Mathilde's Cummuppance

Mathilde’s Comeuppance You can’t have your cake and eat it too, but that is exactly what Mathilde expects. She is a lower-class woman who dreams of an upper-class lifestyle. She felt that she was worthy of “… all the niceties and luxuries…” that were apart of the lifestyle of the rich, but her world consisted of “…shabbiness… dinginess… worn-out appearance[s]… ugliness…” of those who are not as privileged. Mathilde dreamed of the better life she felt she had been deprived of due to a fluke in her birth. “She would dream of great reception halls hung with old silks, fine furniture filled with priceless curios…” She dreamed of everything she could not have. She finally got her wish to attend a dinner party thanks to the unnoticed effort put in by her husband. Mme. Loisel disregarded the invitation and “… she scornfully tossed the invitation on the table…” Instead of being grateful, she was upset by the fact that she had nothing to wear. Again, Monsieur Loisel took care of Madam Loisel’s needs. Madam Loisel was so upset by the fact that she had nothing to wear that she told M. Loisel to give the invitation to a “’friend at the office whose wife can dress better than I can.’” She is so ungrateful for the effort her husband has made to make her happy. He was even willing to give her four hundred francs, which he had put aside for a new gun so as to go hunting with his peers, so she could buy a suitable dress for the event. Even after his allotment for her dress, still she was unsatisfied. She said “’It’s embarrassing not to have a jewel or a gem- nothing to wear on my dress. I’ll look like a pauper; I’d almost rather not go to that party.’” Monsieur Loisel again comes to Mathilde’s rescue by suggesting she borrows from her rich friend. She is finicky in her selection and keeps asking for more of a selection. She finally decides on a diamond necklace, which ironically, is a fake diamond. She had to have the best, which is why she decided on that particular diamond,