Innocence and Experience and Coming of Age

Sooner or later, we all search for our identity, and Kate Chopin’s suspenseful short story “The Storm”, James Joyce’s “Araby,” and Bernard Cooper’s “The Clack of Tiny Sparks: Remembrances of a Gay Boyhood” reveal that individuals have a specific moment in their lives that forces them to reevaluate themselves. Chopin demonstrates in her short story that women are often repressed, so in order to set themselves free, they need to take control of their lives. Cooper reveals in his short story that we attempt to hide our feelings, but at one point, we cannot ignore them in order to mature.  Lastly, Joyce describes in his short story that our fantasies blind us to reality, so in order to reexamine our previous notions; we must face them head-on. Fittingly, Chopin, Joyce, and Cooper use the titles of their short stories, symbols, and characters to indicate moments of clarity; however, Joyce’s protagonist’s epiphany successfully allows him to transcend from boyhood and become a man. 

While most would consider adultery an unbecoming act, it allows Calixta to free herself from her oppression.  While her husband is away, Calixta and her old flame Alcee engage in passionate sex. Quite literally, Chopin uses the storm to symbolize that sometimes we cannot control our natures.  As Calixta wipes “the frame that was clouded with moisture” (Chopin 725), she attempts to control her emotions. In other words, her desire for Alcee threatens to cloud her judgment. Nevertheless, after their sexual encounter, the storm passes and so does her abandonment. Much like nature constantly changes depending on the Earth’s atmosphere, our moods change as well. In this way, the storm allowed Calixta to accept her need for passion. As the storm raged on, Calixta finally realized that Alcee’s touch gave “Her firm, elastic flesh…its birthright…[and] The generous abundance of her passion, without guile or trickery, was like a white flame which penetrated and found response” (Chopin 726). Therefore, Chopin suggests that the lightening encouraged Calixta to let go of her previous assumptions of content wife and, for the instant, it propelled her to release herself from her oppression. In addition, Chopin implies that our desires allow us to feel alive. 

Similarly, Cooper’s protagonist, as himself, attempts to desire women, but it is the spark of electricity that encourages him reflect on his sexuality. As Cooper sits in a darkened room, he watches and hears “the clack of tiny sparks” (Cooper 288). The sparks symbolize the attraction that he feels for Grady; however, he was not ready to commit to life as a homosexual because the sparks would fade “like meager, short-lived stars” (Cooper 288). Cooper suggests that he assumes that his feeling for men will fade. Nonetheless, his sexual orientation is an electrical attraction that is uncontrollable. Initially, he attempts to control his feelings as he asks his mother what a “fag” was even though he knew “exactly what Theresa had meant” (286). In addition, Cooper immaturely assumes that his sexual preference defines him as he looks up the word “homosexual” (290). Nevertheless, as he ponders the word, he realizes that he may never change; however, he does not embrace it until he is older. 

On the other hand, Joyce’s protagonist acknowledges his epiphany and resolves to grow up. His schoolboy crush seemed to identify him as he desired Mangan’s sister. While his crush was a “confused adoration” (92), it was simply the natural path a boy makes to become a man. However, he remains in his fantasy world until he went to the carnival Araby. The carnival represents the moment Mangan’s sister spoke to him. Because she was unable to go, the protagonist promises to bring her back something special. While Chopin and Cooper use light to represent that moment of understanding, Joyce aptly uses the dark. Realizing that he was a fool, Joyce’s protagonist gazes “up into the darkness [and he sees himself] as a creature driven and derided by vanity” (95). It is this moment that he realizes that his crush did not return his feelings, and because he did not really know her, he realizes that his immature feelings were the result of fantasy. Essentially, Joyce’s character entered the carnival as a mere creature prone to fantastical thoughts, but he left as a potential adult who has a firm grasp on reality. 

While each of the characters experiences an awakening, only Joyce’s character learns from it. Essentially, as soon as “the storm passed and everyone was happy” (Chopin 728), Calixta and Alcee continued to live an illusion. Each went on with their lives and decided that like the storm their passion and assumptions about themselves would dissipate as well. Correspondingly, Cooper swam with his crush and they “pretended to drown [but] Beneath the heavy press of water, Grady’s orange hair wavered, a flame that couldn’t be doused” (Cooper 290). Because Cooper continued to ignore his sexuality by pretending, he persisted to live under an illusion. Subsequently, he continued to crave the normalcy of an alleged ‘normal’ male as he matured.  Ultimately, it is Joyce’s protagonist that successfully matures. It only takes one moment for him to realize his immaturity, and his shame reveals a significant growth from the imaginative boy he was before. Ultimately, out of the three characters, his moment of clarity was permanent. 

Fittingly, Chopin, Joyce, and Cooper use the titles of their short stories, symbols, and characters to indicate moments of clarity; however, Joyce’s protagonist’s epiphany successfully allows him to transcend from boyhood and become a man. Essentially, Calixta and Cooper’s physical epiphany was no match for Joyce’s protagonist’s mental and emotional clarity. 

Works Cited

Chopin, Kate. "The Storm." Ed. Richard Abcarian, Marvin Klotz, and Samuel Cohen. Literature: The Human Experience. 11th ed. N.p.: Bedford St. Martin, 2012. 724-28. Print.

Cooper, Bernard. "The Clack of Tiny Sparks: Remembrances of a Gay Boyhood." Literature: The Human Experience. Ed. Richard Abcarian, Marvin Klotz, and Samuel Cohen. 11th ed. N.p.: Bedford St. Martin, 2012. 284-91. Print.

Joyce, James. "Araby." Ed. Richard Abcarian, Marvin Klotz, and Samuel Cohen. Literature: The Human Experience. 11th ed. N.p.: Bedford St. Martin, 2012. 91-95. Print.