Desiree's Baby Literary Analysis

The Victorian Era was a period of “strict gender roles and behavior to provide a stable society” (Ms. Turner, Class Notes, 10/13/16). In particular, women were very limited and restricted. The corset, a popular garment worn by women in the Victorian Era, causes a woman's body to be stable and to look like its function of childbirth and sexual objectivity. Though the corset creates a woman to look mature, women were described with having childish values. The contrast of being treated as a child both physical and psychological damages women. This crossover between being treated as a child, but functioning as an adult causes confusion and uncertainness in women. In “Desireé's Baby” by Kate Chopin, Desireé feels extremely insecure. She obsesses

In the beginning, the narrator describes Madame Valmonde finding Desireé as a baby. The narrator states, “Why, it seemed but yesterday that Desiree was little more than a baby herself; when Monsieur in riding through the gateway of Valmonde had found her lying asleep in the shadow of the big stone pillar” (Chopin 1). When Chopin writes “a baby herself,” she infers that Madame Valmonde and others still see Desireé as a child and not as a woman. From the childish treatment, Desireé feels she cannot live on her own, which increases her sensitivity and reliance on others. Also, since Desireé is uncertain of where she comes from, her self-confidence lowers because she is missing a prominent, stable piece of her background. At the same pillar, Armand sees Desireé, and the narrator states, “It was no wonder, when she stood one day against the stone pillar in whose shadow she had lain asleep, eighteen years before, that Armand Aubigny riding by and seeing her there, had fallen in love with her” (1). Chopin uses the pillar as a symbol of hopeful stability Desireé hopes to achieve during her life. Desireé is repeatedly found at the same pillar, expecting for someone to take care of her. Desireé cannot survive on her own because as a woman, society treats Desireé as an object, so Desireé does not know how to do be independent. Chopin uses the

After Armand and Desireé have their baby, there is a change in Armand. The narrator states, “This was what made the gentle Desireé so happy, for she loved him desperately. When he frowned she trembled, but loved him. When he smiled, she asked no greater blessing of God” (2). Chopin describes Armand’s influence on Desireé through Desireé’s emotions and actions. Chopin uses the phrase “she trembled” to present the effects of Desireé’s dependency. When Armand is upset, Desireé trembles, and she becomes unsteady. Desireé’s emotional state affects her whole body, which influences how she interacts in society. Though Desireé experiences some blissful periods with Armand, Armand’s inconsistency diminishes Desireé’s hope of stability in Armand, which allows Armand to easily kick Desireé out. After Armand tells Desireé that she is not white, Desireé writes to Madame Valmonde, and she states, “‘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’” (3-4). Desireé dramatically states “I shall die, I must die.” Since Armand challenges Desireé’s origin, he hits a sensitive spot in Desireé. Desireé desires to