Kate Chopin>Desiree's Naby>Armand and his race.?

Question

At the end of the short story, "Desiree's Baby", we find out that Armand is mulatto when he reads the letter that was from his mother to his father.

Did Armand already know that he was half black and used Desiree's ignorance of her heritage and background as an advantage to place the race of slavery on her...

or

Did he stumble upon this letter and just find out that he was part black?

Answer 1

Either suggestion has merit. If Armand knew, however, then he was taking a big risk in getting married and having offspring. Also knowing would have given Armand a very sinister character, and I don't believe the descriptions in the story lend themselves to this idea.

The truth of the story is probably more straightforward, like your second idea suggests. Armand truly fell in love, was married, was horrified to discover this flaw in his wife, stigmatized her, and was probably relieved to see them both disappear. But he is the one with the "flaw," both in his character that he can not love her, and in his "heritage."