The ironic element in the story, along with Mathilde's vanity and pride, suggests that the story's theme concerns the futility of greed and appearances.
Irony in "The Necklace"
In Guy de Maupassant's short story "The Necklace," Mathilde Loisel is not satisfied with her life. She wants more! She wants money, new furniture, fancy clothes. She wants to be seen and admired as one of the stars of high society.
As she and her husband are invited to a party, Mathilde borrows from a rich friend what she believes to be a diamond necklace. She loses it after the party, buys a new one to replace it, and spends ten years of her life working hard to pay for it. She even loses her beauty and youth in the process. After those 10 years, she find out that the necklace she lost was fake.
The irony in the fact that she spent 10 years paying for losing a fake diamond necklace develops the theme of the story, along with Mathilde's vanity and pride. Let's break it down:
- Her vanity and greed led to think she had to look a certain way for the party. That is why she borrowed the necklace.
- Her pride kept her from telling her friend the truth. Mathilde could have told her friend about losing the necklace, which would have prevented 10 years of suffering.
- It is extremely ironic that Mathilde's friend, a rich woman, had a fake diamond necklace. It shows that appearances are futile and deceiving. Mathilde suffered for no reason, thinking she should have money to buy expensive things when, in fact, those who do have money buy cheap things.
With the information above in mind, we can conclude that the answer provided above is correct.
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