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The Necklace And Maupassant's The Gift Of The Magi

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Mathilde is the main character in the story “The Necklace” in which she lost a necklace and has to work to buy a new one. Della is the main character in the story “The Gift of the Magi” in which she sacrifices herself to buy a gift for her husband. Although Mathilde and Della are characters from different stories, they have many similar and different characteristics that are develop during the story. The first similarity between the two characters is that both are women, and both are beautiful. Another similarity is that Mathilde was poor “she had no money, no expectations, no means of becoming known, understood, loved, [or] married to a rich and distinguished man” (Maupassant). On the other hand Della has “one dollar and eighty-seven cents. …show more content…

“There is nothing more humiliating than to look poor among a lot of rich women” (Maupassant). Meanwhile, Della didn't care for what people would think of her. Instead, she saved money during a long time to buy a gift for her husband. “Pennies saved one and two at a time by negotiating with the grocer and the vegetable man and the butcher until one’s cheeks burned with the silent accusation of being stingy” (Henry). On the other hand Mathilde was very jealous “she had a rich friend, a former schoolmate, whom she no longer wished to visit because she suffered so much when she came home” (Maupassant). Differently, Della was just worried if she would have money to buy a present for her husband, “Three times Della counted it. One dollar and eighty-seven cents. And the next day would be Christmas” (Henry). Another difference is that Mathilde was always complaining about things she didn’t have, for example she “had no jewels, not a single stone, nothing to put on” (Maupassant). Meanwhile Della sacrifices her hair to buy a gift for her husband. “I had my hair cut off and sold because I couldn't have lived through Christmas without giving you a present” (Henry). Although Mathilde and Della have many similarities they also presents many contrasts that make them opposite

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However, she is poor so she borrows a necklace from a friend. She did this instead of wearing flowers for a cheap 15 francs. Mathilde lost the necklace and had to pay it off over the next 10 years. She did this because she wanted to fit in and no one else would be wearing cheap flowers. The theme is also shown in this story by the fact the Mathilde wanted to wear jewelry.

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After Mathilde buys a dress with the money that Mr.Loisel gives to her, she still is not satisfied with what she is given, she wants more. Mathilde’s greediness is shown when she demands expensive jewelry to wear to the party even though Mr.Loisel invests his saving for Mathilde’s dress. She does not appreciate Mr. Loisel actions and instead complains about not having an aristocratic showcase. Mathilde does not acknowledge the sacrifice her husband has made for, she deceitfully expects more. This relates to Gatsby when he expects more from Daisy than mere love.

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In reference to Attwood’s time, this is also relevant as many people who have an abundance of money perceive those who have less than them as replaceable or, like the maids, little to nothing. Ultimately, both passages were paired to highlight just how harsh maids’ were

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Madame Loisel changes from the beginning to the end of the story with the way she sees everything. The story has implied that she has changed for the better because in paragraph 93 and 94, it states how Mathilde realized what it meant to do labor. This shows how Mathilde changed from someone who whined and imagined about the luxuries and riches, to someone that worked and understood the life of the needy. This also shows how work Mathilde and her husband suffered to pay off the 18,000 debt they borrowed. In addition, Mathilde looked and dressed up differently when she still had money.

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For dinner, they had a very nice french soup. This is not enough for Mathilde all she could think about was having better with eloquent table settings. She did this with everything in her life. She deserved a richer husband, nicer furniture, and prettier clothes. Although both female characters were greedy and were punished for it, they each lived a very different

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In “The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant and “Everyday Use” by Alice Walker, there are two characters who act like one another which are Dee and Mathilde Loisel, who is also known as Mrs. Loisel. Although both stories are complete opposite and take place in different settings, the similarities that both these characters endure are conspicuous. These characters come from different backgrounds, but their personalities and behavior are very similar to one another. In each story both Dee and Mrs. Loisel give off the type of attitudes that they both deserve better in life because of their beauty. Dee chooses to separate herself from her family because she desires to have a better life while Mrs. Loisel mainly focuses on the image of herself while also having the aspiration of a wealthy life.

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Mathilde discusses a woman’s search for love, atonement, and redemption.” (Melville 1). She later passed of brain cancer on February 1,

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For instance, Jonathan is optimistic whereas Mathilde is pessimistic. Jonathan view things in positive way such as when he and his family survives from the civil war saying “Happy Survival” and when he found his bike mentioning that it is a “bonus” and a “miracle” (p.). The attitude of Jonathan shows that even though he doesn’t have much rather than the “five heads” of him and his family and his bicycle; he is still grateful for what he has and he viewed it as “blessings” in his life. However, Mathilde is different from Jonathan because she’s living in a middle class, she has a servant that cleans for her, and a husband who is a “minor civil servant in the Ministry of Education” but just she ignores these beautiful things and she wants something worthier. Another differences is that Loisel values material things and Iwegbu values his family

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Did you know that Mathilde and Emily have somewhat in common? Yes they essentially do, and it is that they demand so much that they cannot let go of some kind of entity. As for both, they do vary in how they are analyzed though their actions, or their characteristics. Deep down somewhere, those women’s circumstances were immoral in many habits. To illustrate, both women inside felt incomplete that they lost what they desired.

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Furthermore, family-wise, there are not many similarities between these two characters. Roger has no family to support him and he needs to provide for himself. Mathilde however, has a loving and doting husband, wanting to please her with fancy dresses and invitations to parties. Her husband may love her, but in the story “The Necklace”, he told her to lie about losing the necklace and instead say that they broke the clasp and had to replace it. In saying this, her husband basically got them into this whole “I’m poor, woe is me” mess.

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Although Mathilde considers herself to be born deprived from all refinements of life, she is more beautiful than any character in the story, as the passage suggests,“She was prettier than all others, elegant, gracious, smiling and crazy with joy.” (De Maupassant). On the other hand, Della’s hair is so gorgeous that it could even devalue the queen of Sheba’s jewels (Henry). Another similarity between Mathilde and Della is that both of them are affected due to their lack of money. Della suffers because she struggles to buy Jim a present (Henry).

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(227). Mathilde's dishonest behavior represents her fear of appearing ordinary in front of society, when in fact, taking Madame Forestier’s necklace to appear affluent is an act. Her actions, conversations, and thoughts let readers understand Mathilde's distinct

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Narcis Celic Bauer English I 15 December 2016 Compare/Contrast English I Essay Mathilde in “The Necklace” is simply unhappy because she doesn't have money but has a rich husband. Della in “Gift of the Magi” is unhappy because she doesn't have money to buy her husband a gift for Christmas so she makes a decision. Let's start with similarities with both of the main characters in “The Necklace” and “Gift of the Magi”. Della and Mathilde are both women who struggle against money. The two women have been blessed with physical beauty,

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In the story appearances matter most, the story shows us how Mathilde tried her best to appear and fit in the high class society. When in reality when she borrowed the diamond necklace just for one night to impress people she barely knows it was never going to be enough. Society always has a way of bringing people down at their lowest point Mathilde went through years of hard labor paying for the necklace she borrowed to look wealthy in a society she did not belong to, in a high social class where appearances makes an induvial significant .Mathilde claims she lives a life in poverty, poverty to one’s understanding is where an induvial has no place to sleep or eat but, Madame Mathilde has a little house and does not go to sleep on an empty stomach. She lives the life an average person would want to

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Mrs Linde replies “it would be lovely to have enough for necessities” (Ibsen 1714). She understands the importance of money because she had to work really hard for it all her life. Mrs Linde explains Nora how she had to get married to someone she didn’t love because she needed money to save her ill mother and take care of her two young brothers. And after her husband died, she had to work in a small shop for three years to support her family. Nora on the other hand married Trovald for money too, but with different

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