1. “The Necklace”
By Guy de Maupassant

2. Reflect & Write: 5 minutes
How important is status?
What gives you status in a society? In our society?
STATUS: the position of an individual in relation to another or others, especially in regard to social, economic, or professional standing.

3. Definitions: clerk – office worker
dowry - property or money brought by a bride to her husband on their marriage
prospects – chances or possibilities, especially of financial success or moving up in the world
birth and breeding – a family’s history and social status (these were pretty much fixed for this time period of the mid to late 1800s in Europe)

4. See Symbol Handout: 15 minutes
Find 3 passages from the story where the necklace appears as a symbol. Write down each passage and note the page number in the box in the left column of your chart.
In each box of the right column of your chart write down the possible meaning or interpretation of the symbol (the necklace) for its particular passage.

5. Theme Review A theme is what the story is about, AND
what the author has to say about the topic – what message is the author trying to convey?

6. 15 minutes: Theme(s) for “The Necklace”
Answer the following questions, then use those answers to help you decide a possible theme for this story. Write a theme statement for “The Necklace” and turn in these answers to the box as you leave today.
How are social classes presented in this short story?
What does the necklace symbolize in the story?
What is the author saying about social classes in the story?
How are women presented in “The Necklace?”
What or who is responsible for Mathilde's unhappiness?
With all the suffering in "The Necklace," would you say the story takes a bleak (miserable, sad, dreary) view of life?
Write a theme statement for “The Necklace.”