"The Storm" by Kate Chopin, is a tempestuous short story about a
             fling' between Calixta and Alcee. The two characters had been involved in
             a flirtation years before, but were now both married to other people. The
             storm concerns the sexual tensions and restraints experienced in the
             Victorian era, while also "making a statement about human's natural
             tendency towards sexual passion" (Bartee, unknown).
             The title itself gives the reader the first impression that something
             turbulent is being suggested. In literature a storm is symbolic of
             conflicts and high energies usually associated with passions and turmoil.
             Robert Wilson suggests that the title is symbolically feminine, and as the
             storm is attributed to nature, can be seen as a direct symbol of female
             passions and sexuality. This image is a recurring theme throughout the
             Calixta is introduced to us as a housewife, busy doing chores. Her
             husband, Bobinot has gone to the local store with their son, Bibi, and when
             the storm starts, they decide to shelter there. There are some critics
             that suggest that Bobinot is actually staying out of the way of his wife as
             he is aware of the sexual tension and repression she feels within her
             marriage (Wilson, 2) but I found that difficult to see in the text of the
             story. But Wilson's comments on Calixta, that her sexuality is repressed
             by the constraints of her marriage and society's view of women, represented
             in this passage by the housework", (2) is indicative of the feminine
             viewpoint of the era, where women did suppress their sexualities and
             passions in good works, housework or some other time consuming activity,
             which prevented them from thinking about their repression.
             Calixta is hot, and we do not know if this is because of the storm or
             her own torment of emotions and sexual frustrations. She loosens her
             white sacque' at her throat, which suggests a form of offer...