Desiree's Baby Racism

In the time period that this story was written, a person’s background meant something as a name was a sense of wealth and worth. Since Desiree was adopted, her background was unknown and when Armand decided to marry Desiree he didn’t care because he would give her his name as all he cared about was his affection for her. For a little while all was well in the household. Desiree and Armand were happier than ever, and Armand treated his slaves better. This soon took a drastic turn as everyone noticed that their son had begun to show qualities of a Negro. Once these features were noticed, Armand’s attitude towards his wife and his slaves changed for the worst. In Armand’s eyes Desiree was at fault for giving the child those features since her history was unknown. Even after Desiree gives her husband evidence that she may not be a carrier, she and her child are still banished from the home and sent on their way.

Imagine finding out that your entire life was a lie, and that every single thing you knew about your identity and your family was completely false! Armand Aubigny, one of the main characters in Desiree’s Baby by Kate Chopin, experiences this exact dilemma throughout this short story. Desiree’s Baby is a story about a young man and woman, who fall in love, but Desiree, who does not know her birth parents, is considered nameless. When she and Armand have a child, they are both very surprised because the child’s skin color is not white as expected. It is obvious that the child is biracial, and immediately, Desiree is blamed for the color of the child’s skin because of her uncertain background. The truth, however, is that it is Armand who has

In “Desiree’s Baby” by Kate Chopin, Chopin describes a story of an older woman, Madame Valmondé, coming to see her daughter, Desiree, who is married Armand Aubigny, and her baby. Mme. Valmondé, at first, is astonished at the appearance of the baby. Later, the baby herself shocks because of its dark appearance. Desiree later asks Armand why the baby is black. Then, Armand gets very angry, because Armand, a person who perceives he is of European race, has realized that he is the father to a black baby. Armand goes on to accuse Desiree of being black and being the cause of this perceived imperfection. A very distressed Desiree asks for Mme. Valmondé for help. Mme.

Both Armond and a Désirée are ambiguous about their racial identity and background. Armond knowing about Désirée's past still decides that he loves her and ultimately marries her. When taking her in he is indicating that he himself does not care about her background because of her outer beauty. When the baby is born both are confused by the babies skin color as Chopin states, “ 'look at our child. What does it mean? Tell me'... 'It means, ' he answered lightly, 'that the child is not white; it means that you are not white'”(Chopin 3). Armond blames the reason why his baby's skin color is black on his wife, as he to is reforming to what society deems the norm. Women during this time are almost if not slaves to men, their names meant nothing, so to preserve Armond's family name he immediately blames his wife. Armond only caring about himself denies his love for Désirée because of the racial prejudice present throughout the south. He refuses to believe that he is the one at fault for his baby's appearance, as during this time women were the ones always at fault. He also refuses to acknowledge his own thought's about his racial background so he blames his wife. He denies his identity till the very end because he did not want to lose his social class and be condoned to a fate such as slavery. As Chopin states, “ 'But, above all,' she wrote, 'night and day, I thank the good God for having so arranged

(176). It becomes apparent that Armand?s actions and words greatly affect Desiree when she says, ?My mother, they tell me I am not white? (176). Desiree?s powerless situation can in many ways be blamed for her unresolved uncertainty about her racial identity.

The two essays “How It Feels to Be Colored Me” by Zora Neale Hurston and “The Fourth of July” by Audre Lorde, both have a similar, constant theme, women speaking back to racism. Black Americans face disadvantages everyday due to their skin color. In the 1800s-1900s, it was even worse for women. These ladies had to deal with both stereotypes of being black and a woman. A majority of white people around the time saw them as nothing but a waste of space. There was a constant struggle to be accepted.

The story Desiree’s Baby is about a young woman who is adopted by a two wealthy french creoles that live in Louisiana. Monsieur and Madame Valmonde adopted Desiree when she was found as a young infant by a pillar near the gate of their estate. The story then follows Desiree as she matures into a young woman and is married to a man named Armand whom which she loves very much. Armand and desiree soon have a child and both are extremely happy about the child but Armand soon pulls away both his compassion and happiness when he see’s something wrong with the child. Armand realises that the child is has some black in it, which happens to be the skin color of slavery. Shamed Armand blames Desiree for his child being part black seeing that Desiree’s

when she is recovering from giving birth to her child and she is “in her soft white muslins”, that is an example of symbolism being used to represent Desiree as white and pure. In the other hand Armand is mostly compared to the darkness and obscurity such as when Desiree is describing her love for Armand and then it is stated, “Armand’s dark, handsome face had not often been disfigured by frowns since the day he fell in love with her” (Chopin 2). “In certain ways, Desiree’s baby is atypical of Chopin's body of work; it is the only story to concern miscegenation; it is the only story to feature a stereotypically "cruel" Southern master; it does not explore issues of female sexuality” (Korb 1). When Desiree notices that her baby resembled one

How can racism and arrogance destroy a whole family? In the short story "Désirée 's Baby" written by Kate Chopin reflects on how racism played a huge role before the American Civil War. Désirée was abandoned by her family when she was young and was adopted by, Madame Valmonde, a rich white family. One day Armand Aubigny was passing when he saw Désirée next to a stone pillar, where he falls in love with her instantly . They get married and have a baby boy. After three months later, her husband discoveries that the baby is not white and assumes that Désirée is from a black family. Armand didn 't want to bring shame to his family lineage and decides to kick Desiree and her baby out. One day while he was trying to burn Desiree things, to destroy memories and evidence, he discoveries a letter that was from his mom to his dad stating that his real mom is a black woman. Chopin 's short story "Désirée 's Baby" shows how judging people, being arrogant and selfish, and the consequences of racism could ultimately lead to the destruction of Désirée 's family.

Kate Chopin was considered by some literary scholars as one of the earliest feminist writers in her country. She was a writer and thinker far ahead of her time. She has written a short story known as Désirée’s Baby that was created during the antebellum period. It demonstrates how racism in the 1800’s played a major part in people’s lives. In Désirée’s Baby, Kate Chopin includes themes of race and racism, some irony, and uses independent women as a primary center of attention.

The story, Desiree’s Baby by Kate Chopin takes places in the late 19th Century in Louisiana, where racial separation and inequality is very prevalent. The white landowners are often in a family whose name equates to high status. The African American’s are slaves to the landowners and are often whipped and beaten during their work. They hold no status and this is solely due to the fact of their race. In Kate Chopin’s Desiree’s Baby, it is evident that race and social identity is equated directly with character status in this time period, as shown through Armand’s changes in behavior when the baby is born, as well as Desiree’s fall of status with her new baby.

It turns out the baby is of mixed blood and because of this, he shuns his wife and the child he was so proud of only days before. “He absented himself from home and when there, avoided her presence and that of her child, without excuse.”(317). Armand was “the proudest father in the parish…it is a boy to bear his name.”(317). Additionally, he accuses Désirée of not being white (a crime against his family’s “purity”) which she adamantly denies. “It is a lie it is not true, I am white! Look at my hair, it is brown and my eyes are gray, Armand you know they are gray. And my skin is fair,” “Look at my hand whiter than yours, Armand,”(318). She writes to her adopted mother and tells her of what is happening. Her mother tells her to return home with the child where they will both be loved, but Désirée is so shocked and disheartened she sets off towards a local bayou with the child never to be seen again. Armand has made the decision to lose his family in order to save his name and it’s too late to bring Désirée back. The irony is that the letter read by Armand from his mother reveals to him that it is he who is of mixed blood and not Désirée.

“Desiree’s Baby” provides insight into the application of the hypodescent rule in plantation-era Louisiana, depicting individuals of mixed race who are marked and assigned to the subordinate social group. In her short story, “Desiree’s Baby,” Kate Chopin addresses the practice as it was applied to the “one-drop rule,” the notion that an individual with white complexion may be deemed black by society given the presence of any African ancestry. Desiree, the story’s protagonist, is eloquently placed at the intersection of the two races, victimized in order to highlight the flaws and inadequacies of the rule. Desiree’s ultimate removal from white society and possible death may indicate a text working to criticize racial prejudice; however,

Moreover, when Aubigny knows about his child, his manner toward Desiree changes dramatically; `when he spoke to her, it was with averted eyes, from which the old love-light seemed to have gone out. He absented himself from home; and when there, avoided her presence and that of her child, without excuse.' Desiree dares not ask him about this change because she fears his anger. He should have thought of her questioning him, later on, about the baby being colored or not; his blind irrationality precludes him from taking assimilating that if his wife hadn't been white, she would not have asked him about the child. If anyone examines his behavior, they would definitely conclude that it is not the appropriate behavior toward a woman, and above all, his a devoted wife.

Jackie Robinson, Joe Louis, and Hank Greenberg all faced some sort of racism during their lives and their professional careers. Racism was found in every sport between the 1930s and the 1950s. Some sports hid the racism better than the others did. The role of racism and ethnicity in American sport did not change significantly between the 1930s and the 1950s.