Tasks for the short story “The Necklace”, by Guy de Maupassant

Task nr.1

Answer to the following questions. Explain yourself by giving arguments.

1. Is lying acceptable in some situations? Should you always lie to save face?

I think that lying is acceptable in some situations if the truth is too painful. I shouldn’t use this as
a method to save face because the opinion about me doesn’t matter.

2. Life sometimes hands you cruel situations. Is the best thing to do when this happens to keep your

suffering to yourself and find a way to get by?

I always keep the problem inside me and certainly can say that is not the best way to solve the
problem, but sometimes it is the only method.

3. Material goods, like clothing and cars are extremely important to being happy. Money can’t buy

happiness but does it definitely make it easier to be happy?

Money helps you get the things you want but the easier you get the faster you get bored of
them becouse the truly happiness is not in thigs but in feelings. (By the way thinking if you are happy is
the first step toward depresion.)

4. Have you ever lied to save face, or has anyone you know lied to save face and you found out? How did

you feel?

I lied to save face and I felt relieved, but we don’t have to think about what we feel but we have
to think about consequence.

5. Do you think Mathilde Loisel lived by this rule (look question 4)? For M.Loisel, how important was
other people’s perception of her?

I think Mathilde Loisel was not thinking about consequence, for her was more important the
opinion other people.

6. What had to be sacrificed for her to save face? Did she learn her lesson?

For saving face she sacrificed ten years of har work and her beauty. Did she learn her lesson? …
Maybe.

Task nr.2

Comment on the following ideas. Agree/Disagree /Why?

 1. Is it better to keep to yourself if you are having a hard time? Sometimes do people share too
much about their problems? What about big problems? When do you decide it is important
enough to ask for help?

People are specific to complaining but is important to do it to the right people because we need
to be heard and underderstant. The best is to talk about problems with close people.

2. If you had all the money you wanted would you be happy? Could it at least make you happier?
Does money buy happiness? Did M. Loisel believe this? What about her husband? And her
friend whom she borrowed the necklace from? What values did each of these people put on
money?

With money we can buy things not feelings. M. Loisel thought that if she had more money she
would be more happy. Her husband was not important haw much money he have, more important
to be enough. About her friend wasn’t important haw much cost the things, important to be cheap
and beautiful.

3. Make up a creative new ending to the story and connect it in one of the following ways, giving
reasoning for your ending choice. Be creative and backup your ending:

 another text previously read

 an experience in your own lives

Because the money was not getting her husband started to steal and for this he was imprisoned, and
she asked too many questions about life fell into depression, the house was confiscated by the bank and
she eventually committed suicide.