ipl-logo

Desiree's Baby Short Story

797 Words4 Pages

Incidents of foreshadowing are immediate and frequent in the story “Desiree’s Baby” (1894). Desiree, and her baby’s race will be questioned. Evidence of Armand’s hatred towards anyone of color, and his vengeful actions. Subtle hints of Armand’s race are all foretold in the storyline. Ultimately, Suggestions of death and despair. Desiree had been abandoned by the gate of the Valmonde estate when she was just a toddler (Chopin, 1894). Many people questioned where the girl came from, but “Madame Valmonde abandoned every speculation but the one that Desiree had been sent to her” (Chopin, 1894, p. 1605). Madame Valmonde raised Desiree as her own child and dismissed all accusations of her background. This event immediately foreshadows that Desiree’s background and race, will be questioned again. Speculation of Desiree’s race enters the story again as, “Desiree awoke one day to the conviction that there was something in the air menacing her peace… It had only been a quieting suggestion; an air of mystery among the blacks… then an …show more content…

1608). This prompted Desiree to write a despairing letter to her mother “Armand has told me I am not white… You must know it’s not true. I shall die. I must die. I cannot be so unhappy, and live” (Chopin, 1894, p. 1608). Her mother’s response does not confirm nor deny these claims, and only asks Desiree to come home with the baby, for even her mother is unsure of Desiree’s true race (Chopin, 1894). Upon bringing the letter to Armand, he tells her to leave, breaking her heart. This letter foreshadows the event of Desiree’s suicide, killing not only herself, but her baby too (Chopin, 1894). Armand, having tossed her away like a worthless piece of property, has brought Desiree to the point of hopelessness. Her actions brought upon the fact that she cannot live without Armand’s love, nor can she bear the shame from the accusations of her

Show More
Related

  • Comparing Désirée's Baby 'And The Birth-Mark'

    1367 Words  | 6 Pages

    There could have been multiple possibilities of why the baby was not “White,” but due to Armand’s first intuition that Désirée was not white, he is showing that he has authority of the situation and that what he says goes. Because the husband and wife in both stories allow this particular type of destructive relationship, where the wife is submissive and the husband treats his wife like his own property, both stories progressively deteriorate by the

    Read More

  • Desiree's Baby Argumentative Essay

    570 Words  | 3 Pages

    Many believed that Desiree’s thoughts and actions were justified due to her thoughts and unhappiness. It appeared as if she would have no future; no husband, no friends, and not even her child, if he were sold into slavery. In paragraph 25, it says that Desiree wrote, “‘I shall die. I must die. I cannot be so unhappy, and live.’”

    Read More

  • Examples Of Irony In Desiree's Baby

    1267 Words  | 6 Pages

    Surely, only an opposing, selfish, and insensitive person could send their wife and child away upon realizing that they both were mixed race. In Kate Chopin’s “Desiree’s Baby”, however, protagonist, Desiree, is altered over just a few days as she goes from being thankful from the happiness of her husband and baby into saddened and betrayed by her lover. The story eventfully shows how racism and denial both play a part in the way the future may turn out. From the time that the story begins, one can see that the love between Armand and Desiree is what they say to be a dream come true. It’s the love that everyone asks for.

    Read More

  • Desiree's Baby Literary Analysis

    1283 Words  | 6 Pages

    The irony of this short story was that it was Armand who was of mixed raced and not his wife. He was the one who tainted the baby, he found out after fining a letter from his beloved mother that was written to his father (Chopin). Irony is a surprising interesting twist at the end on a story. I am sure that after he read this letter that he soon figured out why his father was so kind to the slaves and how it was wrong of him to treat his wife the way he did and immediately regretted his choices. Thus, she was no longer there and he could not get her back, he thought she went back to live with her stepmother, and if he goes to look for her or the stepmother went to look for her and the child they would both find that Desiree never went to her original destination.

    Read More

  • Foreshadowing And Allusion In Desiree's Baby By Kate Chopin

    1203 Words  | 5 Pages

    Desiree says good-bye to Armand and goes to the deserted field with her child and never came back. Armand was burning all of Desiree’s and the child’s materials into the bonfire. Then he found some letters from Desiree, but one was from his mother to his father, the letter said that she was grateful that Armand would never find out his mother was of slave heritage (Chopin). In “Desiree’s Baby, “ Kate Chopin uses imagery, foreshadowing and allusion to develop the ominos, mystery and sad story.

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Desiree's Baby And The Story Of An Hour

    568 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the short story “Desiree’s Baby”one of the problems

    Read More

  • What Role Does Race Play In Desirée's Baby '?

    513 Words  | 3 Pages

    The theme of Desirée’s Baby, by Kate Chopin, is the role of racism and gender biases during the Civil War; to be more specific, the superiority of Caucasians to African Americans, and the subordinate role of women to men. During the Civil War, women and slaves were the most oppressed beings in the world. African Americans were looked down upon and seen as a lesser human only because of the color of their skin. Likewise, women were looked down upon only because society said they were to be.

    Read More

  • Prejudice And Racism In Kate Chopin's The Awakening

    295 Words  | 2 Pages

    With the denial of his past and of his race, comes hatred and racism into Armand’s heart and actions. This goes hand and hand with the denial aspect with the usage of characterization from Chopin’s part. Racism ran high in most people’s characteristics of this time because Chopin put this story’s in pre-Civil War times. With the treatment of his slaves, you can really see how Armand feels about others from the race that he sees as less than, even though he is really one of them. The substandard treatment of Armand’s slaves only stops once Desiree gives birth to the baby, but when there was a chance of Desiree being of an African descent, Armand sent her and their child away without thought, saying “Yes, I want to go” with no emotion showing in his voice or actions (3).

    Read More

  • Roman Fever Foreshadowing Analysis

    1217 Words  | 5 Pages

    Roman Fever by Edith Wharton is an excellent example of quality literature. Wharton uses the literary devices of foreshadowing, irony, and allusion throughout the story. These are implemented to enhance the quality by aiding in unifying the theme, expanding characterization and to link back to the central purpose of the story. Foreshadowing is used early on in the story.

    Read More

  • Indirect Characterization In Desiree's Baby By Kate Chopin

    1067 Words  | 5 Pages

    “For the girl grew to be beautiful and gentle, affectionate and sincere. ”(Desiree 1) By these quote the author’s description makes the characters from the story more realistics for the reader. In “Desiree’s Baby” by Kate Chopin uses direct and indirect characterization to describe the character of Madame Valmonde, Desiree, and Armand Aubigny. Characterization is the process by which the writer reveals the personality of a character.

    Read More

  • Tone In Desiree's Baby

    1072 Words  | 5 Pages

    “Desiree’s Baby” is a short story by Kate Chopin. “Desiree’s baby” is a story about a family in the era where the colored were neglected and treated poorly. Desiree was abandoned and left as a baby. When she was adopted she grew up in a very wealthy family. Armand and Desiree have known each other ever since they were little so when they grew up they got married.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Irony In Desiree's Baby

    1210 Words  | 5 Pages

    “Desiree’s Baby was written by Kate Chopin and she talks about the issues people had back then with racism and gender. She demonstrated those problems by using literary devices such as symbols, conflict, and irony. I advise everyone to read this story for the fact this kind of conflict is still happening today and we need to work together for a change. Overall this was a great story and it teaches you many great lessons. Take a look

    Read More

  • Unconditional Love In Desiree's Baby

    1012 Words  | 5 Pages

    During the era in which this short story was written, southern authors had a major influence on the way the culture was going to grow with racism, and also the way people loved each other. Kate Chopin, a traditional author who believed in southern ways, exemplifies how race and the characteristics of conditional love played a role in her story. In “Desiree’s Baby,” the author, Kate Chopin, provides an illustration of conditional love exemplified by the character, Armand, towards his wife and child; furthermore, Chopin provides instances of irony, elements of surprise, foreshadowing, and symbolism to prove that Armand’s love for both of them was not the unconditional love typically felt and portrayed by women, such as Desiree, during this era. Throughout the story, the readers notice different times where Chopin uses elements of surprise. One major surprise is when Armand opens the letter from his mother and finds out that he has African American in his bloodline.

    Read More

  • Literary Devices In Desiree's Baby

    1326 Words  | 6 Pages

    “Desiree’s Baby”, is a short story written by Kate Chopin. This short story is about a woman named Desiree, abandoned at a very young age, who grew up to fall in love with Armand Aubigny. Armand was born into a very wealthy family, who fell in love easily, very strict and owners of slaves. Desiree then conceived Armand’s child, who instantly changed the way he thought once the child was born. Desiree’s mother, Madame Valmonde, was scheduled to see the baby in L’Abri since she had not seen it in four weeks.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Racism In Desiree's Baby

    1280 Words  | 6 Pages

    As a reader, you will notice the impact racism has in the everyday life .Many decisions were impacted do to thought of blacks being inferior to whites. When reading Kate Chopin’s “ Desiree’s Baby” the reader will be introduced racism and the use of local color all throughout the story. In Kate Chopin’s “

    Read More

More about Desiree's Baby Short Story

Open Document