The diamond necklace sparknotes. 📌 The Diamond Necklace: Character Analysis Essay Example 2022-12-21
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"The Diamond Necklace" is a short story by Guy de Maupassant that tells the tale of a woman named Mathilde Loisel who, despite her humble beginnings, has always dreamed of a life of luxury and refinement. When she is given the opportunity to attend a grand ball, she borrows a diamond necklace from a wealthy friend, only to lose it and be forced to spend the rest of her life working to pay off the debt.
The story begins with Mathilde's husband, a clerk in the Ministry of Education, receiving an invitation to a ball being held by the Minister of Education. Mathilde is overjoyed at the opportunity to attend such a prestigious event, but she is disappointed when she realizes that she has nothing suitable to wear. Her husband, however, is able to borrow a dress for her and she is able to borrow a beautiful diamond necklace from a wealthy friend.
At the ball, Mathilde is able to forget her humble background and feels like she is finally living the life she has always dreamed of. However, when she returns home and goes to take off the necklace, she realizes that it is missing. She and her husband search frantically for the necklace, but it is nowhere to be found.
When they are unable to find the necklace, Mathilde's husband is forced to take out a loan to pay for its replacement. The couple is forced to sell off all of their possessions and Mathilde must take on work as a seamstress to help pay off the debt. It takes ten years for them to finally pay off the debt, during which time Mathilde becomes old and worn out from the constant work and worry.
The story ends with Mathilde reflecting on the irony of the situation - that a simple borrowed necklace has cost her a lifetime of hard work and sacrifice. The story serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of greed and the importance of being content with what one has.
Overall, "The Diamond Necklace" is a poignant and thought-provoking story that highlights the dangers of trying to attain a lifestyle that is beyond one's means. It is a reminder that material possessions do not bring true happiness and that it is often the small, simple pleasures in life that bring the most joy.
The Diamond Necklace
Mathilde spends a long time trying on each piece of jewelry until she finds the perfect one. The detective draws his handcuffs, creeps nearer. The maid opens the box and takes from it some candy. She wants to be rich and famous. Realism began in France in the mid nineteenth century and rejected the tenets from the romantic movement that came before it, a literary movement that emphasized the idealization of characters rather than realistic portrayal of them.
The Necklace: Summary, Themes, and a Short Story Analysis
Her delicate, fragile, subtle sense of wealth suffers outside the desired circle of high society. Bradford goes to the safe, takes out the case, and Hallett opens it. Sitting at home, a hardened, old woman, Madame Loisel thinks back on how her life might have been, had she not lost the necklace. In this story Matilda Loisel is a very envious wife whom always dreamed for a better existence. She imagined vast saloons hung with antique silks, exquisite pieces of furniture supporting priceless ornaments, and small, charming, perfumed rooms, created just for little parties of intimate friends, men who were famous and sought after, whose homage roused every other woman's envious longings. It took her ten years to pay off the debt that she created and right after she had finished paying the debt it is ironic that she ran into Madame Forestier. She lets her borrow an expensive-looking necklace from the marvelous collection.
📌 The Diamond Necklace: Character Analysis Essay Example
Mathilde Loisel The protagonist of the story. Study the unique manner used by Maupassant, in which aspects of character portrayal link with each other to portray the following message: greed can sink a person into a worse situation. Mathilde dares to tell her story of the life-changing debt. If I were in Mathilde's position, I would have accepted my position in life and desisted from coveting the glamorous lived by aristocrats. However, disaster strikes when she loses the necklace during the carriage ride home. Matilda is not satisfied with her life because she has high dreams but no means to fulfil the dreams. By the end of the night, she realizes it is all over for her.
Don't worship gold and material possession's. The necklace symbolizes the life that Madame Mathilde Loisel yearns for but cannot have, especially now that she has to repay the loans for losing the original necklace. She gets married to a poorly paid clerk who works at the Ministry of Education and struggles to fend for her and make her happy. She had become a woman of her class — hard, rough and strong. It is pride that prevents Mathilde from admitting they've lost an expensive necklace. Her belief in her martyrdom is, in a way, the only thing she has left. Her lot in life has gotten worse, and Mathilde continues to believe she has gotten less than she deserves, never acknowledging the fact that she is responsible for her own fate.
Madame Forestier, quite overcome, clasped her by the hand. Spouses start looking for it everywhere: in the folds of the dress, cloak, and pockets. Matilda explains that it is because of her because she lost the diamond necklace which she had borrowed from her. You realise it wasn't easy for us; we had no money. Later, once Mathilde admits to her friend that she lost and replaced the necklace, it is revealed that the borrowed necklace was a fake worth very little. She was conscious of this and was anxious to hurry away, so that she should not be noticed by the other women putting on their costly furs. The one happy night is the natural effect of a stunning look and diamond necklace rather than the real Mathilde experience.
It is a fact that happiness comes from the tranquillity of mind and it lies in contentment. She also had to borrow a beautiful necklace from her friend. Maupassant contrasts this with the almost romantic description of the party that the Loisels attend, at which Mathilde wore the titular necklace. From her, she comes to know that the necklace she has borrowed from her is an imitation. Forestier would not have minded the loss.
The Necklace or The Diamond Necklace : Summary and Question
Mathilde dreams about spacious salons, shining silver, fine dinners, and other ordinary things of the privileged. As gender played an important role in 19th-century French society, so too does it in " Beauty is treated in "The Necklace" at times as objective and at times as quite subjective, dependent on social class. From time to time, she visits Jeanne Forestier, her wealthy friend. She has gotten what she wanted, and her life has changed accordingly. They could have it 36,000 francs after bargaining. She approaches her old friend, and Mme.
The Necklace Literary Context: Realism Summary & Analysis
ON the other hand, Mathilde was a showy, untruthful and a self-centred woman who not only spoiled her life but also made her husband suffer. As for him, he was thinking that he must be at the office at ten. Everyone wants one; it's very select, and very few go to the clerks. Unfortunately,during the course of the evening, the necklace is lost. As soon as she realizes that she has lost the necklace, she should simply come clean to Madam Forestier. The look of the jewels on her body is exactly the fantasy life she describes wanting in the opening of the story.
She is afraid of showing herself as a poor little slob. Themes of The Diamond Necklace Gender Gender plays a large role in this short story, as it did in 19th-century French society. In the story "The Diamond Necklace" it shows us that greed and envy can lead to destruction. She also does part-time works on the side. His work illustrates the costs of human pride and its impact on a place in society. Mathilde feels burdened by her poverty and regrets her station in life.
The twist ending also exposes the deceptiveness of appearances and the dangers of attributing too much power to material possessions, since their value may be illusory. Everyone loves her and she is absolutely thrilled. Unluckily, walking the entire route, he returns without it. Once the money is raised, the Loisels purchase the replacement and return the necklace to an unsuspecting Mme. The tragedy that befell Mathilde did so because of her covetousness and obsession with glamour. As she openly boasted about her mythical relationship with the Queen, many assumed that the affair was genuine. Forester agreed to lend her some jewels for the party.
