Michaela Lee

Mr. Gilchrist
English 1102
25 August 2020
Desiree’s Baby

1. The name Desiree comes from a French word meaning desired. This fits into the

story because Chopin expresses other character's desire for Desiree by explaining

how her parents took her home after finding her laying under a stone pillar and how

her husband Arman fell in love with her just by seeing her one afternoon under that

same pillar. The name La'Blanche translates to "the white lady" which fits the story

because the story is largely based on race as it is set in the old south during slavery.

L'Abri translates to "shelter" so when Chopin states that Madame Valmonde was

traveling to L'abri, she means that she is traveling to visit Desiree's home or "shelter".

2. Armand’s background seems that he comes from a wealthy and loving family, which

is shown in the authors description of their home and living abroad in Paris for a time;

as well as the way Armand’s father cared for not only him but the slaves working for

him also. With that being said however, I would not consider Armand to be a pitiable

character. Although Desriee describes him as being kind, and gentle, Chopin shows

us that he actually can be quite cruel. She describes how he treats the slaves much

more harshly than his father had before him, and she states “When he frowned she

trembled”, almost indicating that when he was angry she was afraid of him. I Believe

what motivates him for a time is Desiree and his child, however when he feels that he

has been lied to and that the child and Desiree are of an “un pure” race, the power that

he has over people begins to be his motivation. As for the ending of the story when he

sends Desiree and the baby away, he absolutely had a choice in that. He could have

chosen to love his wife and his child and looked past whatever feelings he had
Michaela Lee
Mr. Gilchrist
English 1102
25 August 2020
towards her potentially not being white, but instead he shunned them and sent them

away furthering the statement that he was a cruel man motivated by power.

3. The fire at the end of the story seems to symbolize an end to Desiree and Armand’s

relationship. Chopin makes it seems as if Armand is burning all of Desiree’s

possessions that she left behind by saying “Then there were silk gowns, and velvet

and satin ones added to these; laces, too, and embroideries; bonnets and gloves; for

the corbeille had been of rare quality.” (5). Another way you can interpret the fire is

by Chopin tying Armand to satanic images and attitude. In paragraph three, the author

states “And the very spirit of Satan seemed suddenly to take hold of him in his

dealings with the slaves.” (Chopin); this very openly associates Armand with satanic

imagery. Another instance is at the end of the story when the bonfire is started, and

the author explains that he is watching over the blaze from a window as he tells the

slaves what to throw into it almost like we imagine Satan to do in Hell.

4. The three main colors in Desiree’s baby are white, black, and yellow. Desiree and her

family represent white, which in those times being white meant superiority and power

over others, as well was being at the highest point in the social ladder. Black is

represented by the slaves, who during that time would have been considered lower in

the social ladder and the less superior race. Yellow is represented by the baby’s nurse

Zandrine.

5. Based on the author’s description of Desiree, it seems that in the time period this

story was written in, it was a woman’s job in society to care for the home and obey

the wishes of her husband without questioning him. An example of this comes from

the third paragraph when Chopin states “Then a strange, an awful change in her
Michaela Lee
Mr. Gilchrist
English 1102
25 August 2020
husband's manner, which she dared not ask him to explain.” In this sentence it seems

as though Desiree is scared to question her husband about anything. I do believe

however, that at some point in their marriage Armand truly did love his wife. The

way his attitude changes towards everyone for the better after they get married, and

his immediate want to marry her when he saw her under the pillar despite not

knowing her background means to me that he did want to build a life with her. This

all changes though when he feels that he has been lied to about her race the entire

time and there is a sudden shift in his attitude towards her, almost as if the love had

never existed. He turns his wife and child away because the shame he thinks they

have brought to his family when really he is the one with an “un pure” background. I

believe that had we seen more of what happens after Armand reads the letter

revealing his true identity that he would have wanted to apologize to Desriee and the

baby and get his family back together. I feel that he would react this way because he

may feel bad about the way he treated people he is supposed to love over something

that was not even true.

6. There are some things in the story that lead me to believe Armand knew of his true

identity, yet there are also parts that make me think he was unaware. For example,

Chopin describes the difference between Armand’s leadership over the slaves and his

father’s as being drastically different with Armand being much more harsh than his

father. This may be because his father felt no hatred towards the slaves since his wife

was not fully white, and Armand felt ashamed for not being fully white and took this

out on the slaves. On the other hand, why would he have been so cruel to Desiree if

he had known he was the cause all along? Perhaps he truly didn’t know of his
Michaela Lee
Mr. Gilchrist
English 1102
25 August 2020
heritage, or he needed someone to blame so that when news of the baby not being

fully white reached society he could say it was Desiree’s fault because after all no one

knows her true background.

7. The biggest incidence of foreshadowing is when the author describes the color of

Armand’s face; “But Armand's dark, handsome face had not often been disfigured by

frowns since the day he fell in love with her.” (Chopin 3). If his face is dark and not a

fair skin tone, this should be a large indication that he is not fully white. Another

example is the comparison Desiree makes between her skin tone and Armand’s; “And

my skin is fair," seizing his wrist. "Look at my hand; whiter than yours, Armand,"”

(Chopin 4). Once again, he accuses Desiree of being the one with an “un pure”

background, yet she is more fair skinned than he is.

8. Chopin uses diction to evoke sympathy from readers by using words that have a

negative connotation to them. For example, Chopin describes the bayou as being

“sluggish” which means slow moving, or lacking motivation. This could also be

symbolism to describe the way Desiree is feeling as well. Chopin also describes the

field they walk through as being “deserted” or in other words lonely; which again

could be how Desiree is feeling after just being pushed away by her own husband.
Michaela Lee
Mr. Gilchrist
English 1102
25 August 2020
Works Cited

Rosenblum, Joseph. “Désirée’s Baby.” Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised

Edition, Jan. 2004, pp. 1–2. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?

direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=lkh&AN=103331MSS13049240001025

&site=lrc-plus.

Ahmetspahić, Adisa, and Damir Kahrić. “It’s a Man’s World: Re-Examination of the

Female Perspective in Chopin’s ‘Désirée’s Baby’ and ‘The Story of an

Hour.’” ESSE Messenger, vol. 29, no. 1, Summer 2020, pp. 23–37.

EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?

direct=true&AuthType=ip,shib&db=lkh&AN=145167647&site=lrc-plus.