What is the setting for "The Necklace"?
The story takes place in late-nineteenth-century Paris. As it is told from Madame Loisel's point of view, the reader goes where she goes and sees what she sees.
One setting is her own apartment, which she disdains as not good enough because of its "wretched ... walls" and "worn out chairs." Another setting is her friend Madame Forestier's home, where Mathilde goes to borrow a necklace for the grand party she is to attend. We learn little about this setting, except that it contains a mirrored wardrobe where Mathilde can admire herself wearing the diamond necklace.
Later, we move to the ball, where Mathilde herself is the center of her own attention. After the tragic loss of the necklace, settings move beyond interiors to Madame Loisel bargaining for every last penny at the markets and stalls of Paris, as well as to Mathilde running into Madame Forestier and her child on a major boulevard in Paris, the Champs-Elysées.
Beyond these literal settings, it is difficult to ignore the settings of Madame Loisel's imagination. At the beginning of story, fueled by the romance novels she reads, Madame Loisel imagines lush and luxurious chambers much more desirable than her own apartment. These are described with a minute detail very different from the quick brushstrokes she applies to reality. This emphasis on her imagination shows the extent to which, at least in the beginning, Mathilde lives inside her head.
What is the setting for "The Necklace"?
Guy de Maupassant's story "The Necklace" was originally published in the French newspaper Le Gaulois in February 1884. It is set in Paris, in the "contemporary" period of the late nineteenth century. Perhaps the most important element of its setting is socioeconomic. Mathilde Loisel is an aspiring member of the bourgeoisie, who was educated at a school with wealthier children. She aspires to be part of the upper bourgeois class, but due to her lack of dowry, she is married to a man who is a junior bureaucrat. That means that although his income is adequate for the necessities of life, it will not purchase the luxuries she desires.
The first locale of the story is the Loisel apartment, which is plainly furnished, but adequate to their needs. We briefly see the luxurious home of Mathilde's school friend. The next place we encounter is the luxurious ballroom where Mathilde enjoys an evening of social success and the taxi cab they take back to their apartment. After the loss of the necklace, the couple moves to a cheaper apartment. The final scene is a chance encounter on the Champs-Elysees, a fashionable boulevard in Paris.
Where and when is the setting of the short story "The Necklace"?
"The Necklace," by French writer Guy de Maupassant, does not specify which time period it takes place in; however, the story is most likely set during the late 19th century, known as the Belle Époque, since it was written in 1884. The Bell Époque was a time of great peace, prosperity, and new entertainment for the upper classes and nouveau-riches of France, but also a time of terrible poverty and suffering for those trapped in lower classes.
The story highlights this socioeconomic divide by following the troubles of Madame Mathilde Loisel, a lovely young woman living in Paris with her husband, a clerk with a modest salary. Mathilde longs to be a part of the grand society around her, lusting after their luxurious lifestyles and flamboyant parties. After she gets the chance to attend such a party for one lavish night, Mathilde loses the diamond necklace she had borrowed and ends up driving herself and her husband into colossal debt in order to replace it. In a horrifying twist, Mathilde learns many years later that the necklace was a fake; her obsession with the riches of others and her financial ruin was for nothing.
Further Reading
What is the setting of the short story "The Necklace"?
The setting of the short story "The Necklace" is the dwelling of Monsieur and Madame Loisel. This dwelling consists on a flat that is located, according to the story, at the Rue des Martyrs. This street is not fictional; it is a real location which, in today's world, happens to be one of the most visited places by tourists who travel to France, particularly the city of Paris. In the story, the dwelling of the Loisel's is quite humble and it is located in the upstairs floor of what we could see today as an apartment complex.
It took them to their dwelling in the Rue des Martyrs, and sadly they mounted the stairs to their flat. All was ended for her.
The story also shows other settings, such as the palace of the Ministry which, from what we can gather, is located near the Seine. We do not get information about where Mdme. Forrestier lives exactly but her home is also a setting in the story. The historical context of the story places the action in the late 19th century, more than likely toward the early 1900s which signals the time when the story was written and then published.
When does "The Necklace" take place?
According to enotes' page on the historical context of the short story "The Necklace," "Monsieur Loisel is a civil servant under the...'ministre de l'Instruction publique,' or Minister of Public Instruction."
This organization was formed to more actively enforce a separation of church and state by creating non-religous public schools. These schools were made law in 1881, so if Monsier Loisel worked in the public school system, it would date the story sometime in the late 1800's. It is likely that it was set in the same time frame that it was first published, in 1884.
This date would also correspond with the literary movements reflected in the story. Around 1850 the themes of literature shifted from romance adventures to realism and naturalism. "The Necklace" is certainly an example of realism, which depicts characters who are less archetypal and more realistic, with real shortcomings and situations like Madame Mathilde Loisel.
What is the setting of "The Necklace"?
We cannot know more than the author himself tells us, but the story first appeared in a Parisian newspaper (Le Gaulois on February 17, 1884) and had instant success. Could it be presumed, then, that "gay Paris," the City of Lights, would be the most appropriate setting for such a tale?
As for its inspiration, here is an interesting sidenote:
Certain connections may be made between ‘‘The Necklace’’ and the novel Madame Bovary, written by Maupassant's mentor and friend, Gustave Flaubert. Both stories feature a young, beautiful woman in a social situation that she finds distasteful. Like Madame Bovary, Mathilde Loisel attempts to escape her social station in life, but her scheming actions ultimately doom her.
See the enote reference below concerning the Guy de Maupassant's life and influences over his works.
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