The Necklace Short Story Essay

“‘The Necklace’ is one of the most famous of Maupassant's short stories but also one of the most enigmatic” (Adamson). Guy de Maupassant was born in Normandy to wealthy parents. His childhood setting and character reflected in his fiction writing. His mother provided the characterization of slighted, overbearing women in most of his stories. The plot is about the loss of a diamond necklace by a low-ranking officials wife. She finds outs the price of a similar necklace is 36,000 francs. Madame Loisel spent 10 years paying off her debt for the necklace only to find out that the gems were paste costume jewelry instead of diamonds. Guy de Maupassant develops his theme that objects can have a perceiving power in his short story “The Necklace” through the use of characterization, symbolism, and irony.
Guy de Maupassant uses irony to provide a sense of suspense and to make the story more interesting. The necklace is the main example of irony used in the story. “It was worth at the very most five hundred francs!” (de Maupassant). This shows that the necklace was fake and cheap even though it looked expensive. “In the course of conversation she relates the tribulations she has been through since burrowing the necklace. Mme Forestier explains that those glittering gems were mere costume jewelry” (Adamson). Madame Loisel mistakenly thought that the costume jewelry necklace was an expensive diamond necklace. She wanted something expensive and it turned out she got something cheap and worthless.
Shirley Jackson also used irony to show that Mme Loisel wanted what she could not have and paid attention to the things nobody really cared about. “She suffered from the poorness of her house, from its mean walls, worn chairs, and ugly curtains. All ...

... middle of paper ...

... at the high-end party, so she let her borrow any jewelry she owned. It also shows that she is wealthy and owns more than one expensive item. "Madame Forestier’s reserved attitude toward Mathilde makes clear that, although they began life on the same level, she believes herself superior to Mathilde” (Brackett). Madame Forestier believes that she is better than Madame Loisel because she owns expensive-looking jewelry and ends up looking better than her.
Guy de Maupassant uses three literary elements to devise the theme in “The Necklace” that objects can disappoint and trick people just by their appearance. Throughout the story it is highly noted that Madame Loisel wants to be in the upper-class and own expensive things. If she would appreciate her life as a middle-class woman she would learn to live her life in positivity and enjoy everything she has.