The Ball: Why He Loves Her
The story “The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant is about Master Loisel and his wife Madame Matilde Loisel’s troubling life after Matilde lost a necklace borrowed from her friend Madame Jeanne Forestier. The beginning of the story was set at a ball hosted by the Minister of Education. M. Loisel was a clerk at the Ministry of Public Instruction, and he was fortunate to receive an invitation to the ball. M. Loisel bought his wife a new dress and urged his wife to borrow a diamond necklace from her friend Mine. Forestier. Mine. Loisel wore the necklace to the ball but lost it on the way home. To avoid retribution and save their reputation, M. Loisel borrowed a huge sum of money to buy a new diamond necklace and returned
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M. Loisel was a middle-class man. But balls at that time were held by the rich upper class, therefore M. Loisel normally wouldn’t have the opportunity to attend a ball, much less taking his wife to one. M. Loisel didn’t have a lot of money either. He could not buy expensive dresses or jewelry for his wife, so why M. Loisel probably never took Mine. Loisel to any ball. In the story, M. Loisel stated, “But, my dear, I thought you would be glad. You never go out, and this is such a fine opportunity. I had awful trouble to get it. Everyone wants to go; it is very select, and they are not giving many invitations to clerks. The whole official world will be there.” (Maupassant p. 2) The fact that M. Loisel worked his hardest to get his wife to the ball hosted by the Minister of Education shows that he loved his wife …show more content…
He saved up four hundred francs to buy himself a gun, “he was laying aside just that amount to buy a gun and treat himself to a little shooting next summer on the plain of Nanterre, with several friends who went to shoot larks down there, of a Sunday.” (Maupassant p. 2) However, when he realized his wife needed a new dress for the ball, he used the money to buy her a new dress instead. During that time period, men spent their time and money doing manly things, leaving their wife in second place. The fact that M. Loisel spent money on his wife and put aside his own desires showed he really loved
and Mme. Loisel cooperate to find what seems to be an exact replica of the lost necklace, which they must purchase and return to Mme. Forestier. Mathilde attempts to find a replacement for the necklace to prevent Mme. Forestier from realizing the original had been lost. The couple travelled “from one jeweler to another hunting for a similar necklace” (175). They went together to look for the necklace, which proves that they are exerting mutual effort. M. Loisel uses all means necessary to pay for the necklace. He “made ruinous deals” (187) and “risked his signature” (188) in order to pay for the expensive diamond necklace. Though Mme. Loisel lost the necklace, her husband uses his savings and takes out loans to help her pay for the replacement. The couple acquires the necklace and must return it to Mme. Forestier. M. Loisel brings the necklace home, and “Mme. Loisel took the necklace back” (199) to the owner. The couple collaborates to get the necklace into the hands of its owner. Mathilde and M. Loisel work together to replace Mme. Forestier’s necklace, and she is none the
Although Madame Loisel isn’t wealthy or part of the social class that is considered high, she tried to do everything to make herself appear as if she is. She believes that her beauty can bring her as far as becoming wealthy or being able to socialize with the wealthy. The ball is important to her because for once her appearance is equivalent with the fantasy of rising above middle class she has dreamt up in her head and “[she] was a success. She was the loveliest of all; elegant, graceful, smiling, and radiant with joy. All the other men looked at her, asked who she was, and wanted to be introduced to her… [t]he triumph of her beauty and the glory of her success enveloped her in a sort of cloud of happiness made up of all the compliments” (175). The reality is beneath her appearance because she is not wealthy, nor is she actually happy with the life she lives on a daily basis. She easily deceives everyone with her appearance to make it seem as if she does have money. Uncontrolled self-absorption can distort lives to those who worry about their appearance too much. Another example of how appearances can be misleading is the necklace that Madame Loisel borrowed. It appears as if it is made of real diamonds but instead it is fake jewelry. The fact
Lantin, going through a change in personality, behavior, and values. At the beginning of the story, M. Lantin appears to value his wife, Madame Lantin, and their sweet, loving relationship over anything else. He is very happy with his life and everything about his situation seems to be perfect. Even after Madame Lantin 's death, M. Lantin reacts in an appropriate way, grieving for the woman he loved. However the most dramatic change in M. Lantin occurs soon after he decides to sell his late wife 's jewelry collection. Once he is given the large amount of money from selling the pieces he finally stops grieving and he appears to value his newfound wealth over his wife and their old
Mathilde Loisel lived the life of a painfully distressed woman, who always believed herself worthy of living in the upper class. Although Mathilde was born into the average middle class family, she spent her time daydreaming of her destiny for more in life... especially when it came to her financial status. Guy de Maupassant’s short story, “The Necklace”, tells a tale of a vain, narcissistic housewife who longed for the aristocratic lifestyle that she believed she was creditable for. In describing Mathilde’s self-serving, unappreciative, broken and fake human behaviors, de Maupassant incorporates the tragic irony that ultimately concludes in ruining her.
The men treated their women as if they were an object. After marriage the husbands had full control over any finances or property that the women had once owned. Women didn’t have to many rights if any and were expected to stay at home and be the stereotypical house wife doing the daily house duties, looking after the children and making the meal. Even if women didn’t like it it was almost as if they were forced to be the stay at home mother. Mathilde Loisel suffering from this middle class life style just wanted to live a glamorous and luxuries life. “She would so much have liked to please, to be envied, to be charming, to be seductive and sought after."(Maupassant 1). Loisel felt trapped in this life of almost poverty and just wants to escape. She wants to live this glamorous life of having things done for her and being able to have the luxuries that the upper class have and is clearly jealous of her wealthy friend Mme. Frostier and would like to be in her shoes. But at the end of the day she is confined in this middle class lifestyle and can only wish for a better
...his resorted to people resorting to other extracurricular activities outside the home. Madame Lantin never complained about being unhappy, just carried out her day to day routines and made sure her husband was taken care of. Madame Lantin carried herself with dignity and pride even though what she did behind closed doors was her business and nobody else’s.
Maupassant, Guy De, and Joachim Neugroschel. The Necklace and Other Tales. New York: Modern Library, 2003. Print.
The author Guy De Maupassant ,in his story “The Neckalce”, has described beautifully how greed and deception can turn one’s life upside down. It has mainly depicted the uncertainty of human life Mathilda, a character built with rage, jealousy, dissatisfied with life but blessed with utmost physical beauty, had the constant pain of not having the lavish life like other pretty women. She thought of it as a mistake of destiny and blamed her fate. Although she had a loving husband, a comfortable home she was not content with it. Her desiration for wealth, status has jeopardized her life but in the end, it managed to put her into realization that wealth and beauty is not the source of true happiness.
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
“The Necklace”, narrated by Guy de Maupassant in 3rd person omniscient, focuses the story around Mathilde Loisel who is middle class, and her dreams of fame and fortune. The story is set in 19th century France. One day, Mathilde’s husband brings home an invitation to a fancy ball for Mathilde; to his surprise Mathilde throws a fit because she doesn’t have a dress or jewelry to wear to the ball. M. Loisel gets her the beautifully expensive dress she desires and Mathilde borrows a diamond necklace from Mme. Forestier, a rich acquaintance of Mathilde. Mathilde goes to the ball and has a night she’s dreamed of, until she gets home from the ball at 4 A.M. to find
Mathilde Loisel suffers from her middle-class lifestyle. "She had no dresses, no jewels, nothing. And she loved nothing but that; she felt made for that. She would so have liked to please, to be envied, to be charming, to be sought after." (Maupassant, p. 36) It is clear that Mathilde is envious of her reach friend, Madame Forestier and would trade places with her if only she had the chance, but unfortunately she is stuck with her clerk husband in their middle-class apartment.
In the short story “The Necklace”, the main character, Loisel, is a woman who dreams of greater things in her life. She is married to a poor clerk who tries his best to make her happy no matter what. In an attempt to try to bring happiness to his wife, he manages to get two invitations to a very classy ball, but even in light of this Loisel is still unhappy. Even when she gets a new dress she is still unhappy. This lasts until her husband suggests she borrows some jewelry from a friend, and upon doing so she is finally happy. Once the ball is over, and they reach home, Loisel has the horrible realization that she has lost the necklace, and after ten years of hard labor and suffering, they pay off debts incurred to get a replacement. The central idea of this story is how something small can have a life changing effect on our and others life’s. This idea is presented through internal and external conflicts, third person omniscient point of view, and the round-dynamic character of Loisel. The third person limited omniscient point-of-view is prevalent throughout this short story in the way that the author lets the reader only see into the main character’s thoughts. Loisel is revealed to the reader as being unhappy with her life and wishing for fancier things. “She suffered ceaselessly, feeling herself born for all the delicacies and all the luxuries.” (de Maupassant 887) When her husband tries to fancy things up, “she thought of dainty dinners, of shining silverware, of tapestry which peopled the walls…” (de Maupassant 887) As the story goes on her point of view changes, as she “now knew the horrible existence of the needy. She took her part, moreover all of a sudden, with heroism.” (de Maupassant 891) Having the accountability to know that the “dreadful debt must be paid.” (de Maupassant 891 ) This point-of-view is used to help the reader gain more insight to how Loisel’s whole mindset is changed throughout her struggle to pay off their debts. Maupassant only reveals the thoughts and feelings of these this main character leaving all the others as flat characters. Loisel is a round-dynamic character in that Maupassant shows how she thought she was born in the wrong “station”. “She dressed plainly because she could not dress well, but she was as unhappy as though she had really fallen from her proper station.
She borrows a beautiful necklace from a friend.The necklace is lost after the party. Poor Monsieur Loisel goes out alone and searches all night and day for the jewels but has no luck. Loisel comes up with a plan to buy another necklace and return it to Mathilde's friend.This is quite a man. He takes his inheritance from his father; then, he borrows the rest of the money. They return the necklace. But that is just the beginning. For the next ten years, the Loisels work together to pay for the replacement necklace. Monsieur Loisel works a second job at night. They even give up their apartment. Both of them age tremendously over the years. Mathilde is no longer beautiful. She has hardened:She came to know the heavy work of the house, the hateful duties of the kitchen. She washed the dirty linen, the shirts and dish-cloths, and hung them out to dry on a string; every morning she carried up the water.The author never lets the reader know if Mathilde appreciated her husband for taking care of her. They did accomplish something together, and she did rise to the occasion and do the hard work of the home. In reality, the hero of the story is Monsieur Loisel who worked alongside his wife to pay back the money for
Mathilde Loisel grew up in the working class and had no expectations in life. Mathilde settled for a lifestyle she was unhappy with. When she got married, she and her husband would sit around the dinner table and imagine they were eating a luxurious meal. Together, they had nothing. Mathilde had no clothes, no jewels, and only one friend (who was rich). Mathilde dreamt of wealth, fine clothes, and a beautiful house. She knew that those dreams were unrealistic and unattainable.
Several different elements are necessary to create a story. Of all the elements, the conflict is most essential. The conflict connects all pieces of the plot, defines the characters, and drives the story forward. Once a story reaches its climax, the reader should have an emotional connection to the both story and its characters. Not only should emotions be evoked, but a reader should genuinely care about what happens next and the about the end result for the characters. Guy de Maupassant’s “The Necklace” is the perfect example of how a story’s conflict evolved the disposition of its characters.