Necklace by Guy De Maupassant
Guy de Maupassant's short story, "The Necklace," deals with many different themes. This work of literature examines notions of beauty and youth, class and money, and a liveliness and zest for life that is contrasted with the conception of aging. Despite all of these thematic issues, it appears to the shrewd reader that the principle theme that this work of literature is based upon, and which all of the other themes hinge upon, is the relationship between beauty and money. Quite simply, the main character, Mademoiselle Mathilde Loisel, equates beauty and attractiveness to money and all of the material trappings it affords. Consequently, the poor woman forfeits what true beauty she possessed -- independent of money -- due to an unfortunate financial situation.
It is fairly apparent that Mrs. Loisel believes that physical attractiveness and beauty is largely based on the amount of money that a woman has to pamper herself with. This fact is perhaps true because the young lady was born without a lot of money. Actually, she is considerably poor, and regrets the fact that she does not have enough money to buy all of the intricate things (clothes, jewels, fashionable art) that typically surround women who have money and who are thought of as beautiful. The following quotation certainly demonstrates this fact. "She had no dresses, no jewelry, nothing. And she loved nothing else; she felt herself made for that only. She would so much have liked to please, to be envied, to be seductive and sought after" (Maupassant, 1907). What is notable about this quotation is not the lack of material items that Mrs. Loisel had. Instead, what is most eminent is the fact that this woman loves all of the things that she does not have. Furthermore, she believes that...
757). Chopin (2002) writes: "There would be no one to live for her during those coming years; she would live for herself. There would be no powerful will bending hers in that blind persistence with which men and women believe they have a right to impose a private will upon a fellow-creature" (p. 757). Louise is discovering that she will have say over what she does and there will
In Guy de Maupassant’s “The Necklace” (1884), a beautiful young woman named Mathilde is depicted almost as having been deprived of a higher station in life simply because of her impressive physical characteristics and that fact that she lives in humble dwellings. She is sharply aware both of her beauty and of her modest status. Having been born into a family of clerks and married a clerk, she feels constrained.
Women in 2 Stories Studied The Female's Role in "The Story of an Hour" The 19th Century is on record as one where male dominance and authoritarianism was the order of the day. Women were mainly passive and subservient. However, towards the end of the century, women started questioning their assigned roles and responded swiftly to the sex battle that was common during that period in a number of ways. They
And as before, rather than expressing openness about her true feelings, in the face of wealth she becomes embarrassed and ashamed, and this also proves her undoing, as if she had only been open about what had transpired with the necklace, then she would not have had to labor her entire life to pay back the debt. Mathilde bankrupts her husband, by losing the paste necklace, but this selfishness is
She also learns, too late, that the jewels and the life she coveted so long ago was a sham. Hence, the symbolic nature of the necklace itself -- although it appears to have great value, it is in fact only real in appearance, not in reality and the heroine is incapable of assessing the false necklace's true worth. The tale of "The Necklace" conveys the moral that what is real,
La Parure "The Necklace" by Maupassant French author Guy de Maupassant is considered one of the greatest French short story writers. Maupassant wrote more than 300 short stories, six novels and three travel books until in 1891, when he went mad. Maupassant's tales were dark and ironic, he portrayed the bourgeoisie life of Paris and his characters were unhappy victims of their greed, desire or vanity. What was most remarkable was
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