Kate Chopin's Recurring Theme of Women's Oppression
A recurring theme in Kate Chopin's short stories is that of drudgery and oppression in the lives of women, usually at the hands of men, but sometimes simply due to the circumstances in which they find themselves. Interestingly, in her own life Chopin was blessed with a husband who found her independence and intelligence admirable and who gave her far more freedom as a wife than women in that day were accustomed to enjoying in marriage, but she still felt their pain (Wyatt).
In "Desiree's Baby," her husband's blind pride has him placing the blame on his wife for the discovery that their baby is a mulatto. Recognizing that he will never forgive her, Desiree takes the baby and walks off into the bayou to their death. In Chopin's ironic ending, Armand discovers as he is burning the baby's cradle and layettes that it was his own mother who had introduced the Negro blood into the lineage, as she writes that she "belongs to the race that is cursed with the brand of slavery," an ambiguous statement that could refer both to her Negro blood and to her gender (Chopin).
Chopin's story "A Pair of Silk Stockings" describes "little Mrs. Sommers, whom neighbors describe as having enjoyed "better days...before she had ever thought of being Mrs. Sommers." She unexpectedly comes into an extra $15.00 and reviews in her mind the necessities she can buy with it but finds herself buying things for herself instead-a pair of silk stockings, a pair of gloves, and a luxurious lunch, all capped by a movie at the matinee. The $15.00 has meant temporary freedom from drudgery and penury, and with the money gone, she has to go back to her usual life in which there is no room for little luxuries and moments of freedom. On her way home, she experiences "a powerful longing that the cable car would never stop anywhere, but go on and on with her forever" (Chopin).
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