Kate Chopin on Marriage & Autonomy

Both of Kate Chopin's classic short stories, "The Storm," and, "The Story of an Hour," thoughtfully convey a common theme about the implications of married life: though one may willingly enter into the collaborative covenant of marriage, it is nearly impossible to achieve true contentment without maintaining an appropriate degree of autonomy. While this theme is communicated more explicitly in the latter story, both narratives share similar components that—when considered together—reinforce one another symbolically and thematically. The motifs of weather, solitude, and male absence are present throughout both stories, but manage to manifest themselves uniquely in each (Baker 225; Wan 167). This emphasizes the point that all women—though unique from one another—endure common trials in their married lives, and in their quests for independence.

"The Storm," though it seems to be appropriately titled after the treacherous rainfall that swells during the story's climax, could perhaps more fittingly be titled, "The Calm After the Storm." This is because, while the pinnacle of the movement does take place during the pinnacle of the storm, the story is actually about a lot more than what is on the page; it is about that sense of peace that one achieves after a significant release—such as that carried out by Calixta and Alce. However, this does not diminish the role of the weather in "The Storm," as it acts as nature's precise reflection of the events taking place among the human characters (Baker 225). Before Calixta notices the storm, she is by the window "sewing furiously," though there is no direct indication as to why she should feel such a sense of urgency as to be working away so fervently. This, along with her marked feeling of warmth, is the reader's first indication that she is ripe for a release (Baker 225). By the time Alce arrives, it is already pretty apparent to the reader—and it would seem to the characters as well—what is about to transpire. As Baker notes, "[Alce] enters Calixta's house amidst nutrient rain and warmth, a foreshadowing of his sexual entrance to come" (225).

The storm serves as a form of foreshadowing for both the reader and Chopin's characters, as even Bobint who is back at Fried Heimer’s store sees the storm's approach and purchases a "can of shrimps" for his wife as an afterthought. On the surface, it seems that Bobint performs this gesture in hopes that it will buffer he and Bibi's impending encounter with the "over-scrupulous" Calixta. However, there is no mention of these motives earlier on in the story, and it is almost as if he is moved by the inexplicable force of the storm, just as Calixta and Alce are later on.

In this particular reading of Chopin, it is important to consider the weather as an "inexplicable force," which moves people to act on impulses they wouldn't otherwise acknowledge. The actions that take place throughout the arc of "The Storm," could just as compellingly be told without the added element of the weather—but then the characters would have to be held fully accountable for their actions. The storm is Chopin's subtle vehicle for making a statement about the feminine necessity for open self-expression. It is not until Calixta reaches her breaking point, the zenith of both storms, that she can feel comfortable expressing her sexuality (Baker 225).

Similarly, in "The Story of an Hour," Louise sinks down into an armchair facing the window, "pressed down by a physical exhaustion that [haunts] her body and [seems] to reach into her soul" (352). She observes the "patches of blue sky" that are slowly beginning to emerge from behind heavy clouds in the wake of a spring rainstorm. This hesitant approach of a brighter day is nature's direct reflection of Louise's hesitant approach to her own personal truth: she is free. The physical exhaustion she felt before was perhaps not a result of the grief she experienced at the news of her husband's death, but rather, a culmination of the many years of repression inflicted upon her until this very moment. Just as in "The Storm," it is the weather that is somehow responsible for Louise's discovery of her true feelings:

There was something coming to her and she was waiting for it, fearfully. What was it? She did not know; it was too subtle and elusive to name. But she felt it, creeping out of the sky, reaching toward her through the sounds, the scents, the color that filled the air (353).

In both stories, the weather is responsible for inciting each woman's respective renaissance, as it "was not an appropriate thing over hundred years ago for a lady to have her own ideas against the established ones" (Wan 167).

Another common theme that each of these stories share, is that of solitude. Particularly in "The Story of an Hour," Louise has her revelation within the confines of her room, presumably for two reasons: because it would be shocking and unsightly for her to rejoice in her husband's death in front of her sister and Richards, and because she needs to be alone in order to recognize that there is reason to rejoice in the first place (Wan 167). Had Louise remained in the company of her visitors, it is highly unlikely that she would have achieved the clarity of mind that she becomes capable of acquiring in her quiet room, with no one around to dictate how she should be feeling or acting in regards to her husband's passing. It is while she is alone that she realizes that even this kind of well-intentioned instruction can be harmful:

There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature. A kind intention or a cruel intention make the act seem no less a crime as she looked upon it in that brief moment of illumination (353).

This passage is particularly applicable when it comes to the institution of marriage. All people, men, and women alike have their own ideas honed by society and personal experience as to how a married woman should carry herself. She must serve the needs and expectations of her husband and children. She must act cheerfully and graciously. She must not celebrate her husband's death by proclaiming that she is free at last, and she must not commit adultery during a thunderstorm. However, if the latter impulse should rear its head, it does not render one a bad person, or even a bad wife.

Calixta, for example, is at home alone performing the household duties that must be carried out regularly in order for her son and husband to be comfortable and adequately served. Unlike Louise, she need not simply be alone in order to reach some grander sense of self-understanding. This is because Calixta's solitude has limits; her husband is alive, and even if he wasn't, she has a child—her moments of solitude are dedicated to keeping things in order for others. It is because Calixta has surrendered herself to a life of constant companionship that she can only embark on her own journey of self-discovery upon partaking of a different kind of companionship. Just as Louise begins unaware of the joy that solitude will bring her, Calixta begins unaware of the kind of joy that sexual expression will bring her (Baker 225). In this way, solitude as a theme in "The Storm" serves an opposing purpose to that of "The Story of an Hour." Calixta's visitor reminds her that she is a desirable being, an affirmation that marriage stereotypically lacks. She is, thereafter, refreshed at having acted on her own will.

The final commonality is male absence. This differs from solitude in that both stories express feminine freedom that may exist in the company of children or other females, but not in the company of men. This is obvious in "The Story of an Hour." Mr. Mallard's death affords Louise a moment of self-reflection, after which she emerges feeling like a "goddess of Victory." She "[clasps] her sister’s waist, and together they [descend] the stairs," (354) presenting the reader with the image of two dignified women, supporting one another during a graceful descent. However, there stands Richards at the bottom of the stairs, accompanied by Louise's undead husband. As is common knowledge, Louise dies on sight of her husband and, while some may consider her to be a tragic character, Wan posits that she "gains the eternal spiritual freedom, melting into the universe... making the supreme mastery over her destiny" (169).

Just as "The Story of an Hour" comments on the value of male absence in a woman's moments of self-discovery, so does "The Storm." However, Calixta is not the representative character, in this case, rather, it is Clarisse—Alce's wife. After Alce and Calixta have their indiscretion, Alce (who surfaces as a fairly enlightened male in the end, deriving from his experience an understanding that his wife's "health and pleasure" are of the utmost importance), writes Clarisse a letter telling her not to hurry home from Biloxi if she is enjoying herself. Clarisse's reaction to the letter is what brings "The Storm" to its close:

And the first free breath since her marriage seemed to restore the pleasant liberty of her maiden days. Devoted as she was to her husband, their intimate conjugal life was something which she was more than willing to forego for a while. So the storm passed and everyone was happy (861)

Though this last segment of "The Storm" may seem slightly tacked on—considering there is no introduction of Clarisse until the story is almost over—it is obviously there to serve a very specific purpose; it conveys that married life is a state of being from which individuals need to surface for air, and that "returning to the liberty of...[maidenhood]" is one way for women to catch a breath. The women in both of Chopin's stories all have a pivotal moment of sweet exhalation, sometimes prompted by the weather, sometimes in the exhilarating throes of solitude, and sometimes just simply because there are no men around telling them to hold their breath.

Works Cited

Baker, Christopher. "Chopin's the Storm." The explicator 52.4 (1994): 225-226.

Chopin, Kate. "The Storm." Making Literature Matter: An Anthology for Readers and Writers 2 (2002): 858-61.

Chopin, Kate. "The Story of an Hour." The complete works of Kate Chopin. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1970. 352-354.

Wan, Xuemei. "Kate Chopin’s View on Death and Freedom in The Story of an Hour." English Language Teaching 2.4 (2009): 167-170