Kate Chopin’s Short Story Desiree’s Baby Essay example

Kate Chopin’s Short Story â€Å"Desiree’s Baby† In Kate Chopin’s short story, â€Å"Desiree’s Baby†, she demonstrates how racism played a major part in people’s lives in the 1800’s. Kate Chopin is extremely successful in getting her readers to feel disturbed by the events in the story. Through words and images, the reader feels touched by the story, either by relating to it at some points or when confronted with things we frequently decide to ignore in the world: the evil some human beings are capable of possessing. Chopin introduces the story with pleasant images and events; she enchants the reader with fairy tales. A woman who cannot have children is blessed with the most â€Å"beautiful and gentle, affectionate and sincere† (31) of†¦show more content†¦The writer ends the first phase of the tale with Desiree’s expression of her feelings at that point: â€Å"Oh mamma, I’m so happy; it frightens me† (32). This comment is both a conclusion of the first phase of the story and a prediction of what’s to come next. In the next segment of the account, Chopin breaks the enchantment and the readers’ hearts when she turns a fairy tale into a horror show. Armand’s behavior towards Desiree changes drastically, as for â€Å"when he spoke to her, it was with averted eyes, from which the old love-light seemed to have gone out.† â€Å"He absented himself from home; and when there, avoided her presence and that of her child, without excuse† (32). Armand’s attitude did not only change towards his wife, but also towards the slaves as if â€Å"the spirit of Satan seemed suddenly to take hold of him† (32). Desiree then finds out the reason for her husband’s change of conduct is the fact that their child is not white. The considerable change of mood in the story intensifies the already shocking events. As people are always looking for the â€Å"soul mate† and the â€Å"happy ever after† ending, it’s both disappointing and disturbing to see a beautiful dream turn into a nightmare. Chopin ends the story with the most displeasing images of all. I hope it’s agreeable (even though it is something which still happens much too often in the world today) thatShow MoreRelatedThe Story Of An Hour By Kate Chopin1540 Words   |  7 PagesIn Kate Chopin’s â€Å"The Story of an Hour†, the main character, Mrs. Louise Mallard, is a woman with a heart problem that gets horrifying news that her husband has passed away in a train crash. When she starts thinking about her freedom, she gets excited; she is happy to start her new, free life. However, a few hours later her husband walks in the door and she finds out it was all a mistake. When she realizes her freedom is gone her heart stop and she then dies. In â€Å"Desiree’s Baby† Desiree is an orphanedRead More Symbolism in Desirees Baby by Kate Chopin Essay944 Words   |  4 PagesSymbolism in Desirees Baby by Kate Chopin Desirees Baby is Kate Chopins most well-known short story and most anthologized piece of work. The story takes place in southern Louisiana and her writing reflects her Creole-French descent. Chopin begins the story with a descriptive quote, when she reached LAbri she shuddered at the first sight of it, as she always did. It was a sad looking place...Big solemn oaks grew close to it and their thick leaved, far-reaching branches shadowed it likeRead MoreAn Examination Of How Kate Chopin s Work1298 Words   |  6 PagesENGL 1102 – Comp/Lit Essay 2 (Mulry) Sellers, James R – 920022413 Due Date: April 20, 2015 An Examination of How Kate Chopin’s Works Taken Together Contribute to our Understanding of Her Time and the Place of Women in Society Looking at themes present in his short stories and novels, Kate Chopin presents examples of female strength and an assertive rebellion to the social norms during the late 1800s. By seeking to transparently and boldly portray the risquà © behavior of her lead characters, whichRead More Social Role Play and the Search For Identity in Chopin’s Desiree’s Baby626 Words   |  3 PagesSocial Role Play and the Search For Identity in Chopin’s Desiree’s Baby When I think about women’s role in our society, especially nowadays, the first word that comes to my mind is ‘exhausted’. What I mean is that this subject is exhausted. There are so many literary and sociological interpretations of the physical and psychological female image that whatever I say or prove would be just another attempt to understand the ‘incomprehensible’. It’s not because I am a woman, or may be exactlyRead MoreAnalysis Of Desiree s Baby By Kate Chopin919 Words   |  4 PagesDesiree’s Baby†: An Annotated bibliography Thesis: Kate Chopin combines the racial and social differences on the eighteen century, in which people have to face racial discrimination amongst a social empire, which brings many conflicts within diverse couples about their firstborns. Chopin, Kate Desiree’s Baby. Short Stories (print 7/14/2015). In the short story, Desiree’s Baby, written by Kate Chopin there is a about of karma and consequences that produce the drama on the literature. The storyRead MoreAnalysis Of Kate Chopin s `` Desiree s Baby ``822 Words   |  4 PagesRegionalism reflected in Kate Chopin’s Writings During the latter half of the nineteenth-century, American literature had a renaissance with the development of new writing styles that strived to fully grasp and express the American way of life. Regionalism, which is a writing style that incorporates setting, dialect, and local color of certain regions of the United States was prominent among these new writing styles. Kate Chopin, one of the most prominent feminist writers of the nineteenth-centuryRead MoreKate Chopin, An American Writer1425 Words   |  6 PagesKate Chopin, an American writer, known for her vivid portrayals of women’s lives during the late 1800s. Her fiction works usually set in Louisiana, which contributed too much of her description of women’s roles. During Chopin’s time, Louisiana was in the midst of reconstruction and was having racial and economic issues. (Skaggs 4) Louisiana is the setting for many of Chopin’s stories, and they depict a realistic picture of Louisiana society. Ka te Chopin published two novels and many short storiesRead MoreCharacteristics Of Kate Chopin Contributions To Regionalism771 Words   |  4 PagesAbigail Brueggman English Composition II Dr. Vanderlaan Essay 2 DUE: 10/ 31/2017 Kate Chopin’s Contribution to Regionalism Between 1865 and 1896 regionalism/local color fiction became popular. Regional literature can be defined as fiction or poetry that focuses on the characters, dialect, customs, topography, and other features to a specific region. Regionalism incorporates the broader concept of sectional differences yet lacks nostalgia or sentimentality. Many criticsRead More Kate Chopins Desirees Baby Essays1394 Words   |  6 PagesKate Chopins Desirees Baby This essay will focus on the short story by Kate Chopin and its use of symbols, setting and characters. Desiree’s baby was perhaps one of the best stories I’ve ever read. Analyzing it was not easy at all. Its use of symbols was very hard to comprehend. At first, it doesn’t make sense. But as you think criticallyRead MoreKate Chopin s Desiree s Baby878 Words   |  4 PagesKate Chopin’s â€Å"Dà ©sirà ©e’s Baby† Many of Kate Chopin’s short stories deal with women in search of love, self-knowledge, and a sense of belonging, however, in â€Å"Dà ©sirà ©e’s Baby† we see a much more apparent theme of miscegeny, slavery, and racism. In her critical essay on â€Å"Dà ©sirà ©e’s Baby,† Rena Korb asserts that â€Å"Dà ©sirà ©e’s Baby† mainly focusses on a woman seeking only a place of belonging. Upon reading â€Å"Dà ©sirà ©e’s Baby† one could come to the conclusion that this story is much more concerned with expressing