I thought Kate Chopin is different than any of the other writers we've read from. She explores the nature of relationships between men and women, as well as mother and child. We haven't run into this subject in depth this semester. Chopin describes the relationship between two men and a woman in "At the 'Cadian Ball" and its sequel, "The Storm". In it, Chopin portrays a the two different relationships two men, Alcee and Bobinot build with a woman named Calixta. Bobinot has always loved Calixta and vowed to marry which he does in the future while Alcee seems to be a crush of Calixta's and vice versa. They encounter each other frequently, unable to keep back from showing their love for each other and then ignoring the situation completely, even though Calixta is married to Bobinot. The story focuses on Bobinot's naive nature, and Calixta's nonchalant will to break the terms of her marriage for her unspoken love for Alcee. Alcee is also married himself, to Clarisse. Calixta and Alcee both ignore what happened between them and go on about their lives like nothing ever happened, much less both committed adultery. This is shown in the following passage how Alcee normally avoids the subject and tries to get his wife to stay away for longer.
"Alcee Laballiere wrote to his wife, Clarisse, that night...realizing that their health and pleasure were the first things to be considered." I found "Desiree's Baby" to be the most compelling of the three stories. It explores the gray area of mistaken race and it's effects on marriage. It was very powerful I thought as well as emotional. The twist at the end was great. "'But above all,' she wrote...belongs to the race that is cursed with the brand of slaver.'" Armand finds out he's not white after forcing his wife to leave when he finds out she isn't as well as their baby. W haven't run into any authors so far that explored race from this perspective. It raises a lot of moral questions that the reader is forced to think about had they been in the same situation in the same setting. Forbidden love, I feel, is the overlying subject of all three stories we read by Chopin.
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You make an excellent point! Although we have read many slave narratives, race has not been explored as it was in Chopin's work. I also did not expect this ending. It seems as though crossing these race boundaries Chopin really depicts the essence of the human condition and is beginning to eliminate those superficial racial layers in society.
ReplyDeletewhat's up elrod? i agree with santiago's comment as well about how even though slavery wasn't an issue at the time chopin wrote this she still explored it and showed her dissappionment in how people still viewed africa-americans and their families. i really enjoyed her stories though because like you said they are unlike others that we read.
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