Rosanna Saxton
ENG 125
Jacquelyn Markham
August 19, 2013
The short story I chose to write about is “The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant (1884). In this paper, I will discuss the theme and literary elements such as symbolism and characters. I will also talk about how the literary elements affect the narrative theme. All of these elements put together are what makes the story of Mathilde Loisel and “The Necklace”.
As described in our text, “the theme in a story is a representation of the idea behind the story.” (Clungston, 2010) The theme of “The Necklace” in my opinion is appearances can be deceiving. Mathilde looked down on her life with M. Loisel and always wanted for more. She thought of herself as living in poverty when in fact she was middle class. M. Loisel provided a comfortable living for her but she always felt like she deserved more. Mathilde longed for a life of high society. She felt like objects such as clothes and jewels would make her life better. She wanted to look the part so badly that she failed to appreciate what she did have.
When Mathilde gets the dress and necklace she finally feels like she belongs. Those objects make her feel better about her life. They make her feel happy and envied by others. She loves the attention she gets while wearing them but this is only short lived. Once she loses the necklace her life only gets worse. She and M. Loisel struggle for ten years to pay off the replacement necklace. She was so caught up in appearance that she failed to realize that the necklace she borrowed was a fake to begin with.
She was so into appearing rich and perfect that she chose not to tell her friend that she had lost the necklace. She was willing to work hard and sacrifice everything just to have one fleeting night of looking the part. If she 'd had some humility to begin with then her friend would have told her it was a fake and she wouldn 't have lost so much of her life. All of this just to keep up an appearance that she thought destiny had slighted her.
Symbolism is used throughout “The Necklace” to represent false and true appearances. The actual diamond necklace is the primary symbol. Though it appears to be beautiful and real it is really just a fake. "Oh, my poor Mathilde. But mine were false. At most they were worth five hundred francs!"(Maupassant, 1884) Initially when Mathilde borrowed the necklace her friend did not tell her the diamonds were false and not worth much money. Mathilde borrowed the necklace in order to appear wealthy. Diamonds are a symbol of wealth.
A diamond is also a symbol of commitment between a husband and a wife. I saw this between M. and Mme. Loisel because he stuck by her side when she lost the necklace. He was there for her and used his inheritance to buy a new necklace for her friend. Together they worked for ten years to pay off the debt from the necklace.
This brings me to the character of M. Loisel. He was a committed husband. He made a good living and provided for his wife even if she was blind to this. He was the type of man to save his money for things he wanted. “He grew a little pale, for he was reserving just that sum to buy a gun and treat himself to a little shooting, the next summer, on the plain of Nanterre, with some friends who used to shoot larks there on Sundays.”(Maupassant, 1884)
References:
Clugston, W. (2010) Journey Into Literature, Bridgepoint Education, Inc., San Diego, CA
References: Clugston, W. (2010) Journey Into Literature, Bridgepoint Education, Inc., San Diego, CA
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