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Desiree's Baby Analysis Essay Example

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Desiree's Baby Analysis Essay Example
Racism and prejudice has come a long way since the 1700s, everyone is generally accepted in the society. And through our constitution and amendments, everyone holds their rights.
In a list of Kate Chopin’s short stories, she reflects on both male and female roles but mostly has a little more emphasis on her female characters, as this subject was sensitive during the 1800s where racism and prejudice was a norm and men were ranked above women, and women above slaves. “Desiree’s Baby” is a story where Chopin emphasizes on pride, gender issues, womanism, and race while creating ironies and symbolism. Although the story was written in 1982 when slavery was already abolished, it took place in Louisiana when slavery was still viable. In the story, Chopin follows her usual routine where her female character Desiree, goes though to transformation from a vulnerable young girl to an independent woman. She also has happy characters whose lives turn grim towards the end of the story. Chopin starts by introducing the two main characters Desiree and Armand, given the symbol that Desire was “beautiful and gentle, affectionate and sincere” (Chopin 28) and Armand is “a strict one” and his family is “…one of the oldest and proudest in Louisiana” (Chopin 29) and a slave owner. After Armand notices the color of his son’s skin he then gets the impression that his wife was the main cause. After that he started to isolate himself from his wife and child. Here Chopin uses irony when she writes of Armand’s emotions as being “like anything that dives headlong over all obstacles” (Chopin 28) which led me the reader into thinking that Armand was a man of strong will, but introducing his negligence toward his wife and son because of a man’s pride overcoming the love he has for his wife and race just to protect his family name and security. But once again, Chopin uses irony to describe Desiree as been white when she said “My skin is fair…my eyes are gray” and “look at my hand; whiter than

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