Assignment

Plot:Chopin: Desiree's Baby, The Story of an Hour

REQUIRED TEXT: Charters, The Story and Its Writer, compact 9th ed.

"Desiree's Baby"

1. What is the main external conflict in the story? Do any of the characters have an internal conflict?

2. How is the conflict intensified? Where is the climactic moment in the plot?

3. How would you describe Armand? How does Chopin reveal his character?

4. What kind of person is Desiree? Does she seem a good match for Armand? Does your opinion of her change as the story progresses?

5. Should Madame Valmonde have told Desiree of her realization about the baby? When she sees the baby at four weeks of age, she obviously is startled by something in its appearance, but she doesn't mention it. Then, she returns home and seems to wait for disaster to strike, never returning to visit Desiree. How do you explain this behavior, coming from an obviously protective, loving mother?

6. How do you feel about Desiree's final choice? Is suicide an understandable choice, or does it reveal her as simply a weak character? What other options do you think she may have?

7. Armand is shown to be a very cruel master to his slaves, a direct contrast to the way in which his father ran the plantation. Does learning his family secret in the last scene suggest any explanation for this?

8. If you were surprised by the final scene, what did you find most surprising?

9. Do you think Armand knew about his own mother's African ancestry before he courted and married Desiree? Look for evidence from the story to support your opinion.

"The Story of an Hour"

1. Does this story have a conflict? If so, what is it? Do any of the characters exhibit an internal conflict?

2. Where is the climactic moment in the plot?

3. What does Mrs. Mallard see and hear from the open window? How do you react emotionally to this imagery?

4. What kind of man is Brently Mallard, as Mrs. Mallard remembers him?

5. How does Mrs. Mallard look as she leaves her room? What does Richards' "quick motion" at the end of the story reveal? Who is he screening from whom?

6. Does the ending of this story merely surprise you, or do you believe Chopin is making a thematic point?