Passages all throughout Guy de Maupassant's short story "The Necklace" indicate just how much Mathilde Loisel envies the wealthy class.
One of the best passages is found on the first page in a description of her sitting down to dinner with her husband, a dinner of Scotch broth she had probably prepared herself. Scotch broth is a hearty lamb soup that is seasoned with Scotch whisky, a soup made popular in Scotland. Instead of having Scotch broth for dinner, she "imagined delicate food served in marvelous dishes, murmured gallantries, listened to with an inscrutable smile as one trifled with the rosy flesh of trout or wings of asparagus chicken." In other words, she imagined herself at fancy expensive dinner parties with expensive multiple course meals served on silver dishes. The fact that she imagines herself in places other than in her home eating things other than what she can afford is a clear sign that she is very envious of those in a socioeconomic class above hers.
A second passage that clearly describes her envy is found at the start of the second page. The narrator states, "She had no clothes, no jewels, nothing. And these were the only things she loved; she felt she was made for them." Her belief that she was made for things that are far too expensive for her to purchase as a woman in the middle class shows us just how much she envies the upper class. In addition, the narrator explains that Mathilde has a wealthy friend she met at school that she does not visit because seeing how her friend lives makes Mathilde so envious that "she would weep whole days, with grief, regret, despair, and misery" (p. 2). The fact that seeing her friend makes her cry clearly shows just how much Mathilde envies her friend.
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