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Themes in desiree baby by kate chopin
Critical analysis of the short story desiree baby by kate chopin
Symbolism essay on desire baby by kate chopin
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A tale of tragic injustice, “Désirée's Baby” explores racism at its worst, through a falling out of love because of it. Kate Chopin, who was born in 1851, died in 1904 when she was about 53 years old (Chopin 150). She wrote “Désirée's Baby” in 1894(Chopin 150). It is a short, to-the-point depiction of racism and injustice in Louisiana during before the Civil war (Chopin 150). It is set on a plantation called L'Abri, which is the family home of the Aubignys (Chopin 150). The main characters are Désirée, Armand Aubigny, and Madame Valmonde. Désirée was found by Monsieur Valmonde when she was a baby left by the side of the road. He and Madame Valmonde adopted her and raised her. She grew into a sweet, sensitive young lady, and when she was a little more than eighteen Armand Aubigny fell in love with her in the same place she had been found as a child (Chopin 150). Although her origin and parentage is not known, Armand decides to marry her. The main action of the story takes place soon after she has had their first child, a son. Armand's mother died when he was quite young. As their baby gets a bit older, it becomes obvious that he is not entirely white, meaning one of his predecessors was black. Armand, believing that it is Désirée who carries the black in her blood, and that he has been tricked by God, sends mother and child away. He finds out too late that the black genes came from his own mother. “Désirée's Baby” is sharply pointed, like an arrow aimed straight at the heart of racial hatred and, more importantly, people's tendency to make harsh judgments out of their own ignorance or animosity. In her story, Chopin makes use of literary devices such as simile, foreshadowing, and irony, while using the viewpoint of an omniscient th...
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...vel. As a whole, Chopin has painted a warning sign for her readers. One that can be read, and should be heeded, in any time period, by any people, in any place: to make a judgment out of hate, without sufficient information, is injustice and folly, and will be cause for great regret.
Works Cited
Chopin, Kate. “Désirée's Baby.” The Literature Collection. Ed. X.J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. Pearson Education, Inc. 2013. 150. Web.
"foreshadowing." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. n.d. 25 Apr. 2014.
"irony." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. n.d. 25 Apr. 2014.
"omniscient." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. n.d. 25 Apr. 2014.
"simile." Dictionary.com Unabridged. Random House, Inc. n.d. 25 Apr. 2014.
"third person." Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition. HarperCollins Publishers. n.d. 25 Apr. 2014.
Chopin, Kate. "Kate Chopin "Désirée's Baby"" Desiree's Baby, Kate Chopin. N.p., n.d. 25 Apr. 2014. Web.
Harris, Sharon M. "Kate Chopin." Magill’S Survey Of American Literature, Revised Edition (2006): 1-5. Literary Reference Center Plus. Web. 19 Apr. 2014.
In “Desiree Baby”, author, Chopin emphasizes racism by selecting certain words to symbolize the association between light and darkness, and the slaves on the plantation.
Throughout the story Chopin uses many ironic instances and symbols to illustrate the meaning of several major aspects of the story, we learn a lot more of the main character Mrs. Mallard and we come to an understanding that she did not recognize a world outside of herself.
This makes us think that she he had been abandoned at a very young age
“Desiree Baby” by Kate Chopin is a very thought provoking short story that deals with racism, prejudice, and love. The story takes place in southern Louisiana, where Armand, a prominent landowner, marries a girl of unknown origin named Desiree. The story has a twist when their baby is born and is discovered to be of mixed race. Armand knew all along that he was OF mixed race, and I will prove it by analyzing characterization, diction, and imagery.
Growing up within a household full of women, writer Kate Chopin could attest to the extreme difference it is to be considered independent vs dependent, as a woman. Accordingly, a theme of feminism and independence was apparent within her writings. However, in her short story, Desiree’s baby, she chooses to do something different. Instead of using independence as a theme, in the favor of women, Kate Chopin greets readers with a socioeconomic difference between main characters, Desiree and Armand. When considering this short story, with the Marxist criticism, a reader may even notice that Kate Chopin’s characters demonstrate economical differences (i.e. class and status) to overall argue how ones social status and economic class leads to mental illness of the lowly and the elite.
In the story of “Desiree’s Baby” by Kate Chopin, there are many literary themes that can be analyzed such as love, racism, gender inequality, and miscegenation. What this analysis will focus on is primarily on the central male character, Armand Aubigny, and on his views towards racism. More specifically, what this essay will aim to prove is that Armand Aubigny looked down upon the African race to the point where he hated them. One of the biggest driving points to aid this idea is how his family name shaped his behavior and actions according to the societal normalities of his time period. Another important aspect that will be considered is his very relationship towards his slaves in how he treated them cruelly even to the point where he is described as “having the spirit of Satan” (Chopin 3). In addition to this, the reader will also see Armand’s negative reaction to being aware of the implications of his son and wife having mixed blood in where he practically disowns them. With all this culminating to Armand finding out the ugly truth that the race he had treated so horribly is actually a part of his very own blood as well.
Kate Chopin’s “The Story of an Hour” tries to shed light on the conflict between women and a society that assign gender roles using a patriarchal approach. Specifically Margaret Bauer highlights, that most of Chopin’s works revolves around exploring the “dynamic interrelation between women and men, women and patriarchy, even women and women” (146). Similarly, in “The Story of an Hour” Chopin depicts a society that oppresses women mostly through the institution of marriage, as women are expected to remain submissive regardless of whether they derive any happiness. The question of divorce is not welcome, and it is tragic that freedom of women can only be realized through death. According to Bauer, the society depicted in Chopin’s story judged women harshly as it expected women to play their domestic roles without question, while on the other hand men were free to follow their dream and impose their will on their wives (149).
Allen, Priscilla. "Old Critics and New: The Treatment of Chopin's The Awakening." In The Authority of Experience: Essays in Feminist Criticism, ed. Arlyn Diamond and Lee R. Edwards. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1977, 224-238.
In the mid-nineteenth century, many American men based the worth of a person primarily on his or her race and gender. Kate Chopin often wrote about topics that were extremely sensitive during her lifetime. Men were usually pictured as the person who earns money for the family, as well as the well-educated and the sole structure of the family. Women are illustrated as sensitive, sweet, caring, and faithful. In “Desiree’s Baby,” a short story by Kate Chopin, there are three major themes: identity, racism, and gender roles.
In the short story Desiree’s Baby by Kate Chopin, there are many examples of foreshadowing that provides the reader with insight on the events to come. Chopin constantly hints at the importance of lineage and origin which informs the readers that it will play a large part within the plot. Significant families in the South take pride in their heritage and name which are seemingly important to Armand; important enough to abandon his wife and child. In the ending, it is revealed to the readers that Armand is the one who is not completely white (Chopin 5). The story does not tell whether Armand knew the entire time or he was just finding out from reading the letter. There are many times throughout Desiree’s Baby that infers that Armand knew about where he came from before he even met Desiree.
... of race, class, gender and culture were very important in that time and Chopin makes sure to address those issues. Whenever someone reads a book, they can look further into the story and find a great deal of the ideas and beliefs of people of that time.
Chopin, Kate. "Desiree's Baby." The Awakening and Other Stories. Ed. Judith Baxter. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1996.
There were more clues to unpack than expected but once I realized the writing style of Kate Chopin I enjoyed reading each sentence to pick out the hidden meaning. Xuding Wang’s essay was helpful seeing what I could not see on my own. The point that grabbed me out of Wang’s essay was the critic, Berkove, whom as I mentioned earlier in this analysis seemed to be the same blockade to women that Chopin wrote about in 1894. To know the character in the story you must know the writer. Kate Chopin was called a rebel in her time. Her stories were a call to action by women and to go as far as Berkove did and call those ideas delusional make him seem out dated and controlling. I can only experience what I do in life. I’ll never understand challenges faced by people of other races, cultures, or sex. Reading the original story and another woman’s discussion on it was very enlightening. There were emotions described that I’ve never considered. With a critic like Berkove using language as he did in the critique against Chopin’s work it makes me curious just how far our society has come. Racism is still alive and well, religious persecution and in this story, sexism. It seems to me that the world has never really changed and will continue to bring with it the same problems as the days