In Guy de Maupassant's short story, "The Christening, " we are given an intriguing account of the deadly nature of alcohol, which is referred to as "the seductive murderer and the delightful destroyer, " by the old ship's surgeon. After taking a sip from freshly poured drink, he recounts a disturbing event where he witnesses a "tragedy caused by alcohol, " in the village of Brittany. The people of Brittany have fallen victim to the "seductive " nature of "the drink, "--consumption past the point of intoxication. In telling his story, the doctor warns of how alcohol can poison the minds of those who are not wise enough to understand the dangers of "the drink. ".
At the beginning of the story the doctor describes a past event where he saw a foreigners, described as a "tribe of savages, " exposed to alcohol by a "red-bearded English seamen, "--a probable reference to the early Viking seafarers. The alcohol was described as being "calmly unloaded " from the ships of the "English seamen "--as to infer that they had some understanding, respect, and control over the dangerous nature of alcohol. The "tribe of savages " is further identified, and perhaps even denigrated, when the doctor calls them a "little kingdom of negroes. " Shortly after being exposed to this new and foreign drink, these "savages, " all mysteriously perish from their abuse of alcohol. From this early passage the doctor perceives the tribal people as being more primitive than their Viking counterparts.
The doctor uses the "savages " of the first story to segway into an even more disturbing tale about a village, in the town of Brittany, where alcohol had similarly exacted a heavy toll, as he describes the disturbing absence of adult aged men. He attributes their deaths a result of their "weary and drunk " behavior, as they often fell victim to the sea. One day the doctor is asked by his servant Kerandec, who was also his gardener, to be the godparent of his newly born child.
Delineate how Guy de Maupassant creates moral dilemmas in his short stories. ... Does Guy de Maupassant create moral issues because it is based on the truth of his past? ... Maupassant's childhood consisted of a good education and upbringing. ... Maupassant does this deliberately for our entertainment. ... As I have said, how Guy de Maupassant created moral dilemma's is very clever. ...
Mother Savage 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. ... Although Maupassant is not entirely objective in this short story, he lets Mother Savage disclose her true self through her actions. ...
In the short story The Necklace, Guy de Maupassant, the author and is generally considered the greatest French short story writer, uses several symbols and themes throughout the story to help give his readers their own analysis. ... Another symbol that Maupassant uses is the marriage of Mathilde. ... Another theme that Maupassant uses in his short story The Necklace is the superiority of women. ... Maupassant is a great writer in a sense that he gives a completely different view on life. ... And that is what makes Guy de Maupassant a great writer. ...
The Necklace (Guy de Maupassant) The title of this short story "The Necklace" represents the materialism that misguides Mathilde the main character and it is the focal point of the story. ... Maupassant foreshadows a terrible calamity: at that point when the party was over "All was ended, for her". ...
The setting in the short story "The Piece of Sting", by French author Guy de Maupassant, has been introduced by using specific imagery styles to show the reader the importance of such literary usage and its effects. ... Widening the view of imagery from one sense (visual) to the various senses, gives the reader, and literary analyst, a chance to see how Maupassant's imagery and setting are combined. ... If Maupassant had stated a simple quote like "the meat was roasted and there was plenty for all- there would never have been the same effect as the former. ... "He died early in January...
Marriage Upon reading Guy De Maupassant's "The Necklace" and Kate Chopin's "Story of an Hour", I have come to a striking conclusion. ... Guy De Maupassant's "The Necklace" is a satirical short story about a young woman named Mathilde who is unhappy with her social stature. For example, Maupassant clearly states, "She daydreamed of large, silent anterooms, decorated with oriental tapestries and lighted with two elegant valets in short culottes dozing in large armchairs under the affects of forced-air heaters" (Maupassant 5). ... That is why both Maupassant and Chopin are s...
In Guy de Maupassant's short story, "The Necklace" there is a clear relationship of the theme individual and society. ... Maupassant sets Madame Loisel in conflict with society, for she could easily have been a lady had her parents been wealthy. ... Throughout Maupassant's story, Mme. Loisel sees herself as the "accident of fate" as Maupassant writes in the first paragraph. ...
The Necklace by Guy de Maupassant In the story of the necklace, the main character was named Mathilde. Mathilde was born at a time when women were not encouraged to have a career, and was respected based upon their station in life. This caused great distress among women who dreamt of more th...
