexuality? How far would women let themselves get carried away by the turbulent emotions storming them within? Works Cited: The Storm by Kate Chopin. n.d. http://www.shmoop.com/storm-chopin/summary.html. 10 Dec. 2012. Pope Androse. Themes, Characters, and Symbols in Kate Chopin's The Storm.20 December, 2010. http://voices.yahoo.com/themes-characters-symbols-kate-chopins-the-7428870.html?cat=4. 10 Dec. 2012. M. Critical Analysis of The Storm by Kate Chopin.27 May, 2012. http://jottedlines.com/literature/critical-analysis-of-the-storm-by-kate-chopin/. 10 Dec. 2012 . Read More