The Necklace Summary

“The Necklace,” a poignant tale by Guy de Maupassant, weaves a narrative around the life of the protagonist, Mathilde Loisel. When summarizing such a story with rich thematic undertones, one must pay heed to the plot, characters, and underlying messages. This article will guide you on how to write a summary of “The Necklace.”

Step 1: Understanding the Story

The first step in summarizing any literary work is to thoroughly read and understand it. “The Necklace” is a short story that explores themes of vanity, materialism, and the deceptive nature of appearances. It tells the story of Mathilde Loisel, a woman who yearns for a life of luxury and elegance she cannot afford.

Step 2: Identify the Main Characters

The central characters in “The Necklace” are Mathilde Loisel and her husband, Monsieur Loisel. Mathilde is a middle-class woman whose desire for wealth leads to her downfall. Monsieur Loisel, on the other hand, is a tolerant and loving husband who goes to great lengths to satisfy his wife’s desires.

Step 3: Understand the Plot

“The Necklace” revolves around Mathilde Loisel, a woman dissatisfied with her middle-class life. When her husband procures an invitation to a high-society party, Mathilde borrows a beautiful necklace from her wealthy friend, Madame Forestier, to wear to the event. Tragically, Mathilde loses the necklace and, fearing the consequences, replaces it without telling her friend. The Loisel’s spend the following ten years living in poverty to repay the debt incurred from replacing the necklace. The heartbreaking irony is revealed at the end when Madame Forestier informs Mathilde that the original necklace was a fake.

Step 4: Highlight the Themes

The story deals with themes of materialism, pride, and the irony of life. Mathilde’s desire for material possessions and social status, her pride that prevents her from admitting the loss of the necklace, and the cruel irony of her unnecessary hardship form the crux of the narrative.

Step 5: Write the Introduction

Your summary should start with an introduction that gives an overview of the story:

“‘The Necklace’ by Guy de Maupassant is a short story that explores the pitfalls of vanity and pride through the life of Mathilde Loisel, a middle-class woman yearning for a life of luxury.”

Step 6: Summarize the Plot

After the introduction, succinctly summarize the plot:

“Mathilde Loisel, unsatisfied with her middle-class life, borrows a necklace from her wealthy friend Madame Forestier to wear to a high-society party. When she loses the necklace, Mathilde replaces it without informing her friend, leading to a life of poverty for the Loisels as they labor to repay the debt. The story ends with the ironic revelation that the original necklace was fake.”

Step 7: Discuss the Themes

Next, briefly discuss the main themes of the story:

“Through Mathilde’s downfall, Maupassant explores the dangers of materialism and the deceptive nature of appearances. The irony of Mathilde’s unnecessary hardship underscores the story’s critique of vanity and pride.”

Step 8: Conclude the Summary

Conclude the summary by encapsulating the story’s essence:

“In ‘The Necklace,’ Maupassant presents a cautionary tale about materialism, pride, and the deceptive nature of appearances. The tragic irony of Mathilde’s life underscores the unforeseen consequences of vanity.”

Step 9: Review and Revise

Finally, review your summary for clarity, coherence, and grammatical accuracy. Ensure you’ve accurately represented the story and its themes.

Summarizing “The Necklace” involves understanding the plot, characters, and central themes. By distilling these elements into a concise summary, you can effectively convey the essence of Maupassant’s poignant tale. Remember, a good summary doesn’t merely recount the events but captures the underlying themes and messages as well.

The Necklace Summary Example #1

“The Necklace” is a short story written by French author Guy de Maupassant. It revolves around Mathilde Loisel, a woman who is dissatisfied with her life and her social status.

Mathilde’s husband, Mr. Loisel, is a clerk in the Ministry of Public Instruction. Although they live a comfortable life, Mathilde dreams of a more luxurious lifestyle, filled with opulent balls, fine jewelry, and high society friends. One day, Mr. Loisel comes home with an invitation to a formal party hosted by his boss. Instead of being excited, Mathilde is upset as she feels she has nothing suitable to wear.

To appease his wife, Mr. Loisel uses the money he’s been saving for a hunting rifle to buy her a new dress. However, Mathilde still feels that she lacks appropriate accessories and decides to borrow a beautiful necklace from her wealthy friend, Madame Forestier.

Mathilde is the belle of the ball at the party, but her happiness is short-lived. After returning home, she discovers she has lost Madame Forestier’s necklace. Unable to find the necklace and too ashamed to admit to her friend what happened, Mathilde and her husband decide to replace it. They find a similar necklace at a jewelry shop but it costs them 36,000 francs, a sum they do not possess.

The couple borrows money from various lenders and buys the replacement necklace. They return it to Madame Forestier, who, to Mathilde’s relief, does not inspect it closely. To repay the debts, the couple leads a life of extreme frugality and hard work for the next ten years. Mathilde’s beauty fades with the harsh realities of her new life.

One day, Mathilde encounters Madame Forestier and decides to tell her the truth. As she reveals the hardships they’ve gone through to replace the necklace, Madame Forestier is shocked and tells Mathilde that the original necklace was not made of diamonds, but was just costume jewelry worth no more than 500 francs.

The story ends with the devastating irony that Mathilde’s life had been ruined for nothing. This tragic twist underscores themes of materialism, pride, and the deceptive nature of appearances that run throughout the story.

The Necklace Summary Example #2

“The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant is a short story that explores themes of materialism, pride, and appearance versus reality through the life of the protagonist, Mathilde Loisel.

Mathilde Loisel is a woman who is unsatisfied with her modest life and yearns for the glamour and prestige of high society. Her husband, Mr. Loisel, is a clerk who, despite their modest means, manages to secure an invitation to a prestigious ball.

Eager to impress, Mathilde borrows a stunning necklace from her wealthy friend, Madame Forestier. The necklace, as Mathilde believes, is made of diamonds, and she feels that it complements her new dress perfectly.

At the ball, Mathilde is the center of attention and she revels in the admiration she receives from the other guests. However, her joy is short-lived as she discovers that the borrowed necklace is missing when they return home.

Terrified of the consequences, Mathilde and her husband decide to replace the lost necklace. They find a matching one at a jeweler’s shop but it costs them a small fortune. To pay for it, they borrow heavily, leading to a life of hardship and penury as they struggle to pay back their debts. The once beautiful and vibrant Mathilde becomes a shadow of her former self due to the hard work and struggle.

After a decade of living in poverty, Mathilde encounters Madame Forestier and decides to confess what happened to the necklace. In a twist of cruel irony, Madame Forestier reveals that the original necklace was not made of diamonds at all, but was merely costume jewelry.

The story concludes with Mathilde realizing that her desire for a false appearance of wealth has led to her unnecessary downfall. This realization serves to underline the story’s central themes of materialism, pride, and the often deceptive nature of appearances.

The Necklace Summary Example #3

“The Necklace,” a short story by Guy de Maupassant, revolves around Mathilde Loisel, a woman of modest means who dreams of a life filled with wealth and luxury.

Mathilde Loisel feels dissatisfied with her simple life and yearns for the glamour and prestige of France’s upper class. Her loving husband, a humble clerk, goes out of his way to secure an invitation to a high-society event, hoping it would please his wife.

To fit in with the elite crowd, Mathilde decides to borrow a seemingly expensive necklace from her affluent friend, Madame Forestier. The necklace enhances Mathilde’s appearance at the ball, where she is admired and envied by many.

However, upon returning home, Mathilde discovers that the borrowed necklace is missing. Fearing the consequences of confessing the truth to Madame Forestier, Mathilde and her husband decide to replace the lost necklace. They find a similar one in a jewelry shop, but buying it plunges them into a significant debt.

The couple spends the next ten years living in penury, working tirelessly to repay the borrowed money. This struggle takes a toll on Mathilde, causing her to age prematurely and lose her charm.

In a twist of fate, Mathilde one day runs into Madame Forestier and confesses about losing and replacing the necklace. To Mathilde’s shock, Madame Forestier reveals that the original necklace was not made of real diamonds, but was a mere imitation worth a fraction of what they had assumed.

The story ends on a note of tragic irony, as Mathilde realizes that her pursuit of false pretense and materialism has led her to a life of unnecessary hardship. The narrative underscores the themes of appearance versus reality, the dangers of materialism, and the unforeseen consequences of pride and vanity.