Edwina Zhang
May 21, 2007
Draft Two
The Necklace, written by Guy de Maupassant, tells a story that Mathilde lost a borrowed necklace in a ball and as a result had to pay for debt for ten years. To some extent her outcome is in a close relation to her vanity, which could have been avoided if she does not desire for such more. In other words, what she suffered could be naturally associated with what she had done. The release of truth is often regarded as a tragedy by readers. In the last part of the paper, it will be discussed whether she deserves the ten-year hard life and whether it is grievous.
During the time when Guy de Maupassant was living, France had become a republic after the French Revolution (1789-1799), but class distinctions still remained. The story was set in late nineteen-century Paris. At that time an upper-class man preferred to choose a woman from a large family with considerable property so that the two were matched for marriage.
Mathilde was "born in a family of clerks" and she has to "let herself to be married to a clerk" because of no dowry. Besides, clerk-family background was matched. However, Mathilde's beauty endued her with born vanity. Compared with other women of the same class, she felt wronged, "feeling herself born for all the delicacies and all the luxuries". As a pretty and charming lady, "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."
Mathilde borrowed a necklace so as to be remarked by everyone in the ball. And she did. "She danced with intoxication, with passion...in a sort of cloud of happiness composed of all this homage, of all this admiration, of all these awakened desires, and of that sense of complete victory which is so sweet to a woman's heart". She became the Party Princess and obviously she really enjoyed being introduced.
Unfortunately, no sooner had she savored the great moment of successful performance than she found out the loss of the necklace. All the glories in that night turned a transient dream in the memory. It cost her ten years paying for the ornament. Beauty was washed up by heavy housework. There was no difference now between Mathilde and other woman of her rank.
Details could be noticed that Mathilde has had some chance to avoid the loss. What if she didn't accept the invitation to the ball, or didn't borrow the necklace from her friend, or didn't indulge herself with the endless round of dance, what would happen? Perhaps the necklace was lost when she rapidly descent the stairs or when she exhaustedly rode in a coupe.
However, she was fond of luxuries and she felt made for that. She wouldn't miss the opportunity of attending the ball and she wouldn't be willing to attend without elaborate dressing. Wearing modest wraps, she escaped downstairs "so as not to be remarked by the other women, who were enveloping themselves in costly furs." She stayed too late, thus finding no carriage but coupe. All was caused by her vanity. To Mathilde's perspective, what could have been avoided should happen. When we kept asking what if she didn't do so, fact couldn't be neglected that her pursuit for delicacies would, to a certainty, leads to such an end.
It was her vanity that bore her the heavy burden.
Should Mathilde, however, take the blame? Her vanity was associated with her beautiful appearance yet ordinary family background. Besides, it is human nature to have a pursuit for luxuries and delicacies. Though Mathilde did desire for a bit more, did she have to suffer toughness for ten years?
For my part, the author intended to create a prevailing atmosphere of tragedy by revealing the truth. After getting rid of one burden of physical torture, she was hit by another burden of mental self-suspicion. Readers may easily reach the consensus that it was a grievous end, unmerciful for the main character. Mathilde, as well as us readers, can't help but wonder—was it worthwhile?
Though suffered a lot, Mathilde became more courageous and more understanding. Not beautiful any more, she was stronger in the inner. Through the process of earning and paying, "Mme. Loisel now knew the horrible existence of the needy. She took her part, moreover, all of a sudden, with heroism". It cannot be simply considered whether to be tragic or not.
Nevertheless, I still feel sorry for her experience. Her born vanity, I hold, needn't have cost her such more, yet her personality was elevated. "What would have happened if she had not lost that necklace? Who knows? Who knows? How life is strange and changeful! How little a thing is needed for us to be lost or to be saved!"
It may be a joke from the God. Sometimes, however, we have to believe in fate.
