Plot Summary
Who is the main character?
Mathilde Loisel.
How is Monsieur Loisel a static character?
He is weak and is constantly answering to his wife who will never think she has enough.
What was the major theme in the story?
One’s true worth and beauty is not reliant on the possessions they own
What is the quote an example of: “She looked at him out of furious eyes and said impatiently: 'And what do you suppose I am to wear at such an affair?'" (Maupassant 1)
Personification
What was Mathilde’s friends’ reaction to seeing her for the first time in 10 years?
She was unrecognizable and that she changed
What item of jewelry does Mathilde pick out to wear and from who?
A diamond necklace from Madame Forestier.
What is the main example of something Monsieur Loisel gives up for Mathilde’s needs?
His wife asked for money for a dress but he was saving his own money to buy himself a gun to go out and with his friends, but being his caring and giving self, he gave his wife the money so she could be happy.
Why was the ending of the story so important for the theme?
Mathilde spent a majority of her life working to pay back the debts she owed Madame Forestier
What is this quote an example of: "She danced madly, ecstatically, drunk with pleasure, with no thought for anything, in the triumph of her beauty, in the pride of her success, in a cloud of happiness made up of this universal homage and admiration, of the desires she had aroused, of the completeness of a victory so dear to her feminine heart" (Maupassant 3)
Metaphor
What was the effect that occurred by Mathilde giving Madame Forestier a fake necklace in place of the one she lost?
She spent 10 years living in poverty to pay back her debt only to find out that the necklace was a piece of imitation jewelry; her lie costed her beauty
What does the main character want to have in life?
She wants to live more extravagantly with a larger, nicer home, more money, and all of the luxuries in life.
How has Mathilde changed physically from before to after losing the necklace?
She was once young and beautiful; now, she looks older and more run-down from her years of labor.
What happened to Mathilde when she wore the necklace?
She acted as though she was intoxicated, she was acting as though the necklace enhanced her beauty and worth
What is the quote an example of: “She had no clothes, no jewels, nothing” (Maupassant 1)
Hyperbole
How does the beauty of the necklace contradict Mathilde’s beauty?
The necklace was pretty on the outside but in reality it was fake whereas Mathilde’s true beauty was within; the necklace had a shallow-level of beauty
What is the main character’s problem when it comes to her outlook on life?
Mathilde does not appreciate the things she has and her ungratefulness and desperate need for more in life eventually cost her ten difficult years of sadness and labor.
What are some character traits to describe Madame Loisel throughout the short story?
Ungrateful, cares heavily about her appearance and materialistic items, unhappy, and dissatisfied with life
What were the consequences of Mathilde losing the necklace?
She became completely unrecognizable after losing the necklace and working in poverty to pay it back
What is the following quote an example of: “She was one of those pretty and charming girls born, as if by an error of fate, into a family of clerks.” (Maupassant 1).
Irony
What lesson did Mathilde learn?
One’s true value does not depend on lavish or expensive items
What was the resolution of the story?
Madame Forestier tells Mathilde that the diamond necklace that she lost ten years ago was a fake, revealing that the years of hardship she just went through was for nothing.
Describe the way Madame and Monsieur Loisel feel towards each other. How does she treat him? How does he treat her?
She does not show her husband any gratitude because she is dissatisfied with their life. Her husband deeply loves her and tries to satisfy her wants and desires but it is never enough for her.
How was irony used in the story?
She lost her beauty trying to repay the necklace; Mathilde spent years working to pay back her debts for a worthless piece of costume jewelry
What is this quote an example of: "She imagined silent antechambers, heavy with Oriental tapestries, lit by torches in lofty bronze sockets, with two tall footmen in knee-breeches sleeping in large arm-chairs, overcome by the heavy warmth of the stove. She imagined vast saloons hung with antique silks, exquisite pieces of furniture supporting priceless ornaments, and small, charming, perfumed rooms, created just for little parties of intimate friends, men who were famous and sought after, whose homage roused every other woman's envious longings." (Maupassant 1).
Imagery
What action in the passage above demonstrates the beauty of Mathilde’s personality?
Although her and her husband were poor, had no money, and living in poverty, Mathilde still worked extremely hard over ten years to repay the necklace to make it up to MAdame Forestier for lying and losing her necklace