preview

What Is The Theme Of The Necklace By Guy De Maupassant

Decent Essays

In the story, “The Necklace”, by Guy de Maupassant, a young woman by the name of Mathilde loses a very pretty necklace that she borrowed from her friend at a fancy ball. She and her husband then try to pay back the necklace by taking out a loan to purchase a new one, and and paying off the debts, which takes ten years. Only to discover later that the necklace was actually not diamond, as she had thought. In “The Necklace”, Mathilde learns that you can not always have what you desire most after she worked to replace a fake necklace her entire life. Through her hard-work and perseverance, Mathilde reveals that you must work especially hard for the things you really want. Because of her greed, Mathilde’s character shows the reader that you can not just get what you wish for without putting in the work. In the beginning of the story, Mathilde is very narcissistic and filled with greed. The narrator highlighted her narcissism in the text. When Mathilde was looking at the jewelery her friend was going to lend to her, she found one particular necklace that she desperately desired. The narrator describes, “Her hands trembled as she took it. She fastened it round her throat, outside her high-necked waist, and was lost in ecstasy at her reflection in the mirror” (Maupassant 4). This characterization demonstrates her narcissism. Mathilde enjoys the necklace so much, and seems to enjoy it a little too much. The reader may notice this rather negative trait from this scene. Mathilde

Get Access