Research Paper
Something is morally right if its morally permissible, and morally wrong if it’s morally impermissible. For example, it’s morally right to help people and give to certain charities, but morally wrong to kill people indiscriminately. There are many related ideas concerning morality, such as what we ought to do, right and wrong, and justice; but these ideas often have a non-moral counterpart. Moreover, etiquette and law are often confused with morality, but they are not identical to morality. What’s polite or legal is often moral, but not always. What’s bad etiquette or illegal can be moral as well.
Morality has become a complicated issue in the multi- cultural world we live in today. People learn morality in a variety of ways. Some learn from it as they age, where they live, their religion, or mostly from parents. Moral development involves children learning how to tell the difference between right and wrong; to use this knowledge to arrive at appropriate decisions when faced with complicated choices; and to have the strength and independence to act in accordance with that right decision (to “do the right thing”) despite the fact that it may not be a convenient thing to do.
As with other components of development, morality is shaped by multiple factors. Children’s interpersonal experiences with family, peers, and other adults, as well as their maturing physical, cognitive, emotional and social skills combine to influence moral development (Oswald). Moralities in human society are inherent and internal within us. The mechanism that creates morality is built into our genetics. Morals are subject to a wide range of applications and extremes and some societal moralities can be created from lies and false beliefs.
They are subject to change and most are not absolute. What was once moral, for example slavery, is no longer moral today and thus e move on toward a more civil and moral human society (Leon). This story is about a woman named Nathalie Eloise, whom is “pretty and charming’ but feels she has been born into a family of unfavorable economic status. She married a man named Eloise that was a lowly clerk in the Ministry of Education. He can afford to provide her only with a modest, though not uncomfortable lifestyle. Nathalie feels the burden of her poverty intensely.
She wants to live just like the wealthy, high-class group. Her husband managed to obtain an invitation to a formal party hosted by the Ministry of Education. He hopes that Nathalie will be thrilled with the chance to attend an event of this sort, but she is instantly angry and begins to cry. Through her tears, she tells him that she has nothing to wear for this occasion. Her husband is upset by her reaction and asks how much a suitable dress would cost. She tells him that 400 francs would be enough. Her husband quietly balks at the sum but agrees that she may have the money.
She then realizes that she doesn’t have jewelry, so she goes to her rich friend Madame Forrester to see if she can borrow some jewelry. Madame Forrester agrees to end Nathalie her jewels, and Nathalie selects a diamond necklace. At the party, Nathalie is the most beautiful woman in attendance, and everyone notices her. She is intoxicated by the attention and has an overwhelming sense of self-satisfaction. Later, she goes home and realizes that she doesn’t have the diamond necklace. So she and her husband scavenge for it and then come to a conclusion that they have to replace the lost necklace.
They go to a shop and find the same imitation necklace for about 40,000 francs. So they buy the necklace and hand it back to Madame Forrester. Nathalie and her Cubans worked for 10 years to pay off the debt from the necklace, and Nathalie meets with Madame Forrester and she starts to blame Madame Forrester for all the work that she and her husband went through, however Madame Forrester explains to Nathalie that the original necklace that Nathalie lost was just an imitation necklace and was only worth at the most about 500 francs.
In “The Necklace,” Unpleasant makes every word count, each one contributing to the overall effectiveness of the story. He provides only minimal details to further the plot and describe the important characters. The exults is a simple, easy-to-understand story that moves smoothly and swiftly from beginning to end. Details that he leaves out allow the reader to interpret the events and the characters in his or her own way. One may compare “The Necklace” to a painting with subtle shades of meaning. Unpleasant himself remains aloof from his characters, passing no judgments on them, neither praising nor condemning them.
For example, it is up to the reader to decide whether Nathalie is a victim of bad luck (or fate) or of her own warped perception of the world as a place where SUCCeSS and recognition result from lath and status. The main character Nathalie portrayed a role in this short story that reveal to the audience that they can gain something from this because they prefer not to go through what Nathalie went through in her life. Throughout the story, people questioned whether Nathalie was a hapless victim of fate or a victim of her own desires and the choices she made to fulfill them.
She has taught many important moral values that people can learn from in both positive and negative ways. It is important to live within one’s means. The story teaches us not to borrow things or money unnecessarily. It is also not sis to live a pretentious life. If we borrow money unnecessarily, then we may get into serious trouble, especially if it involves loan sharks or in responsible money lenders. Nathalie is so tired of life in where she is at. She always wanted to be rich and live a luxurious life and attend the fanciest parties to get attention. She doesn’t appreciate what she had.
So she borrows the diamond necklace to impress others at the ball. However, the necklace is lost. As a result, Eloise and she have to replace the necklace. The repayment rates are high, both Nathalie and her compound interests accumulate. Eloise has to do multiple jobs to repay the loan. This event allows us to learn that we should avoid situations such as this One and not borrow from Other people and appreciate what we have. The story tells us that it is important to live within ones means, so we should be contented in life and not be greedy and want everything.
Eloise is very contented in life even if he leads a simple life with the income he earns. But on the other hand, Nathalie is obsessed to want all the delicacies and luxuries in life, which causes her to be in her own world and day dreams that she is wealthy and famous. This also causes her to be status-conscious, and show to others that she is not poor. As a result, she wants to dress up in beautiful clothing and borrows a diamond necklace to attend the evening ball. Her greed causes them to suffer for a period of ten years.
If she was contented with what she has and is realistic of the fact that she is the wife of an ordinary clerk, she would not have to borrow the necklace in the first place. It is important to be practical. The story teaches us to be practical and learn to solve problems carefully. Eloise is a down-to-earth person. He knows that “all that glitters is not gold” and lived life according to his means and capacity. He is able to find solutions to the problems because he is practical. It is important in life to be practical and realistic, unlike Nathalie, who is not practical.
She is a day-dreamer, who is in her own fantasy life. Later in the story, Nathalie becomes practical as she faces the realities of life. Here is your country. Cherish these natural wonders, cherish the natural resources, cherish the history and romance as a sacred heritage, for your children and your children’s children. Do not let selfish men or reedy interests skin your country of its beauty, its riches or its romance (Roosevelt). However, despite all of the greed and attitude, people could also view her personality and life as a victim.
She begins learning the consequences of her actions and starts taking responsibility for it by working for the 10 years that she did. Nathalie is not the only woman who is searching for fame and fortune, so a lot of women both back in the past and in today could relate to Matisse’s personality. The idea expanded that it was perhaps Matisse’s own yearnings, not fate, that got her into trouble. There is nothing wrong with wanting a luxurious life of money, clothes, food, jewelry, but there are limitations.
She’s cooped up in the house all day with nothing to do, and her days are marked with boredom beyond belief. Her only way out of dealing with it is to live in a fantasy world of glamour, wealth, and beautiful people. Does that situation really seem all that far-removed from today? In many ways, the figure of the dissatisfied housewife is just as relevant now as it was then. Just like Nonpayment’s contemporaries, we’re still fascinated by it, perhaps because we’re troubled by it. Why else would a show actually called Desperate Housewives be so popular?
And can’t we all relate in some way to Nathalie;s desire to live a more exciting, glamorous life, even if we can only do it in daydreams? (Willed) In conclusion, the reader is left to decide for himself whether Matisse’s downfall was of her own making or fate’s;or a combination Of both. “The Necklace” contains many moral lessons that are portrayed by the main character that may be beneficial or detrimental for a person to apply in real-life. There are many ways to learn morality, and this story contains a few situations that people try to avoid.
