Preview

Desiree's Baby Literary Analysis

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
428 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Desiree's Baby Literary Analysis
In the fictional story, “Desiree’s Baby,” written by Kate Chopin. Desiree was an orphaned girl who was left behind by what people thought to be Texans. She was found by Madame Valmonde. She grew up to be, “beautiful and gentle, affectionate….” Armand Aubigny had lived in Paris until his mother had died when he was eight years old. His last name is one of the “oldest and proudest” in Louisiana. Armand later finds Desiree under a tree and fell in love at first sight. Later on in the story, they have a child. The child comes along with a surprising turn of events. The baby foreshadows the theme of a thrilling story that creates an engaging plot. Early in the story, the reader learns that the character, Armand, is associated with a violent and

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    In “Desiree’s Baby”, Desiree is just the wife and the mother of Armand’s child that he ends up denying. Women did not have a say so at all during this time. Armand is the very strict slave owner, but he is also the “breadwinner”, but he makes Desiree feel complete when he is showing her his soft side. When he starts to disown the baby that’s when Desiree becomes weak because he blames her for him being mixed blood. That is when she tells her mom “My mother, they tell me I am not white. Armand tells me I am not white. For God’s sake tell them it is not true. You must know it is not true. I shall die. I must die. I cannot be so unhappy, and live” (Chopin 5). After Armand tells her to take the baby and leave, Desiree becomes depressed and does not want to live…

    • 846 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    ”And the way he cries,” went on Desiree,” is deafening. Armand heard him the other day as far away as La Blanche’s cabin”(2), this is a strange line in the story and makes the reader question why Armand was in La Blanche’s cabin and what he was actually doing while he was…

    • 779 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Desiree’s Baby: The title refers to one of the main characters, Armand Aubigny, not claiming his child after finding out that the child as of different race; therefore giving all ownership of the baby to the mother, Desiree.…

    • 2934 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the era Chopin wrote "Desiree's Baby" sexism was a major point in the lives of women, permitting them from being able to speak for themselves. Chopin later reveals that Armand was the one who truly was of black dissent and he was the one who had passed those genes down to the baby. But Desiree who has all the right in the world to defend herself cannot simply because of her sex. She is accused of the "unconscious injury she had brought upon [Armand's] home and his name"(244). Although Chopin states that Desiree is whiter than Armand and the baby, because of the setting of the story she cannot defend her honor in saying she isn’t black. Peel writes that, "Desiree is immersed in her husband's value system and never stands up to [Armand], not…

    • 332 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    One of the characteristics in Kate Chopin’s short stories having to do with settings in local color is, “Desiree’s Baby” which takes place in Louisiana. For example, Chopin describes the setting in the story in the following passage.…

    • 458 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Kate Chopin’s short story “Desiree’s Baby” condemns the character and social flaws that lead to the destruction of a once-happy family.…

    • 574 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    ‘Desiree’s Baby’ is a short story written by Kate Chopin. This story highlights some sense of consequence and karma as the main theme. It also tends to explore the problems of a man’s pride who is trying to overcome the love he has got for his race and wife. The purpose of this essay is to examine some of the major themes; racial superiority and inferiority, blind and deep love, and mystery, and how they have changed everything in the entire story.…

    • 866 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    In this stylistic analysis of the lost baby poem written by Lucille Clifton I will deal mainly with two aspects of stylistic: derivation and parallelism features present in the poem. However I will first give a general interpretation of the poem to link more easily the stylistic features with the meaning of the poem itself.…

    • 1304 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Kate Chopin's "Desiree's Baby" is a timeless portrayal of one woman's startling descent into hysteria and the societal pressures that bring on rapid and uninhibited panic. Desiree unknowingly becomes the victim of her husband's hierarchical cover-up- he puts the blame for the child's condemned skin color on Desiree when he is in fact of black descent. This forceful allegation, compounded with other accusations of not being white that presumably take place outside of the home, in effect drive Desiree and her fragile soul six feet under.…

    • 530 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Desiree's Baby

    • 406 Words
    • 2 Pages

    "Desiree's Baby'', is about a young lady who was nameless and abandoned as a child. Desiree was a child who's future was uncertain until she was found by the Valmonde family. During this time of the Valmondes' life, they had not been blessed with any children, therefore they took in Desiree and raised her as their own child. From the very beginning of the story, I knew that this would be something that I would enjoy. The Valmonde's taking in this child as their own, is two blessing in one. Desiree gets the love and support that she needs from parents; and the Valmonde's get a child that they are now able to give love and support to. Growing up to become a a beautiful lady, she attracted the attention of Armand Aubigny Armand was a neighboring plantation owner and bearer of one of the finest names in Louisiana. If I were in Desiree's shoies, I would have thought I was something by dating one of the well-known plantation owners. By this time, Desiree's father was reminding Armand that they didn't know were heritage, but still he insisting on pursuing…

    • 406 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Have you experienced the complete opposite of a love letter? Well, the novel Cat’s Cradle is just that, addressed to American society, and signed by author Kurt Vonnegut, In the novel, Jonah, the narrator, encounter’s multiple Americans on his trip to the island of San Lorenzo whom each have stories that are shared with Jonah, a working journalist. In this novel, Vonnegut showcases absurd characteristics, that are common among Americans, in order to express his opinion that American society is simply awful. He accomplishes this through the use of motivation, dialogue, and episodes.…

    • 1264 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Colorblind

    • 1204 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Armand's misogynistic pride was destructive to the faithful relationship that Desiree and he shared in the beginning. It seems that Armand wasn't really in love with Desiree, at least not truly. "Armand Aubigny riding by seeing her there had fallen in love with her. That was the way all the Aubignys fell in love, as if struck by a pistol shot" (301). Armand has known Désirée for years and never felt any feelings for her, so it seems to reason that it was apparent that he was driven by his unconscious passion, or as Sigmund Freud says his lust for her and not as a deep seated emotional love. His prideful name leads us to believe his love is only superficial…

    • 1204 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Analysis of Desiree's Baby

    • 1502 Words
    • 7 Pages

    “Desiree’s Baby” is a story about race, in Kate Chopin’s story. The reader begins to be aware that there is a mystery about that child’s parentage, when Desiree gives birth to her child. Besides Desiree’s racist husband, he finds out that she was born from black parents. The story of Desiree’s Baby is about race, it is a mystery about the child’s parentage.…

    • 1502 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In the story of “Desiree’s baby”, there are discriminations lead to Desiree’s death which are racism and gender discrimination. In 17th century, women had low status and they cannot get enough respect. Story told “‘Good-by, Armand’, she moaned. He did not answer her. That was his last blow at fate.”(Kate Chopin 6) This sentence shows the indifferent attitude of Desiree’s husband, which is a pervasive social problem. Desiree’ husband found out that their baby was not white and he asked Desiree to leave. Desiree could not revolt, though her husband used cold violence treatment to her. Desiree still could not do anything to refute. That means at that time woman had really low status in the society. When they met unfair treatment they had nothing to do but be silent. Besides that, there is another essential factor which is racial discrimination. The period background of the story is 17 century, black in America suffered maltreatment from their white owner. Obviously, miscegenation could not be accepted by the public. When Armand found his baby was not white, it’s symbolized the disaster and death of Desiree and her baby. As the story told “My mother, they tell me I am not white. Armand has told me I am not white. For God 's sake tell them it is not true. You must know it is not true. I shall die. I must die. I cannot be so unhappy, and live.”(5) That is the hopeless accuse of Desiree to Armand, to the society and Louisiana of 17century America. When the plot developed to climax, an unexpected turning appeared. “Night and day, I thank the good God for having so arranged our lives that our dear Armand will never know that his mother, who adores him, belongs to the race that is cursed with the brand of slavery.” (7) In fact, Her husband had black blood relationship, but Desiree beard this for him alone. If Desiree had black…

    • 441 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the short story “Désirée's baby’, Kate Chopin uses the setting, tone, and symbols to give the characters their identity as well as setting the emotional transition of love. The story investigates the issue of a man's pride defeating the affection he has for his significant other and race. The reason for this paper is to look at why Armand's pride was greater and more than the adoration for his better half, and how race changed everything.…

    • 787 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays

Related Topics