By looking at, "The Necklace" by De Maupassant, we can see the internal battle raging within Mathilde Loisel and the negative effect that it has on her life. De Maupassant explains how she was "one of those pretty and charming girls who are sometimes, as if by mistake of destiny, born in a family of clerks" (21). She "suffered ceaselessly, feeling herself born for all the delicacies and all the luxuries (of life)", (22) although she does not have those luxuries. She believed that, because of her beauty, she deserved to be among the affluent. The fact that she isn't wealthy, but desires to be so, gives her such grief. De Maupassant stresses this point with his repeated use of the word 'suffer'. "She had a friend... whom she did not like to go and see any more, because she suffered so much when she came back" (22). In this, the author provides a subtle foreshadow to the rest of the short story. Her unhappiness with her life leads her to a more impoverished one. Among the twisted ending of this story, De Maupassant presents several central themes in society; he describes how greed and a yearning to move up in society are ever present but rarely beneficial, and that value is often measured by perception rather than reality.

Mathilde's downfall begins with greed. When invited to an exclusive, fancy ball, she complains that she has nothing to wear, claiming "there's nothing more humiliating than to look poor among women who are rich." She asks for as much money as she thinks her husband will give her for a dress; "wondering also what sum she could ask without drawing herself an immediate refusal" (23). Mathilde has an unrealistic grasp of the constraints that limit her and her husband. She is keenly aware of her poverty, yet she still has envy for the things owned by the upper class. When her husband, an economical man, attempts to interest his wife in wearing natural flowers to the party, "she was not convinced" (24). This dispute, greed, lead Mathilde to borrow a necklace, which ultimately leads to her descent into severe poverty.

Mathilde Loisel did a lot of scheming to achieve the appearance of a wealthier life, but ultimately no one can ever hide their true colors. She bought a brand new dress, totaling 400 franks, and borrowed a diamond necklace from her more affluent friend. The necklace, she would later learn was actually a knockoff, and contained no real diamonds. Regardless, Mathilde changed her appearance to deceptively trick those at the party into believing she was a member of a higher class. Because she pretended to be rich for one night, she becomes rich in others' eyes. "She was prettier than them all, elegant, gracious, smiling, and crazy with joy". She held the attention of many who were deceived by her allure. "All the men looked at her, asked her name, and looked to be introduced" (24). The dress and the necklace are objects, that to Mathilde, seemed to hold transformative powers. Mathilde had lived in a world in which "she had no dresses, no jewels, nothing. And she loved nothing but that (24)". Her dream of her 'true self', in which she is well-off was finally realized at the party. She was happy, admired, and envied. She appeared beautiful and well-off in her expensive clothes and jewels, but beneath the glamorous appearance, she remained the wife of a poor clerk. The necklace, in the same respect, mirrors Mathilde's own facade at the party: beautiful, but ultimately a fraud.

There is an aesthetic difference between an original object and forgery, however forgery is often equally as beautiful as the original. Appearances can easily deceive a person into believing a fake is in reality genuine. Madame Forestier knows this, as is exemplified by the fact that she owned fake jewels to begin with. Mathilde eventually loses the necklace, and is forced to purchase another in its place. The original necklace, though worthless, becomes valuable after Mathilde and her husband replace it. However, Madame Forestier doesn't notice a difference in the necklace, suggesting that the true value of an object is ultimately dependent on a person's perception of that object. The fact that Madame Forestier owned the necklace was reason enough for Mathilde and her husband to believe that the diamonds were real and that the necklace had significant value. Because of Madame Forestier's status in society, they never doubted the necklace's authenticity. Despite the fact the necklace was in a box from a jeweler who did not sell the piece, and the fact that there was no replica to be found, neither made Mathilde nor her husband question its genuineness. Both Madame Forestier and Mathilde covet beauty on some level, wishing to be beautiful with the aide of objects. Madame Forestier makes no mention of the fact that the necklace is a fake, seemingly to allow her friend to believe it was authentic.

Mathilde's trouble begins when she pretends to be rich among the more affluent members at the party. That "gay evening" wasn't worth the years of hard work and poverty that followed, just as the diamonds were never worth the money she thought they were worth. The unveiling of the diamonds as artificial closely parallels Mathilde's deception as a wealthy woman. Neither lie changed the reality of her situation, but both had similar, devastating endings.
