The Necklace Group

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babs2008
babs2008
Student
College - Sophomore

  Why is Mathilde in "The Necklace" a failure as a person, as a wife, and as a friend?

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Posted by babs2008 on Wednesday October 8, 2008 at 12:26 PM and tagged with characters, mathilde, the necklace, themes.

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  1. amethystrose Teacher
    High School - 9th Grade

    Mathilde Loisel in Guy DeMaupassant's "The Necklace" does not appreciate all that she has and wishes for more.  She thinks she is poor, but she has a maid who comes to clean the house, and she has never had to work a day in her life.  In this way, she is a spoiled, selfish person who only cares about appearances. 

    She apparantly does not love her husband if she insists that he does not do enough to provide her with what she wants.  He even gives up the money he has been saving up to spend on himself just so that she can get a new dress instead.  However, she does not even appreciate that.  Her next complaint is that she has no fancy jewels to wear with her new dress.  In this way, she is a terrible wife who does not appreciate the man who sacrifices so much for her.  

    She is also a terrible friend because after she loses Mme. Forestier's necklace, she lies to her and tells her that a clasp is being fixed.  If she had not been so full of pride and unwilling to admit she'd lost the necklace in the first place, she would have learned that it was merely fake and not worth the 36,000 francs it took for the Loisels to purchase a genuine one.  She obviously stops seeing her friend after the event because Mme. Forestier runs into her after ten years.  Only after Mme. Loisel bitterly snipes at her friend does she learn the truth about the necklace.

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/necklace/characters
    http://www.enotes.com/necklace/summary
    http://www.enotes.com/necklace/themes

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    Posted by amethystrose on Wednesday October 8, 2008 at 12:35 PM

  2. amber-two
    amber-two Student
    High School - 9th Grade

    Loisel in Guy DeMaupassant's "The Necklace" does not appreciate all that she has and wishes for more.  She thinks she is poor, but she has a maid who comes to clean the house, and she has never had to work a day in her life.  In this way, she is a spoiled, selfish person who only cares about appearances

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    Posted by amber-two on Friday October 10, 2008 at 12:14 PM

  3. viny
    viny Student
    High School - 9th Grade

    Mathilde seems to always have self pity and not honest to her friends, she takes for gratted all the things that her huband gives her.

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    Posted by viny on Monday October 13, 2008 at 11:06 AM

  4. desiree123
    desiree123 Student
    High School - 9th Grade

    she used her friend just to ge what she wanted because shes soo spoiled and she wasnt a good wife from the beginning because she always put her husband down for not being rich....she was just all around selfish

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    Posted by desiree123 on Monday October 13, 2008 at 2:52 PM


  5. stray Student
    High School - 11th Grade

    well to me this is a well known story in life about mans hunger for more. she is not a good wife because no matter what her husband does for her she still isnt happy. and well as a person she wanted so much stuff. when she could of just whent and bought some roses. instead she wines.... and as a friend she should of been straight up with her friend that lent her the necklace.... is dat a good answer??

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    Posted by stray on Tuesday October 14, 2008 at 11:07 AM

  6. jackee08
    jackee08 Student
    High School - 9th Grade

    Mathilde Loisle is a failure as a person because, she is selfish. She is a failure as a wife because, she was greedy and spent the money that was going to by a gun for her husband on a dress. She is a failure as a friend becuase, she lied to her friend and said she broke the necklase, when she didn't...

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    Posted by jackee08 on Wednesday October 15, 2008 at 9:12 AM