UDGAM SCHOOL FOR CHILDREN

Std. X – English Language and Literature (184)

L 7- The Necklace - GUY DE MAUPASSANT
Name: ____________________ Std /Sec: _____ Roll No. _____

Introduction
In the short story ‘The Necklace’ by Guy de Maupassant, the envy and greed showed by the
character Matilda leads to her destruction both mentally and physically

Theme
‘The Necklace’ is a story full of many motifs, examples of symbolism, and a great plot, but the
best component of this tale is the theme that greed only leads to failure.

Message
The short story ‘The Necklace’ teaches a big lesson of how greed can lead to bad endings. A
beautiful woman that has good life, still wants much more wealth than what she really needs.
This desire of wanting more leads to tragedy and she ends up having a lot less.

Short Answers

1) Why is Matilda unhappy with her life?

Matilda is unhappy with her life because she ceaselessly, felt that she was born for all
delicacies and luxuries of life but the shabby walls, the worn chairs in her house tortured
and angered her.

2) Why did Matilda not like to visit her rich friend?

Matilda had an inferiority complex. Whenever she visited her rich friend she felt dejected
and disappointed because of her poverty. She used to compare her house to that of her
friend’s. She did not have attractive dress and jewellery to adorn herself with. That is why,
she did not like to visit her rich friend

3) Her husband is kind and loving. Do you agree? Give examples to support your
answers.
Matilda’s husband wants her to be happy. He spends a huge savings that he had saved for
years to buy a gun for his hobby for buying a pretty dress for his wife, so that she could
attend a big party and enjoy it. When the costly necklace is lost, he spends all his savings
and even borrows to repay it. He works day and night but never creates any ruckus with his
wife.

4) How did the Loisels react when they realised that the necklace had been lost?

Matilda Loisel became very sad when they realised that the necklace had been lost. They
were sure that the loss of necklace would make their life hell because Mr Loisel was only a
petty clerk and it was very difficult for him to replace necklace of diamond.

5) What do M. and Mme Loisel do next?

When M. and Mme Loisel realized that the necklace was missing, they tried finding out
where she could have possibly lost it. They concluded that it might have been dropped in

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 the cab they were travelling in. But they did not remember its number. So, in an attempt to
find the necklace, Loisel went over the track where they had walked.
6) How did Madame Loisel contribute to the cost of the new necklace in ‘The
Necklace’?
In ‘The Necklace’ Madame Loisel contributes to the cost of the new necklace by making
stringent household economies. She lets her servant go, she and her husband move into
a smaller apartment, and Matilda does all of her own housework. To save money she
even wears her clothes until they are completely worn out.
7) What did Monsieur Loisel do to pay the debt?

The Loisels had to buy a diamond necklace for thirty-six thousand francs to replace the
one that was lost. Matilda had to cut down on the household expenses and save money
while Mr. Loisel worked overtime and did copying work at nights. In this way, they
could repay the money in ten years.

8) What did Mrs. Forestier tell Matilda about the reality of her Necklace?
After losing the borrowed necklace, Matilda replaced it with a diamond necklace bought
for thirty-six thousand francs. But Mme Forestier told her that her necklace was an
imitation costing just about 500 francs.

9) What, was the cause of Matilda’s ruin? How could she have avoided it?

The cause of Matilda’s ruin was her dissatisfaction with whatever life offered her. She
was always unhappy. She felt that she was born for all the delicacies and luxuries of life.
She dislike being in her current circumstances. She could have avoided this ruin by
being content with whatever she had.

Long answers
1) A little confession would have changed the life of Matilda. Should we confess our
mistakes courageously? Do you agree about above statement?

Yes, a small mistake makes our life miserable and dark. People who are open-minded
and speak the truth stay much happier. A little mistake made by Matilda changed her life
completely. If Matilda had confessed that she had lost Madame Forestier’s necklace, her
life would have been different. Confession could have brought peace of mind. Matilda
would have at once come to know that necklace is not a real one, but it is an imitation.
The hard work which Matilda put into repay the borrowed necklace could have been
saved. We all get a very important message that we should not delay in admitting our
mistake.

2) Mrs. Loisel’s disposition invites her doom. Comment with reference to the text.

Matilda herself was responsible for her own sorrows because of her obsession with the
luxuries of high class society. She had always longed to wear elegant, stylish and dainty
clothes and jewellery. Unfortunately, she had been married to a clerk who could not
afford all these things. Her obsession and love for trinkets brought her sorrow which she
could have avoided.
Fate taught her a lesson for her flaw. Her husband received an invitation to the ball; she
became abnormally excited about it. She went beyond her means to make arrangements
for herself for the ball. She spent excessively on her dress. And for the jewellery, she
thought of borrowing Madame Forestier’s necklace.

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 Unfortunately, the borrowed necklace was lost at the party. She and her husband had to
face ten years’ gruelling hardships to pay for the replacement of the lost necklace. After
ten years she came to know from Madame Forestier that it was just an artificial
necklace.

If Mrs. Loisel (Matilda) had not gone beyond her means to attend the ball, she would not
have faced all those hardships. If she had not been so much obsessed about charms
and tricks of life, she would have been far more contented.

3) Do you think the story is aptly titled? Justify your answer.

The whole narrative of the story ‘The Necklace’ revolves around a young woman Matilda,
who in her foolish pride borrows a necklace inviting misery and sorrow for herself as well
as for her husband. The ‘necklace’ was lost and the Loisels fall into a tremendous debt.
They spend the next ten years of their life in paying debt for the replacement of the lost
necklace. Their entire life moves around poverty, everyday saga of misery and hunger,
and the necklace, in fact, changes the very course of their life. Also, it is because of the
necklace that Matilda’s pride and dishonesty are highlighted. At the same time, the
necklace serves a twist at the end as it turns out to be a fake one. The story is, hence,
most aptly titled as the necklace is, in fact, the leading character of this ironic tale of
desire, the doom and the tragedy.

4) Our inability to accept our limitations may lead to an unhappy life. Analyse with
reference to the story ‘The Necklace’.
We fail to recognise the situation in which we are placed but rather keep on grumbling.
We become frustrated and want our life to be different. We should accept life as it comes
to us and should not keep on cribbing about unhappy circumstances. As we read the
story ‘The Necklace’ we find that Matilda is not at all happy with her husband. She had
wished her life to be luxurious. It is this frustration of hers which puts her in a fix and
spoils rest of her life. She does not work for solution but rather complicates the situation
for her.

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