Guy de Maupassant was a prolific French writer in literature. He wrote poetry, novels, and newspaper articles. He also knowledgeably compiled short stories like “The Necklace” and “BelAmim”. The narratives have made him famous due to their use in schools to enrich literature learning. In “The Necklace” story for instance, the author writes of a woman whose life is not what she feels she deserves. Mathilde lives in an illusory world where objects, and association have life-changing powers. The story centers around a very beautiful woman born into a family of a low economic status. She gets married off to a clerk from the ministry of education. Her husband Monsieur Loisel works hard to impress his maiden. Yet, Mathilde is unsatisfied with her life and thinks that she belongs into a higher class. She meets a rich friend Madame Forestier but cannot fully associate with her due to shame and the intense burden of poverty she feels in her heart. Her husband struggles to get a ticket to one of the fancy balls thrown by his boss. Mathilde laments that she has nothing to wear. She borrows a golden necklace from her friend to match with her new fancy dress. The loss of the neckless in the same night causes chaos in their lives as they have to struggle financially for ten years. The audience can decipher that Mathilde’s attempt to fit into her wishful life leads her into misery. Her expectations are beyond her abilities. The author takes the audience through a captivating turn of events. In the process, the readers connect with the character’s moral, emotional and physical pain. With a desire to have more than she deserves Mathilde lost even the little she had. More so, she drags her hardworking husband into her desolations turning their lives around.
Moral Suffering
Guy de Maupassant artistically shows how Mathilde suffered moral injustices. While the pain emanates solely from her actions, the society plays a significant role. Her rich and dignified friend Madame Forestier represents the upper class of social stratification. She lives in isolation and there is little contact seen with her friend who descends from a lower economic status. When Mathilde loses the necklace, she cannot withstand the shame of admitting to her friend. Such shows that the two were not friends at all. Mathilde cannot confide in Forestier of her predicaments and struggles. She only goes to her when she is in need of something. As a result, she finds escape in lies so that she can find time to gather enough money to replace the necklace. At the end of the story, Forestier admits ten years later that the original necklace was fake and almost worthless. The most it could go for is 500 franks.
The neckless reflects the pertinent deception in the modern society. The upper social class indulges in the illusion of wealth to make others believe that they have it all. Madame Forestier knew that her jewelry was fake but she failed to tell Mathilde. She wanted her to believe that she can enjoy her friend’s expensive items. Such indicates that Forestier was not a real friend but a pretentious one. Conversely, Mathilde suffers these immoralities because she is ungrateful. She fails to show appreciation of What she has. The author demonstrated it by saying that, “Mathilde suffered ceaselessly, feeling herself born to enjoy all delicacies, all luxuries…All those things, of which another woman of her rank would even never been conscious, tortured her and made her angry” (Maupassant 1). The fact that she descended from a lower social rank could not even humble her to appreciate the comfortable life her husband provided.
Emotional Suffering
Every time Monsieur Loisel went to work, he left her wife behind. Mathilde could not rise from the sadness she felt every day. The thoughts of her life status brought distress and regrets. Her house’s appearance did not satisfy her, neither did her servant. The author describes that Mathilde suffered from the poorness of her house, from its mean walls, worn chairs, and ugly curtains. She imagined having “…exquisite pieces of furniture supporting priceless ornaments, and small charming, perfumed rooms” (Classic Short Stories). She wished to have rich and influential friends around her. The wake from her reveries brought her to reality. She, therefore, suffered emotional torture. Her lack made her live a lonely and isolated life. She could not associate with people from her class as she held them with contempt. Such is seen from how she perceives her Breton servant girl. Mathilde could not also associate with the rich as they had nothing in common.
The author portrays Mathilde as a lost soul in search of an identity. She does not seem to know what she really wants. She spends most of her life wishing for a better life. However, when an opportunity presents, in reality, she seems hesitant. The invitation to a fancy party is a chance for her to meet rich people and make influential friends. Nevertheless, she complaints the more that she has nothing to wear to fit into the crowd. It is ironic that even after she tries hard to be one of the people in the party, she emerges the best. People cannot stop staring at her and men lusts at her. What causes more of her emotional suffering is that she has had the wrong perception of life. She thinks that she must have material possessions to make friends from the class above. She represents the societal trend where people cannot look beyond the possessions and worldly things. It is laudable how the author manages to show that looks can be deceiving. Despite Mathilde being the most beautiful woman in the party, she is the poorest of all.
Physical Suffering
The author begins his story by explaining the impeccable beauty of the main character. He admits that “She was one of those pretty and charming girls born” (Pressmin). Her husband gives her the best to preserve her beauty. It is evident that Mathilde has a servant girl to keep her from difficult household chores. In spite of this, the need to appeal and fit in an upper social class makes her borrow a beautiful necklace. Although she manages to leave her observers agape and mesmerized for the rest of the night, the neckless causes her endless miseries. The couple goes into debts and changes their lifestyle as it has to pay for the lost neckless. Mathilde has no option than to let go of the servant girl. She learns to live a life of total poverty. The author wrote that Mathilde plays her part heroically. The fear of her debts hardens her to the point of conducting her chores without any complaint.
In the next ten years, the lady experiences physical changes. Unlike before, “she washed the dirty line, the shirts, and dish-cloths, and hang them to dry on a string” (Pressmin). As time progressed, her beauty faded. For instance, her pink nail polish was no longer visible. Her hair was unkempt and her clothes became torn. The sufferings leveled the woman and her life became relatable to that of other women in the poor households. The ones she used to detest. Still, the husband had to work three jobs to meet their financial needs. The author points out that the only thing left for Mathilde is the nostalgic thoughts of the night of the party. That was the time she lived her dreams. Her current state of affairs leads her to age prematurely to the point of losing her identity. When she meets her old friend Forestier, she fails to recognize her due to the transformation that has taken away her beauty. On the contrary, Forestier has remained young and beautiful as ever.
Conclusion
Guy de Maupassant succeeds in writing a breathtaking short story. In less than 3500 words, the author compiles great lessons. He uses three characters that include a couple and a friend. The wife who is the main character endures moral, physical, and emotional suffering. However, the writer fails not to note that she has brought all these to herself. She is ungrateful of her life and yearns for more than she can afford. The story is a perfect reflection of the modern society. While the rich live in deception to maintain a status, the poor suffer in silence with an attempt to live a morally unjustified life.
Works Cited
Classic Short Stories. The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant (1850-1893). n.d. 31 May 2018.
Maupassant, Guy de. The Necklace. 1884.
The Necklace" by Guy de Maupassant -- Short Story Film -- 1980. Pressmin. 2017.
