Does Madame Valmonde Have A True Identity

Identity can mean different things to different people, but for most people, it’s about one’s personality and experiences. The 21st century has seen young people in various parts of the globe have a preference for some desired identity, which they deem superior, rather than accept their own identities. For example, in Goin Gangsta, Choosin Cholista: Claiming Identity, Neil Bernstein makes a case on how a number of people have claimed ethnic individualities other than their own and this is not an evil obsession (Bernstein, 1995). In this essay, a girl named April and her friends (and by extension most young people) believe that “identity is not a matter of where you come from, what you were born into, or what colour your skin is, but it’s everything

According to Teresa Gilbert, the story is not in sequential order (par. 11). Instead, the story jumps around from the present to the past, and then to the present again. This shows that structure is being used throughout “Desiree’s Baby” and it is important for readers to analyze how the structure is being used. Chopin uses structure in “Desiree’s Baby” to reveal that Desiree intertwines her identity with several characters in the story. For example, in Peel’s article, she quotes Barbara Ewell’s book, Kate Chopin, by stating that Desiree is extremely passive because she is relying on the other characters in the short story (Peel 235). Ellen Peel states that “Desiree’s individualism resembles that of other characters” (Peel 236). The title of

Chopin show’s that Armand is unable to welcome the knowledge that his mother “belongs to the race that is cursed with the brand of slavery,” (250). Not only is Armand unable to accept this fact but he is not will to take responsibility for his actions resulting in his knowledge of his heritage. Desiree seemed to be the perfect solution for Armand’s secret since her background is a mystery and she has such

In Desiree’s Baby, many historical allusions can be found by examining the historical moment in which it was written in. The story consists of three characters: Desiree, her baby and Armand. The main conflict discussed in the story is that when Armand ,the baby's father, finds out that his child is of mixed blood, he can’t stand the thought of it. For since he was a young child, he was brought up to believe that skin color correlated with the value and purity of another individual. Therefore to with this new shocking reality, presses him to question what he truly believes. Yet in the process, Desiree loses sight of what she values and becomes overcome with guilt to the point of killing herself along with the baby. Nonetheless the story is

Jon Erickson addresses Kate Chopin’s means of addressing the issue of gender roles and freedom through a literary lens. Erickson claims that Chopin juxtaposes two frame of reference: expectation and reality, themes commonly found within the fairytale genre. Because, “the primary expectation raised by the fairy tale is that there will be a happy ending, that the hero (ine) will overcome” (Erickson 1990), however due to Désirée’s death the archetype was naturally not fulfilled. Chopin shifts the tone of the story from light and surreal to dark and depressing as it progresses because it highlights the reality of being a woman in the nineteenth century. Moreover the fairy tale motif is touched on briefly throughout the story giving the reader false hopes of Désirée being saved only for Chopin to force them back into reality. For example the scene where Désirée’s mother writes to her, ““My own Désirée: Come home to Valmondé; back to your mother who loves you. Come with your child”, it appears as though her “fairy godmother” is there to make everything right again however this is not the case. Before Désirée leaves she first seeks approval of Armand, although this is a

"Desiree's Baby" is Kate Chopin's 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 L'Abri 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 like a pall" (185). The preceding quote gives the reader an eerie feeling and foreshadows an unpleasant ending to the story. Throughout "Desiree's Baby," Kate Chopin uses symbolism to convey her themes of racial prejudice, unequal gender roles, and

Desiree was abandoned as a child but gains status when Monsieur Valmonde takes her from the pillar she was found sleeping at and takes her into the family. Chopin says, “For the girl grew up to be beautiful and gentle, affectionate and sincere— the idol of Valmonde” (1). Her family is not the only ones to idolize the beautiful Desiree. Armand is struck but her beauty one day when passing by the same pillar eighteen years later and falls in loves. He falls in love “as if struck by a pistol shot” (1). This pillar symbolizes the two biggest transitions in Desiree’s life: her transition to the Valmonde family and her transition to life with Armand. Desiree and Armand marry and are blessed with a child. That is until the race of the child becomes a concern and Desiree’s obscure background comes into

Furthermore in to the literary element, Chopin used symbolism to develop more on Desiree’s characteristic. The author was describing the way she dressed “Desiree had not changed the thin white garment nor the slippers which she wore. Her hair was uncovered and the sun’s rays brought a golden gleam from its brown meshes.” (Chopin, 52) The way that Chopin is describing Desiree, it is like she is describing an angel, so pure and innocent. Everything Desiree wore was white, she was wearing a thin white dress that people usually go to sleep in. Angel always wear white. Another point was that it was sunset, which symbolized that things is about to end, this is just like her life. Earlier though, Chopin was mentioned about a stone pillar at the beginning of the story “when Monsieur in riding through the gateway of Valmonde had found her lying asleep in the shadow of the big stone pillar.” (Chopin, 48) The stone pillar represent a big marker on Desiree’s timeline. Armand drove by her and see her sleep and fell in love and got married was afterward. Before that time period, we don’t know who Desiree really is, we don’t know her dad or what race until at the end of the story, we don’t know where she’s from or what is her origin. Chopin used this stone pillar as the starting point and then keep developing Desiree’s characteristic later on. The author used symbolism to develop Desiree’s characteristic.

Kate Chopin utilizes irony in “Desiree’s Baby” to warn people of the dangers of racism and how it can victimize not only the hated race, but also the one who is racist. “Desiree’s Baby” is a tale about a young slave owner, Armand, with a well-respected name in Louisiana. He marries an adopted woman named Desiree and once they have their child, he notices that the baby has black features. He assumes that since he does not know his wife’s racial background that his wife must have some sort of black heritage, but it is his “inferences [that] lead to tragedy." Armand did not want his wife to be around because of her assumed race, so she took the baby and left. Months later when Armand is burning Desiree and the baby’s possessions, he

Identity is an essential necessity for humans to demonstrate the distinct individual. A person’s identity may take time to develope as the person acquires new interests, influences, and comprehension of the surrounding people. Authors such as Adrienne Rich and Gloria Anzaldua write about the struggles persistent in identity. Rich is identified by her gender and race by other people, while Anzaldua is defined as to what a Mexican American women should be. As a Mexican American, Amelia Mendoza, my best friend, encounters the strains of identity.

From this, the reader understands that Armand is attempting to assume a persona of the powerful aristocratic slave-owner. However, in this attempt, Armand demonstrates his very weakness: he is insecure and so must prove his strength. Another example of Armand’s weakness lies in his attempt to destroy all evidence relating to his relationship with Desiree. Armand feels that a marriage to a potentially black woman could be damaging to his to his place in society so he burns all of the evidence of her presence in his life: “In the centre of the smoothly swept back yard was a great bonfire, “ (Chopin 13). Although it is true that during the setting of the story, such a marriage could have been damaging, if he truly were a strong character, he would have defended his own beliefs and maintained his marriage. A final example of Armand’s weakness is in his discovery of a letter from his mother to his father and the reactions implied by the author. The letter carries details about Armand’s own race and how he is actually black. Armand’s implied reactions are that he will in fact take no action: despite the fact that Desiree was not of African descent, she will live her life in the belief that she is. This is the ultimate example of Armand’s weakness as he is too fearful of establishing his own identity to truly do so. Armand has been shown to be a weak, socially malleable character because of his internal

To begin with, Madame valmonde was the step-mother of Desiree. When she found Desiree in the gateway of valmonde she was only a child that couldn’t do much but only to cry and saying dada all the time. On top of that people around the neighborhood were curious about her origin but despite all the people opinion Madame valmonde didn’t care for any of them. Madame valmonde was happy and she believe Desiree was a gift from god because she never had the joy of having her own child until she found Desiree and she became like a real daughter for Madame

In this amazing story race plays a big part. Because the thought of any white person thinking they have black in them would make them not want to live anymore. Madame Valmonde adopted Desiree when she was a toddler. Because Madame was without a child of the flesh. Desiree grew up to be beautiful and gentle, affectionate and sincere the idol of Valmode. The author presents the story to the readers as a mystery because in the beginning they never said what was different about the baby. And why Madame Valmonde was astonished when she saw the baby. And how they kept getting unexpected visits from far-off neighbors who could hardly account for their coming.

First, Desiree’s identity changes constantly throughout her life. In the story, Desiree goes from being abandoned and having no identity, to being taken in by a loving family, to taking the identity of Armand’s wife, and then back to having no identity. Having taken on so many identities clearly affects her at the end of the story when she decides to kill herself because of her inability to try to find a new identity and see life outside of Armand. One quote that shows an identity change is, "Desiree, truly belongs nowhere. Found abandoned in front of the gates to the valmonde plantation," (Essays 3). As a child Desiree was abandoned and had no identity, but when she was taken if by that

In Kate Chopin’s short story “Desiree's Baby”, there are many literary elements. The two most prominent elements are character and imagery. Kate Chopin uses graphic, lifelike imagery to deeply express the character of Armand. Character and imagery convey Armand's interesting and complex character, due to Kate Chopin using such vivid imagery.