Anita's Writing Portfolio

Reading Log

She Is Brave, Not Poor

“The Necklace”, written by Guy de Maupassant is a very famous story worldwide. This is not the first or second time I have read this story but I still enjoy it a lot.  

Mathilde, the heroine, seemed to be label “poor” and “tragic”. But I do not think so. I care about her dignity far more than her one-night vanity.
 
She does have a sense of vanity, but who doesn't? I admit that vanity isn't something that should be encouraged, but she has paid for it with her own hands. She does indulge herself too much that night, but her dignity has not been lost or deluded by her daydreaming towards luxurious life. She chooses to face the huge debt instead of escaping from it. She doesn't choose to tell the friend the truth at the beginning. In fact, I think if she has told the truth, she wouldn't have to pay that huge amount of money at all. The thing that she used to care most is her outbeauty, but she is willing to sacrifice it in order to pay for the lost necklace. She is brave enough to face her huge mistake ang that is not a so simple thing that can be done by everyone. I don't want to blame this lady too much, 10 years is enough to her, far more enough.

Why should we feel sorry for her? Because the price she pays for that night is too high? In fact, although may be a little cruel, I want to say it is the lost of that necklace that offers Mathilde the chance to get out the illusion of the daydreaming and to see her own life with new eyes. And she does. She achieves the things that perhaps I can't. Time is the price to pay for becoming matured. Maybe 10 years is too long, but I still believe Mathilde's hardworking, dignity and her sense of responsibility are what the author really wants to show to us. So maybe our focus should not be on “that night”, but on the “10 years”. When the outbeauty fades out in the stream of time, what lies underneath can been figured out. I think I have learnt something from this brave lady. I will have more courage to face the problems or mistakes in my life. I like this character very much for she is so real and she gives me courage.

Finally, when do we use the word “poor”?

Well, to me…I use it on the person who escapes from his responsibility; I use it on the person that regards himself the center of the world; I use it on the person who blames all the misfortune to the God and never think of changing it by his own hands. I do not use this word on the person who works hard; I do not use this word on the person who makes mistakes but willing to correct them; so I do not use this word on Mathilde.

She is not God, but just a girl who needs time to grow up.