Essay On Desirée's Baby, By Kate Chopin

Racism has been a major part of America’s historical narrative and is apparent in not only current media but in literature from a century ago. W.E.B. Du Bois’ vignette, “Of the Passing of the First Born” is written about W.E.B. Du Bois’ infant son that passed away, and the struggle to decide where to lay his son to eternal rest in a place that would accept and love him, even though he was black. Similarly, Kate Chopin’s “Desirée’s Baby”, reflects upon the discrimination that a husband, Armand, shows towards his wife, Desirée, and their newborn child after he becomes convinced that they are from African descendance. Armand is proven wrong when he reads a letter explaining that he was, in fact, the one with an African lineage not his wife; however, this news has come too late as his wife has already taken her own life after being

Both authors use similar methods to present different themes of racism throughout the texts; however, Du Bois’ narrative ends with the the hope for change and peace while Chopin’s short story ends with the somber reality of death as an ending. Both authors present a detailed setting to convey an unpleasant tone guided by the hatred in racism. The authors use color imagery and diction to show that the context in which these stories take place is biassed and not equal. Chopin describes that “big solemn oaks grew close” (1) (Tag/Embedded) to the house that Desirée lives in with Armand. The “oaks” are very large showing their dominance as they tower above as one looks up. The trees are personified in a “solemn” way to express the negative connotation that resides with the trees. Chopin also describes the “oaks” as growing “close”; moreover, this presence of the large oak trees around the house casts a large shadow upon the house as a whole making it dark and foreboding. The “big solemn oaks” are a menace that surround the house, until Desirée ultimately decides to end her life. With her