I.
SYNOPSIS /SUMMARY
A
young woman named Mathilde Loisel is married to a little clerk of the Ministry
of Public Instruction. They live a poor life, which Mathilde hates. One day,
they are invited to a grand ball where the rich people will be. Mathilde buys a
new gown from her husband’s savings intended to buy him a gun for shooting
larks, for his hobby. To go with that very elegant gown, she borrows a diamond
necklace from her friend Madame Forestier. At the ball, Mathilde is prettier
than any woman there. When they arrive home after that ball, she discovers that
the borrowed necklace is gone. She and her husband try to find it, but are not
able to, so they buy another one exactly the same, for thirty-four thousand
francs, from its original price of forty francs; such a very big amount of
money for the couple. They use up Mathilde’s husband's inheritance, borrowed
from usurers, and they work odd jobs for ten years just to make up for that
amount. After a decade, Mathilde sees Madame Forestier by chance, and after
those years, finally confesses that the necklace she returned was a
replacement. Madame Forestier is shocked, and tells her that the necklace she
lent her was fake, worth at most five hundred francs.
II.
SHORT STORY ELEMENTS
A.
CHARACTERS
There
are three main characters in this short story:
1. Mathilde Loisel, the wife
2. The little clerk of the Ministry of Public Instruction, the
husband
3. Madame Forestier, the friend who lent Mathilde a diamond
necklace
B.
PLOT
a)
Introduction
Mathilde,
the main woman character in this short story, is being described as unhappy
because of her and her husband’s being poor.
b)
Rising Action
The
complication starts when she and her husband are invited to a rich people’s
ball. She buys a new gown, and to go with it, she borrows an elegant diamond
necklace from her friend Madame Forestier.
c)
Climax
The
peak of this short story iswhen Mathilde discovers that she lost the diamond
necklace.
d)
Falling action
To
replace the lost diamond necklace, Mathilde and her husband buy another one
exactly the same, for thirty-four thousand francs, from its original price of
forty francs, such a very big amount of money for the couple. The eighteen
thousand francs was inherited by her husband from his father, and the rest of
the amount he borrows from various sources.
e)
Denouement
The problem resolves itself, though in a negative manner, when Mathilde and
Madame Forestier meet again after ten years, and the latter tells the former
that the diamond necklace she borrowed was fake.
C.
SETTING
a)
place – in Paris
b)
time- sometime in the 18th century
c)
weather conditions - good
d)
social conditions- Mathilde Loisel and her husband were poor
e)
mood or atmosphere – Mathilde is not contented of her poor life. When she loses
the borrowed diamond necklace, she and her husband become anxious. Then they
buy a new one to replace the lost one, and they live a stressful life in order
to pay their debts incurred to buy such necklace.
D.
POINT OF VIEW
The
Point of View used in this short story is the Omniscient Limited - The
author tells the story in third person (using pronouns they, she, he, it,
etc). We know only what the character knows and what the author allows
him/her to tell us. We can see the thoughts and feelings of characters if the
author chooses to reveal them to us.
E.
LITERARY DEVICES
In
my opinion, the literary devices used in this story are Symbolism andIrony.
For Symbolism, the borrowed necklace symbolizes being wealthy, which Mathilde
has been longing to be. While wearing it, she feels so superior. Meanwhile, for
Irony, such borrowed necklace looks so sophisticated but is actually fake.
F.
THEME
For
me, the theme Things are not always as they appear to be and
also Be content on what you have are applicable to this story.
G.
CONFLICT
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