2 Follower
I LOVE this short story that is packed with so much wisdom and insight whilst finishing up with a strong morale. Mathilde Loisel, our main protagonist longs for living the high-life. She wallows in self-pity, is oversensitive and a strenuous wife to her husband. One day, as her husband joyously tells her about the invite to a ball in the palace of the ministry, expecting his wife to get excited about it, Mathilde sinks even deeper in self-pity. After all, she´s got nothing to wear to the ball, she says. Anyway, her husband gives her money to buy a dress and impatiently advises her to lend some jewelry from her close friend Madame Forestier, who is well heeled. No sooner said than done, Mathilde accompanies her husband to the ball in her brand-new dress and the diamond necklace she borrowed from Madame Forestier. Now she´s having the time of her life! She´s wrapped in a cloud of happiness with all the attention she gets…until she loses the precious necklace. That’s when their phase of desperation starts: Husband and wife cannot find the necklace anywhere and feel forced to replace it with much chagrin and struggle. It takes them TEN years to pay off the necklace whilst they downsize their lifestyle to the bare minimum. Gone is the beauty of Mathilde as she is taught the real hardship of life. The short story finishes with Mathilde running into Madame Forestier when taking a walk in Champs-Élysées. During their conversation Madame Forestier reveals to her that the necklace she had lent to her ten years ago...was FAKE and cost a friction of the replacement that Mathilde returned!!! Poor Mathilde! This story draws parallels to Madame Bovary, to Great Gatsby and all wanna-be´s around us who are constantly dissatisfied with what they have and long for a high-life with the rich. Though the rich can even afford to wear fakes and pretend like it is the real deal. The story signals a wake up call to appreciate what we got in life. Nothing is wrong with having ambitions, but Guy de Maupassant reminds us that greediness and envy is atrocious. LOVE this short story. Easy 5 stars.
21. Feb. 2023
I LOVE this short story that is packed with so much wisdom and insight whilst finishing up with a strong morale. Mathilde Loisel, our main protagonist longs for living the high-life. She wallows in self-pity, is oversensitive and a strenuous wife to her husband. One day, as her husband joyously tells her about the invite to a ball in the palace of the ministry, expecting his wife to get excited about it, Mathilde sinks even deeper in self-pity. After all, she´s got nothing to wear to the ball, she says. Anyway, her husband gives her money to buy a dress and impatiently advises her to lend some jewelry from her close friend Madame Forestier, who is well heeled. No sooner said than done, Mathilde accompanies her husband to the ball in her brand-new dress and the diamond necklace she borrowed from Madame Forestier. Now she´s having the time of her life! She´s wrapped in a cloud of happiness with all the attention she gets…until she loses the precious necklace. That’s when their phase of desperation starts: Husband and wife cannot find the necklace anywhere and feel forced to replace it with much chagrin and struggle. It takes them TEN years to pay off the necklace whilst they downsize their lifestyle to the bare minimum. Gone is the beauty of Mathilde as she is taught the real hardship of life. The short story finishes with Mathilde running into Madame Forestier when taking a walk in Champs-Élysées. During their conversation Madame Forestier reveals to her that the necklace she had lent to her ten years ago...was FAKE and cost a friction of the replacement that Mathilde returned!!! Poor Mathilde! This story draws parallels to Madame Bovary, to Great Gatsby and all wanna-be´s around us who are constantly dissatisfied with what they have and long for a high-life with the rich. Though the rich can even afford to wear fakes and pretend like it is the real deal. The story signals a wake up call to appreciate what we got in life. Nothing is wrong with having ambitions, but Guy de Maupassant reminds us that greediness and envy is atrocious. LOVE this short story. Easy 5 stars.
21. Feb. 2023
