Lost Identity

Words: 833
Pages: 4

Shayan Feiz

Ms. Sanchez

English 1, Period 1

8 November, 2015
The Story of Confusion and Lost Identity

Regretful and in pain, Mathilde and her husband had to live in a garret for many years in order to pay off their debt. Identity means the fact of being who or what a person or thing is (Dictionary.com). Does the protagonist of this story question her identity? The protagonist of the story, “The Necklace”, questions her identity when she learns what can happen when she tries to fit in with the upper class. The main character of this story, Mathilde, wants to have a jewel or gem to match with her expensive dress in order for her to fit in with the upper class people in the party. For example, “It’s embarrassing not to have a jewel or a gem--- nothing to wear on my dress. I’ll look like a pauper; I’d almost rather not go” (661). At the beginning, Mathilde does not even want to go to the party since she does not have a fancy dress and expensive jewelries to go with it. She fears that she will be left out if she does not wear something that makes her look (and feel) like she is in the upper
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For example, “Mme. Loisel experienced the horrible life the needy live in… That frightful debt had to be paid and she would pay it. (664). In this moment, Mathilde is doing everything she can in order to pay off her rigorous debt. She has to sacrifice everything she and her husband have in order to pay off the debt. She questions her identity when she goes into debt because it keeps her farther away from fitting in with the upper class. She questions her identity because the more she has to work in order to pay off her debt, the less she is fitting in with the upper class. This is because the more she works and suffers in order to pay off her debt, the more of a delinquent she feels like, distancing herself away from fitting in the upper