assignment
Essay 1
Sample Essay
Dr. Robin Nealy
ENGL 1302
October 28, 2021
One Last Time of Freedom
Is committing adultery immortal? Even if committing adultery is the closes feeling of
freedom and fulfillment. In the short story, “The Storm,” by Kate Chopin, shows how Calixta
cares and loves her son Bibi and her husband Bobinot but ends up having an affair with her old
friend Alcee who had a relationship with Calixta in the past. The affair does not affect the
family’s relationship nor make Calixta feel like divorcing. On the contrary, Calixta starts feeling
happy and relief with her family. The reader might disagree with the decision and behavior
Calixta did, but the actions Calixta did were like a bird being set free from a cage. The short
story “The Storm” expresses freedom through the symbolism of the storm, the imagery of the
chinaberry tree, and the foreshadowing of the story.
Primarily, “The Storm” demonstrates how freedom is establish through the symbolism of
the storm. A storm represents chaos, difficulty, and weakness and the author used the storm as a
way of bringing Calixta and Alcee together one last time. Calixta does not have any intensions of
having an affair. Although her memories of Alcee when they were together in the past lifted their
passion. After the storm, the sun comes out and the skies are clear which is how Calixta felt after
the affair “The rain was over; and the sun was turning the glistening green world into a palace of
gems” (Chopin 5). This quote defines the freedom Calixta felt after her actions. The story was
written in the 1988 where women did not make decisions on who to marry or be with. The reader
Essay 2
can infer Alcee was an intimate friend to her in the past and getting to finally do something for
herself makes Calixta feel free for once. Calixta was not force; she made the decisions herself
which explains her happy behavior in the end as if she was free. “Bobinot and Bibi began to
relax and enjoy themselves, and when the three seated themselves at table they laughed much
and so loud that anyone might have heard them as far away as Laballiere’s.” The way Calixta
was happy after everything demonstrated how the symbolism of the storm was the reason, she
felt freedom.
To continue, “The Storm” showed how freedom was related to the imagery of the
chinaberry tree. In the story when Calixta is staring out the window she sees the chinaberry tree
get struck by lightning which makes her staggered into the arms of Alcee “Calixta put her hands
to her eyes, and with a cry, staggered backward. Alcee’s arm encircled her, and for an instant he
drew her close and spasmodically to him” (Chopin 3). The reader can infer the tree getting struck
by lightning is Calixta’s and Alcee’s passion reunited once again. The author included the
chinaberry tree because this tree is meant to know the good and bad and in “The Storm” the bad
was the affair Calixta committed and the good was the freedom Calixta felt after. The reader
could connect that the way Alcee was holding Calixta after the tree getting struck was a sign
something bad was going to happen. This connects to the imagery of chinaberry tree in how just
seeing the tree let to them holding each other. The reader can conclude the chinaberry tree served
as a good thing for Calixta, making her feel like she did something for herself and not someone
else and despite that she never stopped caring for her family lives “Oh, Bobinot! You back! My!
but I was uneasy. Were you been during the rain? An Bibi? he ain’t wet? he ain’t hurt?” She had
clasped Bibi and was kissing him effusively” (Chopin 6). Furthermore, the quote makes it clear
Essay 3
Calixta still cares about her family after the affair. This connects with the idea that the chinaberry
tree gave Calixta the opportunity to decide for herself and not for others.
Finally, “The Storm” by Kate Chopin used foreshadowing to demonstrate the freedom
Calixta felt. In the story, Chopin uses the storm primarily to foreshadow that something bad was
going to happen. One connection the reader can make is that this storm seemed like an issue so
big to Calixta and her family even do a storm can be rain and lighting and most of the time does
not harm anyone, which leads to the foreshadowing that its more than just a storm. The author
then explains how Calixta noticed Alcee in the distance right before it started raining, “She had
not seen him very often since her marriage, and never alone” (Chopin 2). The author used this
line to foreshadow that something interesting was going to happen between the two and it also
revealed they had something in the past. After the rain started hitting hard Alcee asked to stay
under her gallery but ended up inside the house. Calixta could have made him stay outside but
was okay with him inside. This connects to the idea that Calixta got to decide on herself and if
her husband was there, it would not have been the same. After having the affair, the author made
it clear the foreshadowing of the storm was not bad but something Calixta needed in her life
Calixta “on the gallery, watched Alcee ride away. He turned and smiled at her with a beaming
face; and she lifted her pretty chin in the air and laughed aloud.” This quote shows how life
living she felt and how her aura was different than before. The author also foreshadows Calixta
attitude in the future because throughout the story Calixta gave no life living attitude but its
different after the affair. Chopin throughout the story foreshadows in order to make reader
understand the freedom Calixta felt.
In conclusion, committing adultery is immortal but when people are not happy with their
marriage that person should be able to freely decide for themselves. In Calixta’s time period
Essay 4
women did not get to choose so freely like today. When reading “The Storm” is clear Calixta
choose to have an affair because she wanted to experienced freedom and happiness with the
decision, she made for herself. In the end, “The Storm” by Kate Chopin used the symbolism of
the storm, the imagery of the chinaberry tree and the foreshadowing to explain the freedom
Calixta felt.