The story “The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant is about a young lady, Mathilde Loisel,

who dreams of leading a life full of luxury and lavishness but lives an average middle-
class life with a low-earning husband . When she is invited to a university party by her
close friend, she uses the opportunity to wear a diamond necklace, which she dirty does
not own. After losing the first necklace, Mathilde and her husband take massive loans to
replace the expensive necklace, only to learn that it was a fake part. As a result, Mathilde
lives her life with the regret of having been poor.

Moreover, the story can be looked at from the feminist repertoire as it portrays a woman
who was not happy with what she had, a woman willing to strive for more. The story
sheds light on the societal needs of the time when women were supposed to be ambitious
and strive to attain material needs. In the short story, Mathilde is depicted as the flower of
womanhood . She spent her days dreaming of dancing while wearing beautiful dresses.
The author described how Mathilde escape into a fantasy of making small requests, such
as a dinner party or a beautiful gown. Additionally, the story sheds theatrical and feminist
tropes of battle and loss as men battle over the loss of a diamond necklace.

He responds to her feelings and takes small and insignificant steps, such as giving her
money to purchase a new dress, as seen above. This demonstrates that women’s voices
and wishes hardly make any difference, and women are mostly reliant on men to
determine their fate. Moreover, ‘The Necklace’ also explains the cultural and social
anxiety to which the women were exposed. In this short story, Mathilde’s desire to act
and appear wealthy at the high banquet reflects the moral fear of the need to look best and
revise the viewers to the current standards of beauty. Nowadays, females are constantly
forced to comply with the pressures of good figures and captivating people. A big amount
of skinny pictures and abundant sexy people disturb some women’s healthiness.

Another critique that can be drawn from the story is the consequences of deceit and
dishonesty. When Mathilde loses Antoinette’s necklace, she lies to her friend that she
needs it repaired; borrowing money from her husband, they go to great lengths to replace
it. The result is their life of suffering and want to pay off their loan. It is also a significant
moral lesson on the impact of lying and dishonesty. In conclusion, the necklace can be
critiqued either through feminism or moralism. It draws into focus the impacts of societal
pressure on a woman, the power balance between men and women, and the outcome of
too much greed and dishonesty. It is a pointer to society to change.