Desiree's Baby By Kate Chopin Essay

The short story “Desiree’s Baby”, written by Kate Chopin, is about a man’s pride and concern about race has overcome the love he has for his wife Desiree. The story is set before the Civil War, back in the time when slavery still exists. As a slave-owner, Armand is very proud as he belongs to the white society, until he finds out the truth about his baby and his origin. Racism, prejudice, and pride destroy Armand’s family.
To add the elements of surprise and ironic, Kate Chopin does not reveal the birth origin of Armand and Desiree until the end of the story, which is a surprise and ironic element. Readers only know that Madame Valmonde adopts Desiree: “Desiree had been sent to her by a beneficent Providence to be the child of her affection” (Chopin). No ones know who are Desiree’s biological parents, same as Armand; therefore he blames Desiree for the baby’s race. Chopin’s reveal a very little information about Desiree; readers learn that Desiree is naïve, according to Madame Valmonde, but also a very loving and responsible wife. However, Desiree’s voice is as little as her identity; she represents the woman back in the 80s, when the woman does not have the respect from their partners. Compare to Desiree, Chopin shows the readers more specific details about the origin of Armand. Readers know that his father brought him home from Paris when his mother died. Later in the story, Chopin reveals that Armand owns slaves, which means he looked down to the non-white race people. Ironically, at the end of the story, Armand finds out his mother was a Negro, in a letter that she sends to his father: “Our dear Armand will
Racism turns Armand’s love for Desiree to hatred, and his pride makes he pays for his actions. His pride and prejudice breaks three hearts: Desiree, the baby, and Armand himself, as he could not bring his family back to life and tell them the truth about his