The Characters of the Story

From the point of view of presentation “The Necklace” of Guy de Maupassant is the 3^rd person narration. The author tells us about the events happening in the story as if he knows everything very well and at the same time he doesn’t show his own attitude towards them.

        Major Characters:

Mathilde Loisel – the protagonist of the story.

She's obsessed with beautiful, expensive things, and the life that accompanies them. Unfortunately, she wasn't born into a family with the money to make her dream possible. Instead, she gets married to a "little clerk" husband and lives with him in an apartment. She is annoyed with the every day work in the house. Mathilde hates her life, and probably her husband too. She weeps "all day long, from chagrin, from regret, from despair, and from distress".

“She had no clothes, no jewels, nothing. And these were the only things she loved; she felt that she was made for them. She had longed so eagerly to charm, to be desired, to be wildly attractive and sought after.”

Monsieur Loisel – Mathilde’s husband. He is the "little clerk in the Department of Education". Monsieur Loisel is content with the small pleasures of his life but does his best to please Mathilde’s demands. He loves Mathilde immensely but does not truly understand her, and he seems to underestimate the depth of her unhappiness. He also seems to be  devoted to his wife. After all, he got her the invitation to a fancy party. He sacrifices the hunting rifle he's spent months saving up for, so Mathilde can buy a dress for the ball. And when she loses the necklace, he's the one who goes all over the city searching for it. Moreover, Monsieur Loisel sacrifices his own future to help her repay the debt. He pays dearly for something he had never wanted in the first place.

“He grew slightly pale, for this was exactly the amount he had been saving for a gun, intending to get a little shooting next summer on the plain of Nanterre with some friends who went lark-shooting there on Sundays.

     Nevertheless he said: "Very well. I'll give you four hundred francs. But try and get a really nice dress with the money.”

Madame Forestier –  Mathilde’s wealthy school friend. Madame Forestier treats Mathilde kindly, but Mathilde is bitterly jealous of Madame Forestier’s wealth. When Madame Loisel visits, Madame Forestier is as friendly as ever, generously offering to lend her friend a piece of her jewelry for the ball. When the diamond necklace is returned more than a week late, however, Madame Forestier is cold and reproachful. She does not know that the borrowed necklace was lost. She is horrified to realize that Mathilde has wasted her life trying to pay for a replacement necklace, when the original necklace had actually been worth nothing.

Many years have passed but Madame Forestier is still beautiful.  She does not recognize her old friend when they meet.

“It was Madame Forestier, still young, still beautiful, still attractive.”

Minor Character:

      M. Georges Ramponneau – is the man who conducts the fabulous ball that just might be the best few hours of Mathilde's life. He's the Minister of Education, which makes him M. Loisel's boss (which is probably why M. Loisel was able to get the invitation). And he apparently notices Mathilde at the ball, like every other man there.

The writer reveals all the characters, using both direct and indirect characterization. He describes the characters and also reveals their features with the help of their deeds. He looks deeply  into the emotions of Mathilde, and make the  reader feel her pain and sympathize her. But the narrator doesn’t share his emotions. He appears to be rather detached from the events happening.

But to my mind, Maupassant’s detachment also keeps the reader aside  from being too strict with Mathilde and blame her for her troubles.

As for my own attitude towards the characters, I just admire Monsieur Loisel. His love and devotion to his wife is really precious. He sacrificed  everything for the sake of Mathilde. Such people is a real rarity in our society.