The Necklace, Essay Example

The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant (Maupassant) may be a work of fiction but it reminds us that our life is often shaped by factors outside our control. But it is only a human nature to climb up the economic and social hierarchy and Madame Loisel was no exception. This story also reminds us that stereotypes about women that the only way they can climb up the social and economic ladder is either through their looks or family background are not new but have persisted for centuries. Madame Loisel’s life would have been better had she learnt to be content with reality rather than pursuing out-of-reach dreams.

Before the party: Madame Loisel believed she was a misfit as the wife of a clerk because in terms of beauty and charm, she rivaled women from aristocratic class. It was not uncommon for her to be daydreaming about how her life should have been. She felt irritated by anything that reminded her of her poor background whether it was the little Breton girl who worked at her house or a Scotch broth at the dinner table. Madame Loisel was not afraid to go to any length to avoid exposure to the lifestyles of the upper class because it would only boost her insecurity and as a result, she became extremely antisocial. She even avoided a rich friend from school because witnessing her friend’s good fortune brought mental anguish to her. It’s as if she had taken a personal oath that since life has not given her what is her due right, she is not going to enjoy life. To Madame Loisel, relationships meant little because she saw everything in terms of economic value. She might have loved her husband had he come from an upper class because he was a lowly government employee and a source of embarrassment to a beauty like her. Not surprisingly, she would never go out with her because like other things in life, she had met a husband who didn’t deserve her. When Mr. Loisel brought invitation to the party where the invitees were mostly from the upper class, Madame Loisel refused to go until she got the money for dress as well as got to borrow the necklace from Madame Forestier. The image was more important to Madame Loisel than anything else even if it meant pretending to be someone at the party she was not.

During the party: Madame Loisel had never felt more alive like she did at the party. It was not surprising because she was finally wearing the dress that did justice to her as well as the jewelry that did justice to her beauty and made her looked aristocratic. But more than anything else, she was around the people with whom she had always wanted to interact with. In addition, she was finally getting the attention and acknowledgment from rich men that were her birthright. Madame Loisel didn’t even mind reaching the extremes of narcissism as she completely forgot about her husband who was in another room. Madame Loisel might have been living a life of delusion but she was also aware of the fact that other attendees in the party also judged others by economic and social background which is why she wanted to leave the party earlier so as to maintain the false impression she had succeeded in creating. This shows that Madame Loisel understood relationships in upper echelons of the society are rarely real but that didn’t matter to her for as long as she could live a life of luxury and receive attention that her beauty merited.

After the party: When Madame Loisel lost Madame Forestier’s necklace, life finally forced her to embrace the reality. But even then she retained cold aspects of her personality as she never blamed herself for the troubles she had bought upon her husband. Another aspect of her personality that she retained was pretension. She could have been honest to Madame Forestier that she had lost the necklace but she cared about her image before Madame Forestier who belonged to the upper class. Even when Mr. and Madame Loisel succeeded in arranging for the replacement, what bothered her was not the pain it had caused to her husband but the perceptions Madame Forestier may have if she discovers the replacement. This once again reminds us of Madame Loisel’s deep-seated need of acknowledgment from the members of upper class. It was the desire to protect this very image that Madame Loisel didn’t hesitate to enter a life of hardship to arrange funds for the lost necklace. When Madame Loisel finally met Madame Forestier after years, she seemed least bothered about the fact that Madame Forestier didn’t recognize her or the fact that Madame Forestier could not help but notice the huge change in Madame Loisel’s physical appearance. Madame Loisel just seemed content in the fact that she had been able to preserve her image before Madame Forestier.

Conclusion: This story reminds us that the society gives a lot of weight to perceptions and image even if they may be based on lies and pretensions. Madame Loisel didn’t embrace her reality but instead focused on the image she wanted others to see even if that meant shutting herself down from the pleasures of life available to her. She either wanted the best or nothing. But trying to be something one is not may turn out to be an expensive act as Madame Loisel found out. If she had accepted her reality and had lived a life of honesty, she might not have put herself and her husband through all the misery that followed in the aftermath of the lost necklace.

Work Cited

Maupassant, Guy de. The Necklace. 14 October 2013 <http://www.eastoftheweb.com/short-stories/UBooks/Neck.shtml>.