The Necklace

The Necklace, theme In today’s world, society has forgotten to appreciate what they have. In the story The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant, readers can establish that the theme is about not being something that you are not, and not taking things for granted. This theme can be observed throughout the story through the use of irony, symbolism, and imagery. These literary elements throughout the story help the reader comprehend and analyze the lessons learned from this story. The Necklace, was written and published during the 19th century, when being in a well-bred and wealthy society was at its finest. During this time, proletarian literature was exposed to showcase how low class and oppressed societies strived for more than what they could afford, which later on results in revived suffering. (Robert et. al. 1578).
The first literary element a reader may observe is irony. In the story the reader can see that irony is used throughout. Some of the ironic instances are larger than others. One of the major ironic situations occurs when Mathilda goes off to attend an upper class dinner. Mathilda and her husband troublesomely gather all the things she felt would establish herself as an upper-class person. After some manipulation the husband offers to give Mathilda “…four hundred francs” to pay for a new dress, she also borrows “…a superb diamond necklace”
By accepting an invitation to interact on a temporary basis with the members of the upper class, Mathilde complies with their requirements. Not only do these requirements effectively force the Loisels to retain their lower social status, but they also cause a further loss of income by requiring Monsieur Loisel to spend money he cannot afford to dress Mathilde as she desires. Ironically, the Loisels do descend to the working class as a result of Mathilde’s