Roles of Female Characters in "The Necklace" and "Life in the Country"

859 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant

Examine the roles of the female characters in society in ‘The Necklace’ and ‘Life in the Country’ There are three things that make up the society; the time, place and people. In each society each of these points differs from other societies. The stories ‘The Necklace’ and ‘Life in the Country’ by Guy de Maupassant were set in a time in which poverty was very common in most places even though each society had a different view as to what poverty is. This essay is examining the roles of the female characters in ‘The Necklace’ and ‘Life in the Country’ by Guy de Maupassant. Guy de Maupassant came from a wealthy background and lived in France, Normandy. His parents were divorced so he spent the early years of his life mostly with his mother. Guy de Maupassant went to a boarding school and soon after went to live with his father. Later on in his life a war took place, threatening his country, and Guy de Maupassant went to fight. This very war was the reason that Guy de Maupassant lost his wealth and luxurious life earning himself a life of working for his money like many other men. Whilst working as a clerk Guy de Maupassant grew up trying to perfect his writing with the help of his mother’s good friend who was also a famous author in that time. Many years later Guy de Maupassant went from working as a clerk to full time writing finally getting a story published. Guy de Maupassant, although lived liked one for a short period of time, grew to hate peasants in every way he thinks of them as dirty people who live on a ‘meagre diet of soup, potatoes and fresh air’ and have atrocious table manners. He also refers to the children of both families in ‘life in the country’ as a ‘heaving brood’ giving an impression that they are a bu... ... middle of paper ... ...not enough she also raised the price for which she was selling her son. This greed is exemplified through, “A hundred francs a month, well it don’t compensate us nowhere near for not having our boy around. Give him a couple a years and he’ll be old enough to set to work. We need a hundred and twenty.” Through this she is not only losing her son and the little respect she had amongst her friends and society, but is also earning herself a life of ridicule and disdain. Also discontentment is one thing all four women have in common. None are happy with what they have in life and want to have more. This can be shown in life in the country when Madam D’hubiere says; “I must kiss them! Oh, how I’d love to have one of them- that one, the tiny one.” Madam D’hubiere has everything she could possibly want. Yet, she is still not happy and is adamant to adopt the child.

Show More
Related

  • Peasant Lifestyle In Davis´ The Return of Martin Guerre

    1599 Words  | 4 Pages

    Davis addresses various important factors in a peasant’s life. She highlights many components of peasant society, including their social classes and how their society values property in different ways. Davis also includes the peasants’ culture. She elaborates on the importance of children and the consequences of not being able to produce children. She also explains typical marriage procedures and customs. Lastly, Davis talks about some of the laws and common uses of the judicial system by peasants. By incorporating these factors into her book Davis is successful at recreating life for peasants in France during the sixteenth century.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Fist, Stick-Knife, Gun: A Personal History Of Violence

    1445 Words  | 3 Pages

    She became the first person to not only indicate the importance of violence, but force them to act through violence. Some take the mother’s stance as if she it trying to teach them protection, as they wont have cops or anyone with authority to defend them, but at a core value, she says, “You let somebody take your brother’s jacket...

    Read More

  • The Role of Mrs Lyons in 'Blood Brothers' by Willy Russell

    985 Words  | 2 Pages

    and cannot have is a child of her own. When she hears of the mother’s

    Read More

  • I am going to discuss is 'Kindertransport' and my own piece 'The adoption'

    843 Words  | 2 Pages

    to give her child away for its own safety because it was the time of

    Read More

  • Nickel and Dimed

    2384 Words  | 5 Pages

    ...by writing a book about their misery. In this, her Marxist worldview is at odds with her capitalist behavior.

    Read More

  • Non-Traditional Relationships in The Storm and A Doll´s House

    1731 Words  | 4 Pages

    ... a richer man and save her dying mother and siblings from living a life of poverty and hunger. As a last example is the nanny, Anne, when she said that she too had to abandon her children, because she did not have the money to raise them and she found the job as a nursemaid.

    Read More

  • Impact of Poverty on the lives of Raskolnikov, Gregor Samsa, and The Samsa Family

    1264 Words  | 3 Pages

    Poverty on social conditions affects everyone in every part of the world, no matter if they are rich or poor. First of all, everyone is divided into some sort of social class. The most known classes are the economic classes- the lower class, the middle class, and the higher class. The lower class goes through arduous labor all day and night to earn decent amounts of money to provide for themselves and their families. Most likely, they are the only source of income for the entire family. The higher class works hard to keep up or raise their high social status. They also work hard so they don’t loss their social rank, which permits them to hold a higher power over the middle and lower classes. Similarities of decisions made by characters in these two literary works will analyzed to understand the meaning behind the actions and influences of the social classes on each other.

    Read More

  • Use of Setting to Reflect Main Character in "The Necklace" by Guy de Maupassant

    698 Words  | 2 Pages

    In “The Necklace,” Guy de Maupassant uses setting to reflect the character and development of the main character, Mathilde Loisel. As a result, his setting is not particularly vivid or detailed. He does not even describe the ill-fated necklace—the central object in the story—but states only that it is “superb” (7 ). In fact, he includes descriptions of setting only if they illuminate qualities about Mathilde. Her changing character can be connected to the first apartment, the dream-life mansion rooms, the attic flat, and a fashionable public street. [This is a well-defined thesis statement.]

    Read More

  • The Importance Of Motherhood In Sula

    807 Words  | 2 Pages

    Eva is a single mother of three children. The father of these children left her to raise them by herself. This proves to be an extremely difficult task for her to complete. Eva is a very poor woman, and does not have much to provide for her children with. Her, “children needed her;

    Read More

  • The Role Of Women In Girl By Jamaica Kincaid

    1101 Words  | 3 Pages

    After women were given the opportunity to get an education and treated as equals, society’s beliefs undertook a turning point in women’s roles in society. Yet, there still seems to be a question amongst women in search of self identity and expectations from parents. The short story, “Girl” by Jamaica Kincaid, deals with being a young female in a poor country. This can be seen because Kincaid’s complicated relationship with her own mother is illustrated with the mother-daughter dynamic in the story.

    Read More

  • Fear Of Change

    912 Words  | 2 Pages

    that society and she clings desperately to it as when she refuses to give up her father’s body”

    Read More

  • The Necklace

    1345 Words  | 3 Pages

    Around the world, values are expressed differently. Some people think that life is about the little things that make them happy. Others feel the opposite way and that expenses are the way to live. In Guy de Maupassant’s short story, “The Necklace”, he develops a character, Madame Loisel, who illustrates her different style of assessments. Madame Loisel, a beautiful woman, lives in a wonderful home with all the necessary supplies needed to live. However, she is very unhappy with her life. She feels she deserves a much more expensive and materialistic life than what she has. After pitying herself for not being the richest of her friends, she goes out and borrows a beautiful necklace from an ally. But as she misplaces the closest thing she has to the life she dreams of and not telling her friend about the mishap, she could have set herself aside from ten years of work. Through many literary devices, de Maupassant sends a message to value less substance articles so life can be spent wisely.

    Read More

  • Silent Spring by Rachel Carson

    1459 Words  | 3 Pages

    the point that she was adopted made her to ponder about the factors that families

    Read More

  • Realism In Guy De Maupassant's 'The Necklace'

    1364 Words  | 3 Pages

    Guy de Maupassant is a realist whose claim to fame is the style in which he conveys political and socioeconomic themes in his literary publications. He achieves his writing style by putting small unfortunate life events under a spotlight. His literary performance is described in his biography from Cambridge, the writer says “He exposes with piercing clarity the small tragedies and pathetic incidents of everyday life, taking a clear-sighted though pessimistic view of humanity” (Halsey, par. 1). Guy de Maupassant’s story The Necklace is a great representation of the style he uses. In The Necklace the main character Mathilde Loisel a beautiful but impoverished woman married to a clerk is in conflict with her lack of wealth and desire to acquire

    Read More

  • Three Themes In The Three Symbols Of Women's Roles

    720 Words  | 2 Pages

    The house has at times been a symbol of women’s roles, between 1944 and 1982 the relationship women had with the house changed. This relationship change is indicative of the changing times and the role women played in the house, in the family, and in society. The influence that I believe initiated these changes fall into three themes: 1. The marriage relationship and outside paid work, 2. Education and its impact on femininity, and 3. Technology and its impact on domesticity. The three themes address issues that women navigated as society changed as their roles in the home and outside of the home changed. I will briefly address each theme and then delve into the relationship between marriage and work outside of the home.

    Read More

More about Roles of Female Characters in "The Necklace" and "Life in the Country"

Open Document