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Why did Kate Chopin use French words in "Désirée's Baby" and how does this reflect in her character treatment?
Quick answer:
Chopin's use of regionalism is a major factor in helping to account for the realistic way in which she depicts characters. Characters have the same concerns and fears, as well as hopes and goals, that real people in this place and time would have had.
Chopin's writing style is known as Regionalism, or Local Color . This refers to her depiction of the people, language, cultural customs, and even the geographic features of a particular region. It was a popular style during the final decades of the nineteenth century. Chopin typically writes about the Creole society of southern Louisiana at the end of the century, depicting their cultural standards and language; this is why she employs so many French words and French names in her works. The Creoles blended many cultures—Spanish and French, African and Caribbean—and so they were often quite concerned with "how much" of a person's heritage was white or black: this is why Chopin uses words like "mulatto" (for a person with one white parent and one black parent) or "quadroon" (a person with three white grandparents and one black grandparent), terms which are considered offensive today. Chopin is attempting to...
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offer a realistic depiction of life in this part of the country during this time. Certainly, this helps to account for the realistic way in which Chopin depicts characters. Characters have the same concerns and fears, as well as hopes and goals, that real people in this place and time would have had.
References
In "Desiree's Baby," Kate Chopin uses French words because the story is set in Louisiana, which was a Creole society. People spoke French at that time, so it was natural that when writing about Louisianians, Chopin would include French words in the dialect.
She treated the characters in a realistic manner. The slaves were shown to be quiet and wary, as they were on edge about their master's volatile behavior; later, they were frightened by what might happen when everyone realized their mistress, Desiree, had a child of mixed race. Chopin treats Desiree and Armand in a realistic way as well. Both of these characters might have acted the way they did in real life. Through both her incorporation of French words and her treatment of her characters, Chopin creates a powerful, compelling story.