Kate Chopin’s “The Unexpected” and Oscar Wilde’s “The nighti

Kate Chopin portrays the very essence of love right from the start of the story as “the good-buy lingered with kisses and sighs”, and she expresses the passionate ‘true love’ that both Randall and Dorothea have for each other, ‘all this was torture to the impatient Dorothea. This ‘cruel’ separation is emphasised by the fact that they send daily letters of love and passion. Chopin (after a rather optimistic view of love) then adds pain to the story by introducing the torment that both characters feel, as they are separated for a further length of time, ‘it seemed not to yield’. When he finally got the strength, Randall sent a “tremulous scrawl” to Dorothea, reinforcing and giving no doubt that he is still passionate for Dorothea’s love and says that he will return ‘to clasp his dearest one to his heart’. Again it seems as though Dorothea returns Randall’s love as she reads ‘his impassioned letters almost to tatters’. It is at this time of seeming desire and love that Chopin puts a twist into the tale, to create an idea, that the passion shown by Dorothea is in fact not as impassioned as it first seemed. She sits daily gazing for hours at his portrait showing his ‘perfect specimen of youth, health, strength and manly beauty’. This is clearly how she likes to think of Randall, and is expectant of this. This suggests that Dorothea has a materialistic view of love. This idea can be more appreciated by the reactions of Dorothea on the return of Randall. Even though Randall had prepared Dorothea for a shock when she sees him, the reaction that she gives is more than just a shock. She looks at Randall as though he was ‘a curious apparition’, and shows no sign of love towards him. The materialistic views can really be seen when Dorothea mentions that ‘this was not the man’ that ‘she had loved and promised to marry’. This is then further emphasised when the she states all the changes that have taken place in him, not identifying any mental change only physical change. Randall stays the same throughout the story, this shows that he is a true lover. This is confirmed when he says that if the worst comes to the worst, marriage will confirm her rights to his fortune. At the end of the story Dorothea is shown to be naïve and shallow girl who thought she loved someone but it was merely physical attraction. Chopin is not harsh towards her and she does not blame her for misunderstanding true love. This also makes the Reader wonder whether or not Randall was actually just affected physically, there was most probably a mental change in him as well.

Some topics in this essay:
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