ipl-logo

Comparing Desiree's Baby And The Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin

2363 Words10 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: An essay analyzing Kate Chopins The Story of an Hour

Désirée's Baby" and "The Story of An Hour" by Kate Chopin have the common themes of marriage and love. These themes while the same each story shows them in their own unique ways. While both stories by Chopin have these common themes, they also have a number of different themes between the two. Within "Désirée's Baby" Chopin also shows the themes of slavery and racism, intersection of classism sexism and racism, irony misjudgment and fate. Within "The Story of An Hour” Chopin also shows the themes of Freedom and Independence. These themes are shown within the stories in various different ways using settings, symbols, and the characters themselves to build them. The setting of "Désirée's Baby" is depicted within the Louisiana within the mid …show more content…

Each symbol has it separate meaning that is used to build on. The fine clothes that she is wearing while being married shows the wealth that her husband offered her. When Armand plans to marry Désirée “He ordered the corbeille from Paris”. Showing that he views he soon to be wife as perfection and deserving of only the finest things. The life that Désirée is living with her husband seems to be a happy and well off. This connects to themes of marriage and love because the marriage seems to be perfectly intact and happy. The love that the husband had never seemed like anything but the natural love from husband and wife. The baby can also be seen as a symbol throughout the story. Once the baby is born the husband like any new father is full of joy. Désirée stated “Oh, Armand is the proudest father in the parish”. The “Marriage, and later the birth of his son had softened Armand Aubigny’s imperious and exacting nature greatly”. Showing that he did hold honor in his marriage and had love for his son. This is until the people around him started to ask questions and show doubts of about his own child. When Désirée asked Armand about the child he stated, “That child is not white; it means that you are not white". These questions and doubts caused him not only to turn on his wife and son but also exile them. The final symbol within the story is The Bonfire was …show more content…

After considering these aspects the setting of "Désirée's Baby” does a better job in showing the theme of marriage and what that meant in the 19th century. The symbols found within "Désirée's Baby” does a better job in building the themes of love and marriage when compared to “The Story of An Hour”. The symbols of Fine clothes, Unnamed Son, La Blanche’s Child, L'Abri Planation, and the Bonfire. Show what the love and marriage between the characters where really like and what these aspects where in the 19th century. The characters within "Désirée's Baby” do a better job in building the themes of love and marriage. The relationships between the characters and the characters themselves show what true love means and how important it is within a marriage. In conclusion the story "Désirée's Baby” by Kate Chopin does a superior job in using the setting, symbols, and characters in order to build the themes of marriage and

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

Examples Of Foreshadowing In Desiree's Baby

286 Words | 2 Pages

Desiree’s Baby Foreshadowing In the fictional story “Desiree’s Baby” by Kate Chopin is a tragic love story, but with dark ending. Armand a young, wealthy, and well known man believed that he had found his soulmate, and married a woman named Desiree. The newlyweds had now became a family with a birth of a baby boy. As the baby was at 3 months their fate could have end in many ways.

Read More

Examples Of Foreshadowing In Desiree's Baby

420 Words | 2 Pages

Through the exchange between Armand and Desiree regarding her and their sons race one could guess it wasn't only her with black genes. Desiree not wanting to leave armand she asked if she should go in hopes he would say no. He replied saying he wanted her to go. Her thinking he still loved her and her hearing those few words broke her by stating “She turned away like one stunned by a blow, and walked slowly towards the door,hoping he would call her back.” Him not taking one glance at her and not saying anything made Desiree even more hurt than before.

Read More

Comparing Desiree's Baby And Trifles, By Kate Chopin

1832 Words | 8 Pages

Though the narratives “Desiree’s Baby,” “The Yellow Wallpaper,” and “Trifles,” were written over a hundred years ago, all exquisitely demonstrate how male dominance and abuse affects the female psyche. The heroines of these narratives are used, unable to contribute in a meaningful way to their own well-being, all the while being viewed as individuals whose opinions are lackluster. The abusive manner in which they are treated by the men who supposedly love them drives them toward possible suicide, psychosis, and even murder. “Desiree’s Baby,” by Kate Chopin, is the story of Desiree, a young orphan of unknown ancestry, who married Armand, a local plantation owner. Armand is determined to marry Desiree, and declares that her ancestry is unimportant to him, “What did it matter about a name when he could give her one of the oldest and proudest in Louisiana”

Read More

Desiree's Baby Foreshadowing

773 Words | 4 Pages

The illustration of the mysterious haze bestowed around the house gives an inkling to the idea that something is impure, mostly surrounding Armand and the Aubigny family since it is their land. This is associated with both the idea that the baby is not white, and that his “imperfection” comes from Armands bloodline. Before Desiree’s recognition of her child's skin color, the reaction of Madame Valmonde toward the baby further develops the idea that Desiree has overlooked the reality of her baby’s ancestry. She was notably startled when she first saw the baby, then proceeded to hold it to the sun in order to better examine it. When she did this, she gazed back at the housemaid, who was black.

Read More

How Does Kate Chopin Affectionate, Sincerity, And Cruel?

619 Words | 3 Pages

Affectionate, Sincerity, and Tranquil The story of “Desiree’s Baby”, the author Kate Chopin introduced a character, Desiree, who is a loving mother and caring wife. Desiree is a woman who feels no shame or inadequacy because she was a found abandoned on the road when she was a toddler and then she was found and adopted by the Valmondes. As Desiree gets older and becomes a young woman she meets a wealthy slave owner named Armand.

Read More

How Does Kate Chopin Create Suspense In Desiree's Baby

695 Words | 3 Pages

Kate Chopin, The author of the short story ,”Desiree’s Baby’ works hard to create a sense of suspense around the revelation of the mystery about the origins of the baby’s strange color. The reader is kept guessing for most of the story, and even when he or she believes that the answer is clear, a twist occurs just as the story ends. Write an essay in which you defend or contest Chopin’s particular use of suspense in this story. Analyze whether this technique was effective in maintaining the reader’s interest and developing higher stakes for the outcome. One day, Désirée's neighbor, Armand Aubigny, sees her standing by the gate and immediately falls in love.

Read More

Racial Prejudice In 'Desiree's Baby'

1573 Words | 7 Pages

Desiree writes to Madame Valmondé and tells her about the situation and she begs her to come home, after Armand loses his wife and baby he finds out that it was not Desiree that was not white but him that came from a white father and black mother who died.(Chopin, Kate, et al. “Desiree 's Baby Summary.” GradeSaver: Getting you the grade). So, in “Desiree’s Baby”, Kate Chopin uses literary devices such as characterization, conflicts and

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

What Does Desiree's Baby Mean

421 Words | 2 Pages

Armand takes vows to Desiree, giving her one of the proudest names in Louisiana. Desiree gives born to Armand first born son his mood started to charge, “Armand’s dark, handsome face not often been disfigured by frowns since the day he fell in love with her”(2). In the story, Desiree was blinded by the love of her baby that she did not notice her child was darker than her. Desiree did not realize her baby was a different origin until “Blanche’s little quadroon boy was half naked, and stood fanning the child slowly with a fan of a peacock feather. Desiree’s eyes had been fixed absently and sadly upon the baby” (2).

Read More

Comparing Desiree's Baby And The Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin

831 Words | 4 Pages

Désirée was miserable enough to die.” As the story progresses, it is revealed that it was Armand who was of mixed race and had been hiding his true heritage all along. In the end, Desiree and the baby are tragically killed, and Armand is left to suffer the consequences of his own racist beliefs. One aspect of racism is highlight in this story, which is that racism can blur the vision of a person’s reality. This is the case with Armand, who lost his mind when he discovered his son’s origins and pushed him away without giving it a second thought.

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

Desiree's Baby Essay

1112 Words | 5 Pages

Throughout the story “Desiree’s Baby” by Kate Chopin, Armand’s character is portrayed from many different perspectives to the readers. Everyone’s interpretation of Armand could vary based on their thoughts and opinions of what they felt took place. As Armand’s character developed the perspective of him being a loving caring husband slowly shifted to him being careless and hateful towards Desiree. The underlining reason for this was Desiree’s unknown background. Armand was quick to throw her under the bus with no second thoughts or doubts when it was Armand who was actually of black descent.

Read More

Desiree's Baby Literary Analysis

1283 Words | 6 Pages

One of the many short stories by Kate Chopin is “Desiree’s Baby.” In this story, Desiree was found as a toddler under the shadow of a stone pillar by Monsieur Valmonde. He and his wife took the child in and years later, under the same shadow of the stone pillar, Desiree met her husband, Armand Aubigny. Not long after marriage, they had a child. Soon after the baby was born, Armand uncharacteristically became nice to all around him including his slaves.

Read More

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

568 Words | 3 Pages

In “ Desiree’s Baby” and “ The Story of An Hour” written by Kate Chopin the audience analyzes the themes of love and marriage presented by the author in a unique style that is different from other authors during this time period. The similarities that the two short stories address include both of the women who happen to be young wives living under a male dominated culture as well as being under the control of their husbands whom they loved. However, the themes of the two stories are different. In “Desiree’s Baby” the theme portrays cruelty that is expressed through racial prejudice as well as being “blinded” by the ones you love, as compared to “ The Story of An Hour” which gives the reader a chance to explore the issue of forbidden joy in independence, and oppressiveness in marriage.

Read More

More about Comparing Desiree's Baby And The Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin

Open Document