“She had no dresses, no jewels, nothing. And she loved nothing but that; she felt made for that. She would so have liked to please, to be envied, to be charming, to be sought after.” In the short story The Necklace, Guy de Maupassant unspoken theme of discontentment was evident in the life of Mathilde Loisel. She was one of those beautiful and charming girls who felt she was born for all the delicacies and luxuries in life. She desired to be admired by men and envied by wealthy women in her society. However, Mathilde’s social status dwelled among a family of clerks. Although Mathilde’s husband fulfilled her every desire, Mathilde was never content and her choice to wallow in discontentment was the sole reason she lost everything—her wealth, her beauty, and ultimately her social status. …show more content…
Maupassant emphasized this theme in particular moments throughout the text. First, Mr. Loisel presented Mathilde with a fine opportunity to go to an exclusive Minstrel ball. After she read the invitation, Mathilde cried and murmured with distain. Her husband stuttered: “What’s a matter? What’s a matter?” “Nothing. Only I have no dress and therefore I can’t go to this ball. Give your card to some colleague whose wife is better equipped than I.” (Charters 600) Mr. Loisel did not want Mathilde to feel less equipped around the wives of his colleagues. Her unhappiness provoked him to give her the money for a new dress. Once her dressed was ready, Mathilde expressed discontentment again. Mr. Liosel asked: “What’s a matter? Come, you’ve been so queer these last three days” And she answered: “It annoys me not to have a single jewel, not a single stone, nothing to put on shall look like distress. I should almost not go at all.” (Charters