Book Review: 'The Necklace' by Guy De Muapassant

The Necklace (French: La Parure) is an 1884 short story written by the French writer Guy De Muapassant.

The charming lady, Madame Loisel, thought that she deserved a better life, better house, better husband and, most importantly, more exquisite clothes and jewels.

Chance knocked at her door for a great opportunity for her to show off her elegance and beauty, and she lived it all as she and her minor clerk in the Ministry of Education husband attended a party of the Minister of Education.

She borrowed from a friend what she thought to be a diamond necklace, and acted like a rich lady with a high class.

But life is unpredictable. The necklace was lost!

In the very last line, Guy De Maupassant revealed one of fiction’s master denouements when we get to know that the necklace, which was lost was actually an imitation and not real.

For a few moments of sheer Ecstasy Madame Loisel had to endure ten years of paying off debts and working hard all day long to save her life.

The story is told through a third person omniscient narrator, and focuses on class and social structure. Another theme is the deceptiveness of appearances. Mathilde thought that finally she got to be in a place, wearing a beautiful dress and a “diamond” necklace, which was worthy of her beauty and charm.  The story has irony at its best; while appearances are so highly thought of, Madame Loisel yet was excluded because of her “class”. Moreover, the necklace which was supposed to be of great value, turned out to be a mere imitation.

Daydreaming and high expectations caused Madame Loisel ten years of anguish. Her dreams are tied to vanity and materialism, which blinded her from the real. The necklace was a fake representation of the real; that is one of the principles of naturalism, which is the representation of the real that is not real. The surprising twist at the end of the story is another characteristic of naturalism.

The ending of the story still makes me laugh at the irony of the situation, and the surprising turns of fate. I just feel bad for the supportive husband.