SSC Algebra paper 2012

Short Story Essay Draft #1 Throughout the 19th century people were defined by their wealth, social status and beauty. Mathilde/ Madame Loisel is a lower middle class woman, who has a strong desire to be in the upper class. Her husband, Monsieur Loisel, works as a clerk and is happy with his place in society. In Guy de Maupassant’s, “The Necklace,” the theme of appearance vs. reality is revealed through the complexities of human nature and society. The author discloses that during the 19th century the social status was important. In this story Madame Loisel desires to be wealthy. She is a person who is discontented with her income. Mathilde is embarrassed about where she lives; “She suffered from the poorness of her house, from its mean walls, worn chairs, and ugly curtains. All these things, of which other women her class would not even have been aware, tormented and insulted her.” This shows the place that they live in is important. Madame Loisel doesn’t mind to act fake. When she is invited to go to a party, Mathilde dresses up like she is from a higher social class. Mathilde is a success in the party, ”She was the prettiest woman present… She danced madly, ecstatically, drunk with pleasure, with no thought of anything, in the triumph of her beauty, in the pride of her success, in a cloud of happiness made up of this universal homage and admiration, of the desires she had aroused, of the completeness of a victory so dear to her feminine heart.” This shows that being wealthy means everything during the 19th century. Guy de Maupassant also reveals the social classes of the 19th century through the protagonist, Madame Loisel. Mathilde is unhappy with her place in society and wants to elevate her social status. In the story she is described in a way that makes her look unhappy. She is portrayed as, “She was one of those pretty and charming girls born, as though fate had blundered over her into a family of artisans… and she left