This paper will delve at giving a comparison and contrasting analysis on two fictional literary works. The works to be analyzed here are Kate Chopin’s, “Desiree’s Baby” and David Ives’, “Sure Thing”. These are contemporary works of art that use different styles to represent their divergent views. The common theme that the two literary works share however revolves around relationships. There is the thematic representation on the effects of relationships when reality strikes between the partners. This paper will look at the effectiveness of style in the deliverance of the works of literature to the audience, the differences that emanate from their use of relationships to represent thematic effects and a contrast in the use of artistic tools in the two literary works.
The first item on the analysis of the two works of art is the determination of the effectiveness in the style used by the two authors. There is a contrast in the style that the two authors use when writing their literary woks. Kate Chopin in writing “Desiree’s Baby” effectively uses the narrative style to capture the readers’ attention to the piece of work. For instance the introduction to the narrative is captivating and makes a reader want to read more. In the narrative, “as the day is pleasant, Madam Valmonde drives over to L’Abri to see Desiree and the baby and it makes her laugh when she thinks of Desiree with a baby (Chopin, 3)”. David Ives on the other hand use the stage to convey his ideas on relationships and how to start them of, he effectively brings out his thematic intention through the play, “ Sure Thing”. The introduction in the play is effective in grabbing the readers’ attention.
The play begins when Bill enters a cafe and sees an empty seat next to Betty. In the introduction Bill “excuses himself and asks if the chair is taken”. Betty on the other hand feigns she did not hear and ask “to be excused”. Bill repeats the question “is the chair taken?” and Betty replies by saying “Yes it is”. Bill replies by saying “oh. Sorry.” And finally Betty replies, “Sure thing”. The bell then rings and they both edit their language. This introduction is very effective in capturing the readers’ attention. The different use of writing styles by the authors however has a similarity, in that they are effective in capturing the attention of the reader and in conveying the thematic messages intended. Thus the two works of art are effective in using style in the deliverance of their main themes.
The two works of art use relationships differently to represent their themes. In “Desiree’s Baby”, relationship is used as a mirror of the cruelty involved with racism. In this narrative, the main characters, Desiree and Armand have been married for some time and now have a baby in a relationship that has been going on well until Armand realises that the baby is developing colour (Chopin, 9-10). From the story the narrator says that “when he (Armand) speaks to her (Desiree), it is with averted eyes, from which the old love-light seems to be gone. He absents himself from home; and when he is there, avoids her presence and that of her child, without excuse (Chopin, 10). This discovery is a turn of events in the relationship and makes Armand act cruelly to his wife and also to the slaves. In using the relationship of Armand and Desiree, the reader is well informed on the effects of a racist society.
On the other hand, David Ives in “Sure Thing” satirises relationships. In essence he satirises how relationships start off and uses two strangers in his play to bring this out. The main characters are Bill and Betty. Bill wants to hit at the gorgeous woman sitting by herself in the cafe table. This is seen in the language of Bill. Bill says, “you (Betty) may never know who you may be turning down”. Betty then replies by saying, “Sorry. Nice try, though”. Later the bell rings and they renew their lines (Ives, 2). In the entire play there is a representation of satire on how relationships start and the errors that are mostly made in first meetings. Evidently, the two works of art use relationships very differently to represent their thematic intentions.
The final item in the analysis of the two works of art will be the authors’ use of artistic tools. The two literary works have used an array of literary tools in the development of plot and in the representation of their themes. Kate Chopin uses a great deal of imagery and irony in her work “Desiree’s Baby”. She uses imagery to bring out the theme of racism. For instance, the reader can see that the relationship between Desiree and Armand is one the greatly explores the precarious status of both the people who do not have a family and those whose descent is biracial. Also the use of irony is very prevalent in the narrative. A good example of how irony is used to present the theme of racisms is the racial descent of Armand Aubigny. As the narrative ends, readers are able to figure that Armand knew he had some black blood from his parents yet he still chases his wife, Desiree for having black blood that is exposed in their baby (Chopin, 8).
The narrative brings the identity of Armand in letter by his mother. She writes saying that “above all night and day, she thanks the good God for having arranged their lives that their dear Armand will never know that his mother, who adores him, belongs to the race that is cursed with the brand of slavery (Chopin, 14)”. On the other hand, the play, “Sure Thing” also uses artistic tools to expose the intended theme. David Ives however majorly uses satire as his main tool. He satirises the way relationships start with a bid to bring out the realties of relationship. We see that every time Bill and Betty makes a mistake in their conversation a bell rings and they immediately correct their statements so as to impress and continue with the conversation. For instance, when Bill enters the cafe and sees the beautiful woman by herself, (Betty) he tries to strike a conversation (Ives, 3-4).
Bill enters a cafe and sees an empty seat next to Betty. In the introduction Bill “excuses himself and asks if the chair is taken”. Betty on the other hand feigns she did not hear and ask “to be excused”. Bill repeats the question “is the chair taken?” and Betty replies by saying “Yes it is”. Bill replies by saying “oh. Sorry.” And finally Betty replies, “Sure thing”. The bell then rings and they both edit their language (Ives, 1). The way the conversation starts can not last utmost five minutes and so the bell rings several times until Bill gets his word right and Betty allows him to join him. This act is satirical in that Bill and Betty have the power to change their language in order to communicate and keep the conversation going. In true, there is an effective use of artistic tools to represent the themes intended in the two works though they are used to meet different artistic need.
To conclude, the two works of art are effective in delivering their intended themes. The authors have greatly used their ingenuity to bring out their themes. The themes that each work brings out are different but the central focus is on relationships. Kate Chopin in “Desiree’s baby” displays her agitation in the prevalent conditions of racism and maltreatment of the blacks in the society and the stereotype that is common in the society. Also David Ives brings out his ideas in great way that aims at showing the stereotypical nature of relationships and delves at showing the intolerance most people have in building new relationships through his satirical and comical play, “Sure Thing”.