Desiree's Baby Ethnicity

Why Does an Individual’s Ethnicity Create Such a Divisive Issue? The short-story “Desiree’s Baby” by Kate Chopin took place during the first half of the 19th century and between the Revolutionary and Civil War, when the intermixing of races was taboo. The story was centered around the negative perspective on ethnicity. It also took place in Louisiana, which is where a multitude of people who are mixed with different origins are found. The theme of racism in “Desiree’s Baby” is reflected in Light and Stancle’s “Color Blind” song. “Desiree’s Baby” illustrates how an individual’s ethnicity can create such a divisive issue with an incredible combination of imagery, characterization, and irony, yet she also unveils the buried actualities about

Armand is a multidimensional character throughout the story. At first, Armand was happy that he had a “all white” son but once he found out the child was mixed with black his whole mood changed. Armand was “the proudest father in the parish. He hasn't punished one of them (slaves) since the baby was born” (Chopin 242). Once Armand supposedly found out that Desiree was mixed with African due to his son’s skin complexion, “He absented himself from home; and when there, avoided her presence and that of her child, without excuse. And the very spirit of Satan seemed suddenly to take hold of him in his dealings with the slaves” (Chopin 242). Light and Stancle’s song shines light on the treatment of blacks using characterization, with the lines, “A little boy was killed, his skin was stained. At least that’s what they thought and so he hangs.” The lyrics reflect Armand’s reaction to his son’s stained skin. Armand neglects his wife and son and reverts back to abusing his slaves. Armand’s character relates to sudden change in the Europeans, especially when enslaving Africans arose. According to Franklin and Higginbotham, “Many European colonies did not initially regard African slaves as the only solution to their labor needs in the Americas. By the late seventeenth century, English masters began to enslave Africans, as they presented fewer difficulties than white laborers”

“Desiree’s Baby” forms from the base of Kate Chopin’s actual life. Just as Desiree lived with her husband, where they had slaves, “Kate spent the Civil War in St. Louis, where residents supported the Confederacy and her family had slaves in the house” (Clark). Chopin was somewhat “Desiree”. When Desiree’s ethnicity came into question, she pled and cried for her husband to accept her as white because in the eyes of the world, “White is right.” Light and Stancle song shines light on the world’s perspective when it comes to one’s origin. “Should I act white? ‘Cause what I’ve heard is only black is darkness and white is good.”(Light and Stancle). His lyrics steep deeper into how the world thinks. The color black is associated with evil, while white is associated with purity. It continues to stain each non-white person, stating that acting white will help them achieve more. Moreover, Armand associated himself with “white is right” until he couldn’t erase that he was, “cursed with the brand of slavery” (Chopin and Wilson 245). The irony is that Armand was the one who was not white and knew it. According to Jamie Davis, “Chopin's says that there was “…an air of mystery among the blacks” and “unexpected visits from far-off neighbors who could hardly account for their coming.” All levels of society were talking about his black child. He could not admit that it was he who made the child