"The Storm"

"The Storm" by Kate Chopin is a continuation of the short story "At the 'Cadian Ball." As the story begins we find ourselves in a very simular setting as we were left by previous story. Bobinot sits at a store waiting for a storm to pass with his four year old son Bibi. Bobinot and Calixta were married as promised in "At the 'Cadian Ball." As the storm rolls in, we are taken to Calixta who is sewing but as she realizes a storm is coming she goes outside to take in some clothes she had hung out to dry. Just as it starts to really rain heavily, the audacious Alcee rides up on his horse and asks if he can wait in the gallery for the rain to pass. However, it was simply raining too hard and he was forced to come inside. Calixta was becoming more and more worried about Bibi and Bobinot. This led to a couple fervent embraces by Calixta and Alcee and suddenly their passion for one another had returned. As the rain came pouring down, Calixta worry for her family faded and her longing for Alcee increased exponentially. Though both married, the two made sweet love. As the storm cleared up Alcee left, knowing it would not be long until Bobinot returned. The culpable duo said their goodbye and soon after Bobinot and Bibi returned with "shrimps" for Calixta. Bobinot seemed to know something was askew in Calixta behavior but Chopin leaves us to infer exactly what Bobinot was thinking. Alcee returns home and write his wife, Clarisse, and explains that though he misses her and the children that they should stay gone for another month. In the end Clarisse was thrilled to receive the letter from Alcee. Chopin declared at the end of the story that the storm had passed and everyone was happy again, thus driving home the theme of this story that ignorance is bliss.