Situational irony used to make a mockery of racism in Kate Chopin’s “Désirée’s Baby” MLA FORMAT PDF

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English Language IV 3 March 2020

Situational irony used to make a mockery of racism in Kate Chopin’s “Désirée’s Baby” During the antebellum period in the South of the United States, most of the black population was enslaved and racism towards black slaves was predominant. Here, as talking about black slaves, the one drop rule must be taken into account: even if one has a fair skin, one drop of black blood is what it takes to consider this person black. Kate Chopin’s short story “Désirée’s baby” takes place during this pre-Civil War era in a Louisiana plantation where the prevalent ideology was the superiority of a master over his slaves or superiority of a white person over a black person, and so on. A clear racial hierarchy was established. In this short story, the author depicts the absurdity of racism through the use of situational irony and through Armand’s character who, as a master, felt over confident, in power and never questioned himself. The short story has a strong situational irony about the couple’s origins. Désirée is a young woman from unknown origins as she was abandoned as a baby. Armand Aubigny is a rich plantation heir whose name is “one of the oldest and proudest in Louisiana”. Several months after the baby’s birth, Désirée finds a resemblance between her baby and the quadroon boy, making her realize that her baby has black heritage. When Armand becomes aware of the blackness of the baby, his feelings towards Désirée changes, thinking she is the one carrying black heritage as her origins are unknown. He blames her for the appearance of the baby and ask her to leave as “ [She had brought an] unconscious injury … upon his home and his name” Chopin (246), as if his “proud” name had been harmed because of the baby’s skin color he believed to come from Désirée’s unknown genetical heritage. As Gilbert writes,

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Désirée is initially seen as white, then considered black and perceived as white again (48). This evolution of the reader’s perception is linked with Armand’s perception that tricks the reader into thinking that Désirée is black. Though, all along the story, the narrator emphasizes Désirée’s whiteness, even when she leaves l’Abri when Armand blames her for bringing black blood in his family: “her hair was uncovered and the sun’s rays brought a golden gleam from its brown meshes” Chopin (246). Such insistence makes us think that she might not be the one carrying black origins. As we give a closer look at Armand’s origins, we notice a shadow put upon his mother. And indeed, the plot twist reveals that Armand’s mother was the one who “belongs to the race that is cursed with the brand of slavery” Chopin (247). Armand, who had put the blame on his wife, was in fact the one carrying black genetical background. In the end, irony is detected through this situation, but additional irony is suggested by the author through Armand and La Blanche’s relationship. Armand and la Blanche’s relationship is ambiguous. Through her writing, Chopin suggests that the two characters have sexual intercourse. Some hints such as “Armand heard him the other day as far away as La Blanche’s cabin” (241) are given to the readers to make them understand the two characters’ relationship. In addition to this, as Peel proposes, “Perhaps Armand is the father of La Blanche’s son. The two women and even their son may have parallel ties to Armand because of the possible sexual connection between slave and master” (226). As readers, we notice a link between the two children when Désirée encounters a resemblance between them two, which lead us to think Armand might also be the quadroon boy’s father. The irony here is that Armand asked Désirée to leave his home because of her supposed race, but he would also have sexual intercourse with his black slave, have a child, and let them live with him. The absurdity of racism is depicted through the author’s use of irony, and through Armand’s character. The story’s plot twist lead to a situational irony. This situational irony

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was created by Armand and his inability to questing himself although striking signs were shown. As a master, his feeling of superiority made him unable to question himself. Questioning oneself and acceptance is essential and this is what the story teaches the reader through Armand’s character and the ridiculous and ironical the situation. The ability to question is key in societies that impose people beliefs that sometimes proves to be unfounded and lead to ironical situations.

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WORKS CITED Chopin, Kate. “Désirée’s Baby.” Kate Chopin: Complete Novels and Stories, Edited by Sandra M. Gilbert, Library of America, 2000, pp. 242-247. Gibert, Teresa. “Textual, Contextual and Critical Surprises in “Désirée’s Baby.” Connotations, vol. 14, 1-3, 2004/2005, pp. 38-67. Peel, Ellen. “Semiotic Subversion in ‘Désirée's Baby.’” American Literature, vol. 62, no. 2, 1990, pp. 223-237. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/2926914. Accessed 11 Feb. 2009....