In this story Armand did not care about name when he had the capability to do anything with one of the honored names in Louisiana. Armand did not care about Desiree's past or his because of their social status, but the birth of Desiree's baby leads Armand to face his true self, without labels, just as the real world views race. Armand's reputable name gave his life meaning, but one drop of African blood found in Armand instantaneously flaws his honorable name to one of as little significance as his slaves. .
During the course of the story, importance and repetition of numerous items being described as white or black related to the way the real world relates white with prominence and positivity and black with waste and negativity. One of the first mentions of this was when Kate Chopin described Armand's love for Desiree as "sweeping over him like an avalanche (Chopin)". The love that is made among Armand and Desiree was an optimistic point in the plot of "Desiree's Baby" and the love being defined as an avalanche provided me with the image of white as a positive color throughout the rest of the story. Chopin related L'Abri with darkness when she described it as melancholy and the buildings "black like a cowl" and Desiree "shuddered at the sight of it" (Chopin). This negative association with black images made me view black objects throughout "Desiree's Baby" negatively. Armand hated what he was. The hatred that Armand had toward himself signifies the hatred of black images because of its negativity throughout the story. .
During the time Chopin wrote "Desiree's Baby" sexism was a huge setback in the lives of women, forbidding them from being able to speak for themselves. Eventually Chopin revealed that Armand was the one that carried the black genes that were passed on to the child, but because Desiree was constrained by the restrictions of her sex, she was blamed for the "unconscious injury she had brought upon Armand's home and his name" (Chopin).
