The Necklace Flashcards
(13 cards)
Introduction
-‘The Necklace’ a short story by Guy de Maupassant explores the themes of honesty, vanity and the dangers of lying to protect a reputation
-The story is told through Madame Loisel, an arrogant, pretentious young woman who feels unjustified in life who borrowed a necklace from her well off friend. After an epic night out at a party at the Ministry, Loisel looses the necklace and is forced into 10 years of dreadful poverty after buying a new replacement necklace and trying to pay off the debts
-At the end of the story the revelation that the necklace is in fact fake is revealed. Madame Loisel’s vanity and arrogance towards her relatively pleasant, comfortable life would lead to a chain of events that eventually ruined her life
-This essay will explore how Maupassant creates a character that undergoes a transformation from where at the start of the story receives little sympathy from the readers to someone who gathers respect and compassion through a minor insignificance -losing a necklace- can have such astounding consequences on a persons life.
“She suffered endlessly, feeling herself born for every delicacy and luxury. She suffered from the poorness of her house, from its mean wall, worn chairs, and ugly curtains.”
-Early on in the story we see an example of characterisation
-We begin to see Mathilde’s arrogance shine through when she feels she “suffers endlessly”. The writers use of ironic tone here displays the fact Mathilde wasn’t actually suffering, in fact earlier in the passage we see her described as “pretty and charming”
-Here the author is painting Mathilde as entitled, she feels she deserves everything without having to work for any of it.
“Aha! Scotch broth! What could be better?”
-We see Maupassant use a juxtaposition in order to create a contrast in characters
-The dinner does in fact portray the reality of their existence, middle class, however far from “suffering endlessly”
-Mr Loisel acts as a foil for Mathilde, content and happy with how his life is going and the choice of scotch broth for dinner while Madame Loisel dreams of exquisite dishes.
“I’m utterly miserable at not having any jewels, not a single stone to wear.”
-This quote highlights Mathilde’s materialistic nature and how she associates her worth and happiness with physical possessions, she feels her lack of jewellery sets her apart from the higher social classes she wishes to be a part of
-The word “miserable” conveys a sense of deep unhappiness showing how disproportionate her feelings are compared to the actual situation
-This statement also foreshadows the climax of the story, where her desire for jewels leads her to borrowing a necklace which ultimately causes her downfall.
“The day of the party arrived. Madame Loisel was a success. She was the prettiest woman present, elegant, graceful, smiling and, quite above herself with happiness.”
-This quote highlights Mathilde’s momentary happiness where her dreams of beauty and social recognition are realised
-The description “the prettiest woman present” shows us how much value Mathilde places on her outward appearance and her success is defined by how she looks and how others see her
“She danced madly, ecstatically, drunk with pleasure, with no thought for anything, I’m the triumph of her beauty, in the pride of her success, in a cloud of happiness…”
-This quote captures Madame Loisel’s euphoric state at the height of her happiness during the party. It emphasises the overwhelming sense of joy and what she feels after finally achieving the attention and admiration she had always craved
-The metaphor “drunk with pleasure” reinforces the overwhelming sense of happiness suggesting she has lost control and is fully consumed by the experience. Maupassant uses this to illustrate the temporary happiness Mathilde was feeling, driven by vanity and superficial success
“They walked towards the Seine, desperate and shivering.”
-This scene reflects a significant shift in Mathilde’s character, changing from a woman of beauty fulfilling her dreams of luxury to the woman who must face the harsh reality of her situation
-“Desperate” highlights their current state, they need to get out of there, get home, they do not belong there
-The word choice of shivering emphasises the setting and the contrast of the glamour and warmth the ball
“It was the end, for her. As for him, he was thinking that he must be in the office for ten.”
The phrase “It was the end, for her” shows how deeply invested Mathilde was in the moment whereas in contrast, her husband’s thoughts are focused on reality, it shows us he is humble and has a responsible nature.
“I… I… I’ve no longer got Madame Forestier’s necklace…”
-Maupassant’s use of elipses portrays a sense of extreme shock, disbelief. Mathilde cannot believe she has lost the necklace
-The repetition paints a sense of panic, almost as if Mathilde is thinking how she’s going to explain the situation just as she’s realised it. This line comes, literally at the centre of the story making for an epic turning point
“She wrote at his dictation”
-The quote reflects a shift in the power dynamic between Mathilde and her husband
-Initially Mathilde was dominant, dissatisfied while Mr Loisel tried to meet her demand
-After the loss of the necklace, Mathilde’s acceptance to her husband’s instructions shows she is increasingly depending on him as things go pear shaped
“Madame Loisel came to know the ghastly life of abject poverty. From the very first she player her part heroically”
-The quote shows how Madame Loisel changes after loosing the necklace, doing from craving luxury to facing a life of poverty
-Once obsessed with wealth and appearances, she now handles her difficult life with surprising strength, she shows she can take responsibility by acting “heroically”
-This marks a big shift in her character as she learns to cope with a new reality. There is almost a sense of irony in the shift of perspective, Madame Loisel thought she was poor at first and oh how that would come back to bite her.
“Oh, my poor Mathilde! But mine was imitation. It was worth, at the very most five hundred francs!…”
-This quote reveals the devastating irony that the necklace Mathilde borrowed was in fact an inexpensive replica, worth only a fraction of what she believed
-Her lie after initially loosing the necklace had lead her into unnecessary years of hardship. The lie ultimately ruined her life, showing the consequences of misunderstanding
Conclusion
-In using such a captivating character such as Madame Loisel, Maupassant was able to show us the dangers of vanity and self indulgence
-It teaches us to grow up modest and humble rather than Mathilde’s dissatisfaction and selfishness, these are dangerous traits that as we see, turn people’s life upside down
-Finally, Maupassant teaches us to be grateful for what we have rather the vainly dreaming of having even more
