Symbolism in "The Storm"
Jacob Sarabia
Ms. Baker
English 1302-1003
3 May 2013
Symbolism in “The Storm” “The Storm” written by Kate Chopin starts off with Bibi at a local store called Friedheimer’s with his father Bibinot. Bibi and Bibinot notice that there is a storm on the way, so Bibinot lets his son know that his mom, Calixta, will be okay during the storm. Bibinot and Bibi decide to stay at the store and wait patiently for the storm to pass through them. Meanwhile, Calixta is at home and does not even notice that the storm was coming in. Once she finally realizes the storm is coming, she goes around the house shutting the windows and doors. As she is preparing herself for the storm, she sees an old lover of hers, Alcee. Calixta allows Alcee to come into the house, so he is not outside during the storm. Alcee comforts Calixta with nice comforting words during the storm and ends up kissing Calixta. By the end of the storm, Alcee and Calixta have made love on the couch, and then he leaves once the storm is over. Calixta makes sure Bibi and Bibinot are okay when they arrive after the storm. Later that night, Alcee writes to his wife telling her to stay in Biloxi with the children as long as she needs to. Alcee’s wife is very excited and happy when she receives his letter. Kate Chopin finishes the story by stating that everybody is happy now that the storm has passed. The way Kate Chopin uses the characters in “The Storm” as symbols are a good way to tell the different abstract meanings behind the story. Symbolism is one of the most used literary devices that are used throughout the entire short story, “The Storm”. The many different symbols that are in the story may represent many different things. Even one character could represent different symbols depending on the time and place during the story. Kate Chopin does a great job implementing symbols throughout her story by using her characters to represent different concepts of ideas. One of the clearest symbols throughout the
Ms. Baker
English 1302-1003
3 May 2013
Symbolism in “The Storm” “The Storm” written by Kate Chopin starts off with Bibi at a local store called Friedheimer’s with his father Bibinot. Bibi and Bibinot notice that there is a storm on the way, so Bibinot lets his son know that his mom, Calixta, will be okay during the storm. Bibinot and Bibi decide to stay at the store and wait patiently for the storm to pass through them. Meanwhile, Calixta is at home and does not even notice that the storm was coming in. Once she finally realizes the storm is coming, she goes around the house shutting the windows and doors. As she is preparing herself for the storm, she sees an old lover of hers, Alcee. Calixta allows Alcee to come into the house, so he is not outside during the storm. Alcee comforts Calixta with nice comforting words during the storm and ends up kissing Calixta. By the end of the storm, Alcee and Calixta have made love on the couch, and then he leaves once the storm is over. Calixta makes sure Bibi and Bibinot are okay when they arrive after the storm. Later that night, Alcee writes to his wife telling her to stay in Biloxi with the children as long as she needs to. Alcee’s wife is very excited and happy when she receives his letter. Kate Chopin finishes the story by stating that everybody is happy now that the storm has passed. The way Kate Chopin uses the characters in “The Storm” as symbols are a good way to tell the different abstract meanings behind the story. Symbolism is one of the most used literary devices that are used throughout the entire short story, “The Storm”. The many different symbols that are in the story may represent many different things. Even one character could represent different symbols depending on the time and place during the story. Kate Chopin does a great job implementing symbols throughout her story by using her characters to represent different concepts of ideas. One of the clearest symbols throughout the
Cited: MLA Format Baker, Christopher. "Chopin 's The Storm." The Explicator 52.4 (1994): 225+. Literature Resource Center. Web. 5 May 2013. Berkove, Lawrence I. " 'Acting Like Fools ': The Ill-Fated Romances of 'At the 'Cadian Ball ' and 'The Storm '." Critical Essays on Kate Chopin. Ed. Alice Hall Petry. New York: G. K. Hall & Co., 1996. 184-196. Rpt. in Short Story Criticism. Ed. Joseph Palmisano. Vol. 68. Detroit: Gale, 2004. Literature Resource Center. Web. 14 Mar. 2013. Chopin, Kate. “The Storm” Compact Literature: Reading, Reacting, Writing. 8th ed. Ed Laurie G. Kriszner and Stephen R. Mandell. Boston: Wadsworth Cenage Learning, 2007. 234-238. Print. Koloski, Bernard. "Per Seyersted on “the Storm”." Kate Chopin: A Study of the Short Fiction. New York: Twayne Publishers, 1996. 145-148. Twayne 's Studies in Short Fiction 65. Twayne 's Authors on GVRL. Web. 10 Mar. 2013. Milne, Ira Mark. "The Storm." Short Stories for Students. Ed. Katherine Hobbs. Vol. 26. Detroit: Gale, 2008. 286-306. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.