Mathilde is a remarkably poor girl who dreams of one day being rich and having a
ID: 154402 • Letter: M
Question
Mathilde is a remarkably poor girl who dreams of one day being rich and having all the luxuries she could ever dream of. She imagined having fancy dinners, house, and life. Mathilde is motivated by rich people because of all the fancy things that they have. Guy de Maupassant states, “She had no dresses, no jewels, nothing; and these were the only things she loved. She felt she was made for them alone. She wanted so much to charm, to be envied, to be desired and sought after.” Mathilde wanted to be looked at like how the rich were looked at: beautiful and luxurious. Being rich and having jewelry, fancy dresses, and expensive shoes motivated her so she could be looked at and get more attention, which is why she borrowed the necklace from her friend. She valued dresses and jewels which she had none of. She values the thought of other people, as she did not want to go to the party without any jewelry and did not want to look poor. In the story, she states, “I’m upset that I have no jewels, not a single stone to wear. I will look cheap. I would almost rather not go to the party.” Mathilde did not want to be embarrassed at the party if she happened to look poor. She also valued her friendship with Madame Forestier for replacing the necklace that she lost even though it puts her family (husband) in jeopardy. After losing the necklace, she learned what it really was like to be poor, all for her friend and that one night at the ball. Sometimes she thought of that night at the ball, “when she had been so beautiful and so admired.” She will learn a thing or two about value after finding out the necklace was already a replacement. 2. The author depicts the role of a woman by giving specific instances where a situation is not fair for a person just because they are a woman. Delahoyde states that “feminist” was turned into a dirty word because back in the Western Culture, women did not have as many rights as they do today. He states, “I think the fact that ‘she was askin’ fer it’ is a viable defense in spousal abuse and rape cases in Idaho shows a touch of injustice, but I’m not sure not one of those feminists!” Back then many women were not believed when it came to rape cases and domestic violence. In today’s society, it is usually the other way around. Women used to be undervalued and their voices were usually not heard. Now, women almost rule the world. There are just as many successful women out there as there are men.
IN 3-4 LINES, HOW WOULD YOU COMMENT ON THIS PAGE? OR WHAT IS YOUR VIEW?
Explanation / Answer
The focus of the story mainly was on Mathilde, but the narrator speaks as if he was looking from outside and not fro her prospective. The writers way of describing how women were back the was remarkable. In the beginning when he says "Mathilde is a remarkably poor girl who dreams...", this itself tells the desires that poor are having when seeing the rich enjoying lexuries.