Anissa Sanchez
Ms. Vance
English 68-46
20 November 2014
Explanation Essay
Mathilde's Character causes Backfire

Mathilde's focus on materialism gets her stuck in a ten year deficit. The backfire leads to her losing what she calls her valuables in life. Appearance is such a huge priority to her due to her thinking she must stand out compared to everyone else. Reputation is key when it comes to other people's opinion about her and her life. Representation is also a key factor when it comes to clothes, jewelry, and shoes. Mathilde's characteristics are inconsiderate, avaricious, and egotistical and that is what breaks her down to an unloving person which causes the outcome of her despairing life.
Her ungrateful quality is reflected through how she treats her husband and other people she comes across. Mr. Loisel does absolutely everything in his power to please his wife in any way that he can. He convinces her to go to a well-off extravaganza to make her feel as if she was on the highest pedestal. Mr. Loisel having high hopes of making Mathilde happy, "she threw the invitation on the table with annoyance"(2). She can never be satisfied with what she has and when things turn there is always someone else to blame.
Mathilde's avaricious attitude leads to her obsession with materialistic values. She feels she deserves to be wealthy and more than what she has. Mathilde can care less about what people are willing to do to make her happy. For example, Mr. Loisel had other plans for his money, “to buy a gun and treat himself to a little shooting", but that money turned out to be used for the new dress and accessories for Mathilde. Mathilde always has obligation to prove something to her friends. The statement she tries to prove is that she is just as rich and on top as the other people in their society.
The obligation of her being wealthy leads to Mathilde's self-centered behavior. Mathilde's concept always wants more and more because she has a tendency to forget money is an issue. She gets upset when she wants all these expensive needs and her husband cannot comply with what she wants. When she borrows jewelry from friends she gets irritated because they "could not decide to take them off and give them up", so she feels her