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Désirée's Baby by Kate Chopin
bY AMY DOHERTY
In her late 30s, Kate published her first novel, At Fault
Conclusion
Works Cited
Kate Chopin
1850-1904
Kate Chopin was an American Author best known for her two novels, The Awakening and At Fault. She also authored hundreds of short stories. Her work is known for its feminist and racial themes that were unheard of during her time.
Kate Chopin
Désirée's Baby
Characters
The Antebellum South
Themes
1850
Birth
Kate was born in St Louis, Missouri to an Irish father and a French mother.
1855-69
Childhood
She was very close to her family and had strong women role models in her life
1870s
Marriage
Kate married Oscar Chopin and they eventually settled in New Orleans, LA
1880s-90s
Career
1904
Death
On August 22, 1904 Kate died as a result of a suspected cerebral hemorrhage.
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Conclusion
Works Cited
Kate Chopin
Désirée's Baby
Characters
The Antebellum South
Themes
Désirée's Baby
One of Kate Chopin's most famous short stories is Désirée's Baby. Written in 1892, the story highlights the issue of race in American society during the Antebellum period. Follow the numbers in the corner of the photos for a summary of the story.
"And the way he cries...is deafening. Armand heard him the other day as far away as La Blanche's cabin."- Désirée, Désirée's Baby, Kate Chopin
"Yes, the child has grown, has changed...What does Armand say?"- Madame Valmondé, Désirée's Baby, Kate Chopin
"Oh, Armand is the proudest father in the parish, I believe, chiefly because it is a boy, to bear his name; though he says not,--that he would have loved a girls as well." - Désirée, Désirée's Baby, Kate Chopin
Baby
Armand
La Blanche
"In time Madame Valmondé abandoned every speculation but the one that Désirée had been sent to her by a beneficent Providence to be the child of her affection, seein gthat she was without child of the flesh."- Désirée's Baby, Kate Chopin
Madame Valmondé
"For the girl grew to be beautiful and gentle, affectionate and sincere, --the idol of Valmondé."- Désirée's Baby, Kate Chopin
Désirée
Conclusion
Works Cited
Kate Chopin
Désirée's Baby
Characters
The Antebellum South
Themes
Conclusion
Works Cited
Kate Chopin
Désirée's Baby
Characters
The Antebellum South
Themes
Agriculture
The Southern economy was built on the production of agriculture. Cash crops such as tobacco, cotton and rice were in high demand in the industralizing North.
Slavery
In order to keep up with this demand, many Southern farmers used the labor of enslaved Africans to tend to their crops.
Plantations
The wealthiest farmers lived on large plantations where they would grow their cash crops. Depending on the plantation, there could be 50 or more slaves working either in the fields or in the house.
Social Structure
There was a distinct social structure in the Antebellum South, ranging from the incredibly wealthy whites, the poor whites and enslaved blacks.
Conclusion
Works Cited
Kate Chopin
Désirée's Baby
Characters
The Antebellum South
Themes
Racism
Prejudice or discrimination against someone based on their race or ethnicity
Identity
The fact of being who or what a person or thing is
Love Blindness
When one does not see the faults of the people they love
Irony
Juxtaposition of what appears on the surface to be true and what is actually true
Conclusion
Works Cited
Kate Chopin
Désirée's Baby
Characters
The Antebellum South
Themes
Conclusion
"Désirée's Baby" is remembered...
...as one of Kate Chopin's most critically acclaimed works. Highlighting the fragility of the relations between races and genders, it is a classic piece that informs readers of the miscegenation of the Antebellum South (Cruz) and the impact it had on the identity of those affected by it.
Conclusion
Works Cited
Kate Chopin
Désirée's Baby
Characters
The Antebellum South
Themes
Works Cited
Cruz, Barbara C., and James A. Duplass. “Making Sense of ‘Race’ in the History Classroom: A Literary Approach.” History Teacher, vol. 42, no. 4, Aug. 2009, pp. 425–40. EBSCOhost, “Desiree’s Baby, Kate Chopin, Characters, Setting.” KateChopin.org, 2014, www.katechopin.org/desirees-baby/. Desiree's Baby Setting Video. “Desiree’s Baby Setting - Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.com.” Study.com, 2021, study.com/academy/lesson/desirees-baby-setting.html. “Désirée’s Baby | Short Story by Chopin.” Encyclopedia Britannica, www.britannica.com/topic/Desirees-Baby. Editors of KateChopin.org. “Biography.” KateChopin.org, The Kate Chopin International Society, 2014, www.katechopin.org/biography/. Encyclopaedia Britannica. “Kate Chopin | American Author.” Encyclopædia Britannica, 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/Kate-Chopin. Hayes, Amy. “Antebellum South: What Was the Identity of the Old South?” TheCollector, 15 Sept. 2022, www.thecollector.com/antebellum-old-south/. Pegues, Dagmar. “Fear and Desire: Regional Aesthetics and Colonial Desire in Kate Chopin’s Portrayals of the Tragic Mulatta Stereotype.” Southern Literary Journal, vol. 43, no. 1, Fall 2010, pp. 1–22. EBSCOhost, IMAGES CITED https://americanliterature.com/author/kate-chopin/short-story/desirees-baby/ https://study.com/academy/lesson/desirees-baby-setting.html https://www.katechopin.org/
Unlike the North, where there was rapid urbanization and industrialization after the War of 1812, the South remained a predominantly rural society.
Madame Valmonde arrives at the house and notices how solemn the atmosphere is under the leadership of Armand. She reunites with Désirée and is shocked to see how much the baby has grown. It has been four weeks since Madame Valmondé has seen the baby and she notices how much it has changed. She even takes it into the light, analyzing the changes she is noticing. Désirée seems to not notice anything and describes how much the arrival of the baby has softened Armand's attitude towards his slaves.
Plantations would include slave quarters where the slaves lived, segregated from the owner and his family.
Love Blindness
Throughout the story Désirée speaks fondly of Armand, despite him not being a very nice man. She mentions that he has not punished a slave since the baby has been born, refusing to see fault in his initial treatment of them. When his manner changes towards her (averted eyes, staying away for extended time), she is heartbroken and wishes death upon herself, remaining blind to his awful behavior. Armand is also guilty of being love-blind because he fell heads over heels in love with Désirée, not caring about her heritage. It isn't until he notices the baby's coloring that his feelings for her change and he is no longer 'blind' to who she is.
At a young age, Kate was exposed to death, losing her father, grandmother and half brother in the span of about ten years. She began keeping a diary where she copied poems and essays. She will eventually begin writing on her own in the late 1860s.
By the start of the Civil War, there were four million enslaved African Americans (Hayes). Depending on the size of the plantation, slaves either worked in the field or in the house. It was not uncommon for the white slaveowners to engage in forced relations with their slaves.
Questioning Armand about the skin color of their child, he tells Désirée that "the child is not white; it means that you are not white." She refutes this, comparing her skin color to his, stating that her hands are whiter than his. He stings her by telling her that her hands are 'as white as LaBlanche's', refering to one of the household slaves. Frantically, Désirée writes to her mother, who tells her to come home to her. Armand does not beg her to stay so she takes the baby and walks off into the sunset.
Kate grew up speaking both English and French. She was sent to a boarding school at a young age, but after her father died, she returned home to be raised by her mother until the age of 7.
More often seen rather than heard, La Blanche was one of the slaves of the plantation. Vague references elude to the possibility of a relationship between her and Armand, adding an extra layer to the story.
It doesn't take long, however, for Désirée to begin to notice a menacing feeling in the air and a change in Armand's behavior. He becomes more distant and cold towards her, staying away from home, avoiding both her and the baby. One day when the baby is being fanned by one of the plantation boys, she notices the similarity in their skin color and puts the puzzle of Armand's behavior together.
Identity
Both Désirée and Armand face identity issues in this story. When Armand accuses her of being not white, Désirée becomes incredibly upset claiming she must die if it is true. Having been orphaned as a child, she did not know her true racial identity and finding out she may not be white in this manner was especially upsetting to her. Though the story ends without describing his reaction, one can only imagine the crisis Armand went through when he learned of his own true identity by reading the letter his mother wrote to his father.
The World's Fair was in St Louis when Kate died. She was reportedly getting ready to go to the fair, when she contacted her son complaining of a headache. She died shortly after. Though it is not what she was fighting for during her lifetime, she is remembered as being a pioneer in feminist literature.
Kate and Oscar had six children. Through Oscar's successful business ventures, they became a wealthy couple who were part of the social scene in a city that was struggling with economic and racial hardship. Kate was a very independent woman who engaged in 'unladylike' behaviors such as smoking and drinking.
Irony
The great irony of this whole story is that despite his treatment and attitude towards people of color throughout the story, Armand is given a great shock at the end of the story when it is reveiled that it is in fact he who is not-white, not his wife, Désirée.
After the death of Oscar from malaria in 1882, Kate eventually moved her family back up to St Louis, closer to her mother. It is during this time that she became a prolific writer of hundreds of short stories and her most famous novel, The Awakening.
A healthy baby with a shrill cry, it becomes more apparent as he grows that his skin matches that of the slaves.
Several weeks later, when burning Désirée's items, Armand comes across a letter written by his late mother to his father. In it, she thanks God that Armand will never know that she belonged to the enslaved race, at which point, the story abruptly ends.
Left abandoned by someone unknown, Désirée was adopted by Madame Valmondé. As a result of not knowing her parents, her ethnicity is unknown. She married Armand at a young age and loved him and their baby deeply.
Racism
It is important to note that it was commonplace for slaveholders to engage in sexual relations with their slaves (whether welcomed or not) resulting in the birth of many mixed race children. Children with any ounce of black blood were considered to be black, no matter how white their skin appeared. This helps to explain why it took time before it was realized that Desiree's baby had mixed blood. Racism is an evident theme in this piece as Armand is clearly not happy about the fact that his baby is black. He blames his wife and throws her out because he suspects she may be mixed race. Additionally, the fact that the truth about Armand's ethnicity is hidden from him, illustrates the disapproval of mixed race relationships during the time.
The story of Désirée's Baby opens with Madame Valmondé heading to L'Abri, a plantation in Lousiana, to visit Désirée and her baby. Her thoughts go back to the moment when Désirée had been found as a toddler, her origins unknown, and ultimately adopted by Madame Valmondé, who lacked any children of her own. Désirée grew to be a beautiful young woman.
Désirée's husband. Armand was known for having a quick temper and strict rule over his slaves.
Unable to have her own children, Madame Valmondé adopts Désirée when she finds her. When Désirée tells her of Armand's accusation, she encourages her to come home, likely because she could recognize the baby's race when she first met him.