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External And Internal Conflict In The Necklace By Guy De Maupassant

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Some people experience specific conflicts throughout their lives that can affect the way they view themselves and others. An example of this is in the short story The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant, where Madame Loisel is constantly suffering the mental battle of wanting everything she does not have. Jewels, necklaces, and riches - all the materialistic things that Madame Loisel sought after her whole life, cause her to display an ungrateful attitude towards herself and her husband. Once she finally receives something that she wanted, a beautiful necklace borrowed from a friend, she loses it and in order to replace it, she becomes forced to borrow more money from friends. Consequently, she had to spend many years of her life to pay back every person she borrowed money from, when in result, the necklace was a replica and was much cheaper than what she had thought. Madame Loisel undergoes a series of external and internal conflicts, causing the idea that it is important to remain truthful and appreciative to be discerned.
Her persistent mindset of wanting and needing more, is how her internal conflict developed. All of Madame Loisel’s issues relate back to her internal fascination with becoming incredibly rich and valued by her peers. The text states, “She had longed so eagerly to charm, to be desired, to be wildly attractive and sought after.” (1) Madame Loisel’s mindset was simply set on materialistic things and being respected amongst her peers. Even throughout the years, her idea of ‘perfection’ never changed a bit. The story reads, “But sometimes, when her husband was at the office, she sat down by the window and thought of that evening long ago, of the ball at which she had been so beautiful and so much admired.” (5) Ten hard and stressful years later, Madame Loisel is still under the impression that everything she has must be beautiful and valued. This situation expresses irony because although she is beautiful, she still feels a desire to receive expensive things. The text states, “She was one of those pretty and charming girls born, as though fate had blundered over her, into a family of artisans… She suffered endlessly, feeling herself born for every delicacy and luxury.” (1) Although she is beautiful

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