Maupassant

“The Jewelry” by Guy de Maupassant was written in 1883 in France SUMMARY: M. Lantin, chief clerk, marries a poor but charming woman from Paris. She has an affinity for false jewelry, which bothers M. Lantin. She enjoys going to the theatre with her friends, but M. Lantin refuses to accompany her. Eventually, she dies of pneumonia, and M. Lantin is distraught. He becomes very poor, and in order to buy food, he decides to sell one of his late wife’s necklaces. Expecting it to be worth only a few francs, he heads to the jewelry store to get an estimate of the value. Much to his surprise, the jewels are worth 18,000 francs. He gets a receipt and is told to return in 24 hours to sell the jewelry. M. Lantin comes to the realization that his wife’s jewelry was, in fact, real, and she might have received the jewelry as gifts. In an act of greed, he goes on to sell all of the jewelry, receiving an estimate of 196,000 francs. He quits his job after receiving the money, and boasts about his newfound wealth. Six months after his first wife’s death, he marries a new woman who “[makes] his life very miserable” (16).
 * Historical Context **


 * __ Characters __**
 * M. Latin ** - who is the chief clerk at the office of Minister of Interior and his wife who remains nameless throughout the story. He dislikes his wife’s “fake” jewelry
 * The Wife ** - M. Latin’s wife who name is nameless in the story likes to buy “fake jewelry”. She is a poor but charming woman from Paris. She enjoys going to the theatre with her friends, but M. Lantin refuses to accompany her. She dies of pneumonia.
 * Jeweler ** - Buys all of the jewelry because it is worth a lot of money

This short story takes place in Paris, France in the 1880’s. The author is not very descriptive of the setting in beginning of the story. Towards the end, the main character starts to describe the places he goes, which happen to be places the wealthy go. This shows how much he has changed from his mediocre life, to the life of the rich. Point of View: In the story, “The Jewelry”, the narrator is written as third person omniscient. Style: Guy De Maupassant wrote the short story, “The Jewelry”, in 1883. The writing of the story is European, old, and outdated. Some of the words in story can be seen as unfamiliar to modern day English too. The way the story is written you also get a feel for what everyone is feeling because the narrator is omniscient and knows everything there is needed to know about the characters.
 * Setting **
 * Theme **
 * Society- M. Lanton is a middle class person who seems to live beyond his means. When his wife, the manager of his finances, dies, **

VOCAB Bourgeois-a member of the middle class; a person whose political, economic, and social opinions are believed to be determined mainly by concern for property values and conventional respectability Adroit- an expert or nimble in the use of the hands or body; cleverly skillful, resourceful, or ingenious Loge- in a theater the front section of the lowest balcony, separated from the back section by an aisle or railing or both; a box in a theater or opera house Scanty- barely sufficient; meager; not adequate Stock-still- completely still; motionless Leaden- dull, spiritless, or gloomy; oppressive, heavy Brusque- abrupt in manner; blunt; rough Gaiety- the state of being gay or cheerful Feverishly- excitedly, restlessly, or uncontrollably as if from fever Impassive- without emotion; apathetic; unmoved Breakfasted-to provide breakfast for; to eat breakfast Gravity- serious or dignified behavior; dignity; solemnity; a serious or critical nature Genteel-well-bred or refined; polite, delicate Revelry-boisterous merrymaking; reveling Debauch- a period of wanton or sensual self-indulgence Upright-being in accord with what id right