The late French writer Guy De Maupassant, in his short story, mother savage, centers his attention on the peasantry life that prevailed in France during the late nineteenth century. The story begins with the narrator's first impression of the country after fifteen years of absence. The short story is concise and his descriptions of the characters, milieus and events are specific. The author banishes superfluous words; he uses each word as needed to transmit his vision to the reader with accuracy. .
The author does not take sides; he simply relates an event omitting personal opinions about his characters or their actions. It is up to the reader to sympathize or criticize the characters. For instance, the principle character of the story is described as "being made of the same stuff as the men of the country side -a hardy old woman, tall and gaunt, who seldom laughed and whom nobody dared to cross." Although Maupassant is not entirely objective in this short story, he lets Mother Savage disclose her true self through her actions. The physically terrifying good woman at the beginning of the story turns into a calculated being blinded by sorrow, grief and the desire to revenge the death of her son, her ultimate reason for living. .
Mother Savage is quite a realistic piece of art. It reveals the underlying cruelty that lies in man's heart. If the author meant to teach one lesson , it would be that this devilish feeling can emerge anytime life beckons. The strong and good Mother Savage at the beginning of the story became the incarnation of malevolence when her raison d'etre disappears, when the last thread of life she held on to got "cut in two" by a cannon ball. .
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