Wednesday, December 23, 2015

How does the setting of the story contribute to the action in "Desiree's Baby"?

The setting of "Desiree's Baby" contributes to the action
of the story by showing the home of Armand and Desiree as falling into
despair.


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Madame Valmonde had not seen Desiree and the
baby for four weeks. When she reached L'Abri she shuddered at the first sight of it, as
she always did. It was a sad looking place, which for many years had not known the
gentle presence of a mistress, old Monsieur Aubigny having married and buried his wife
in France, and she having loved her own land too well ever to leave it. The roof came
down steep and black like a cowl, reaching out beyond the wide galleries that encircled
the yellow stuccoed house. Big, solemn oaks grew close to it, and their thick-leaved,
far-reaching branches shadowed it like a pall. Young Aubigny's rule was a strict one,
too, and under it his negroes had forgotten how to be gay, as they had been during the
old master's easy-going and indulgent
lifetime.



This allows an
active reader to pick up on the foreshadowing of what is to come.  The home, "was a sad
looking place" with "big solemn oaks".  One could come to understand that the setting
echos the action of the story by enhancing the themes of sadness and
solitude.


Therefore, knowing that each time Desiree's
mother comes upon L'Abri she shudders, one can assume that the home and movement of the
story will not be one filled with happiness and companionship.

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