The Jewels and Life in the Country Essay Example

especially since the sale of the child only compensated the Vallins with a hundred francs a month, which was not enough to replace the value of their son's presence in their lives. They would have needed a hundred and twenty francs instead.

It is worse that the child's father bargained with the d'Hubieres to buy their son. This disregards the child's childhood. Madame d'Hubiere's upbringing made her spoiled enough to want to buy the boy, showing little regard for others. Madame Tuvache allowed jealousy to drive her to say spiteful things, causing the families to be driven apart. Coarse jeers were heard daily on one doorstep, affecting the houses next door.

The money also affects Tuvache's moral superiority over the Vallins as she refused to sell her son, earning her an arrogant outlook that made her think she was superior to others. She spoiled her son as a result, leading him to believe he was better than his friends. This upbringing caused Charlot to storm out in anger when Jean arrived home and throw everything his parents had done for him in their faces, saying he could have been like Jean. Despite this, the Tuvaches were not tempted by the money and found it sinful and wicked.

Despite the act of good that was performed, the following evil seems to have overshadowed it. Jean, who grew up with wealth, did not let it affect him as he treated the Vallins' dwelling as his own. His upbringing did not make him arrogant either as he was well-educated and returned home as a young gentleman. Furthermore, the social context of the story, specifically the selling of a

child, must be taken into account.

Despite our condemnation of the action, one could argue that the parents' intentions - to provide their son with a good education and opportunities beyond what they could provide - make the selling of a child somewhat justified. However, this decision was clearly not made lightly, as the parents appeared visibly serious despite the significant sum of money offered. Moving on to "The Jewels," Monsieur Lantin meets and falls in love with a virtuous woman who embodies all traits of a sensible partner. The couple enjoys six happy years of marriage until tragedy strikes.

'She develops a passion for jewellery and frequents the theatre regularly, causing discomfort to Monsieur Lantin. Madame Lantin becomes increasingly obsessed with her jewels, culminating in her death from pneumonia after a night out at the theatre. This devastates Monsieur Lantin who considers joining her in the afterlife. With financial struggles, he decides to sell what he referred to as his wife's 'trash', namely her supposed imitation jewellery. Among them is a large necklace, which the jeweller appraises at a surprisingly high value, and which Madame Lantin appeared to cherish the most.'

Monsieur Lantin is completely astonished when he takes the necklace to another shop and it is valued even higher. To his surprise, the jeweller claims that the necklace was bought at his own shop. The jeweller then reveals that the necklace was initially purchased for Madame Lantin and sent to their house. Monsieur Lantin is left completely dumbfounded as he finally grasps the truth about his wife's jewels and how she came to possess them.

He collapses and regains consciousness in a pharmacy, then hails a

cab to return home. He weeps intensely until dusk, but ultimately inherits his wealth. He liquidates his remaining jewelry and starts living extravagantly, resigning from his occupation and acquiring expensive pastimes like attending the theater and patronizing sex workers. After just half a year, he remarries, but his marital union provokes tremendous displeasure. In this tale, Maupassant contests our convictions and prompts us to scrutinize our principles, presenting us with numerous ethical quandaries.

The discussion revolves around whether money is the root of all evil. One argument supporting this idea is demonstrated through the character of M. Lantin's wife, who married him solely for his wealth and showed no regard for her feelings towards him. She even sought a suitable match by befriending middle-class families in the area. However, despite Monsieur Lantin's financial status being insufficient, he turned to prostitution to make ends meet. This act was not only immoral due to the selling of her body but also deceitful towards her husband, causing him great distress as he began questioning her previous virtuousness and honesty.

Although the money earned from prostitution may have benefited the woman in her lifetime, it brought shame to her husband after her death. The husband was hesitant to claim the money received from selling his wife's necklace due to this shame and he was negatively affected by the money as well. He became boastful, exaggerating and lying about receiving two hundred, three hundred, or four hundred thousand francs throughout the last few paragraphs of the story. Despite this negative impact, there were positive outcomes from the money as well. It allowed him to move on from his wife and play leap-frog

with a statue of the Emperor in the sky for a moment before an unhappy second marriage. Additionally, quitting his job and resigning gave him a sense of freedom only possible with financial support. Lastly, it had also brought happiness to his wife when she was alive through purchasing jewels that she loved.

'Madame Lantin ran his household so skilfully', managing to supply fine wines and rare delicacies, which lessened the evil of the money,' suggests that whether money is considered evil or not depends on social circumstances. These stories reflect Maupassant's own experiences, particularly evident in their location – both set in France, where Maupassant himself lived and observed the Normandy region.'

Maupassant's ability to write about people from both sides of the classes is made evident in his description of Normandy as 'double-sided'. He speaks of the very rich places with beautiful houses and countryside that contrasts completely with the poverty found on steep hillsides or narrow valleys where people lived in slums that 'gave off the stench of sweaty underwear and stale food.' Maupassant experienced life as both poor and rich; his family inherited a private income providing them with a comfortable life until they lost this fortune during the war, but he himself became very wealthy in his mid-thirties. This experience allowed him to write about people from both sides of the classes which is apparent in 'Life in the Country' as he writes about both poor farming families and the d'Hubieres, and 'The Jewels' where he writes about a poor girl who goes to Paris to marry a wealthy man. In each story, there is a change in status or wealth belonging

to someone which may also reflect his life. Additionally, Maupassant's childlessness may have influenced him to write about the d'Hubieres being childless.

The story 'Life in the Country' highlights Monsieur d'Hubiere's incapacity to conceive a child, as evidenced by his negative response to Madame d'Hubieres' enthusiasm for children, which he interpreted as a personal attack. This mirrors Maupassant's alleged womanizing and absence of documented progeny, suggesting that he may have faced comparable challenges. Furthermore, Jean's departure from home for schooling mirrors Maupassant's own boarding school experience. I hold the belief that not all evil stems from money.

While the word "all" is all-encompassing and money's impact on individuals is greatly influenced by their character and circumstances, I remain skeptical. The biblical quote "the love of money is the root of all evil" may be more accurate, but it could also be argued that valuing money at any level can be immoral. Madame Tuvache acted immorally despite not loving money, driven by her desire for it. However, if one does not value money at all, they risk ending up impoverished. Ultimately, determining the morality of someone's relationship with money remains inconclusive. What truly matters are one's intentions and reactions rather than the amount of wealth possessed.