The character of Mathilde is complex. She is an unhappy person based on her family's financial background. She was born into a poor family and married into a poor family. Mathilde relied on her beauty as her only fortune. In her mind, her beauty was the only way she would be ever noticed. Her negativity stems from her lifestyle of poor living. She was unhappy with her house and often dreamed about having a beautiful home. Mathilde's character creates the situation that causes the financial penance that her family must undergo. Her unrealistic dreams of becoming something that she is not caused the financial disaster with the necklace. She manipulated her husband into buying her a dress for the party. After her husband bought her the dress, she declares she has no fine jewelry to wear with the dress. Her personal embarrassment about being viewed as poor and greed caused the financial penance.
             Mathilde's daydreams are unusual for a woman of her station. Many other women in Mathilde's position would have overlooked their living conditions. Mithilde sees herself as something more than what she is. She envy's other people who have better a better financial life. A case can be made that Maupassant fashions the ironic conclusion to demonstrate that Mathilde deserves her misfortune. Mathilde's greed and anxiety of not being apart of the upper class causes her to manipulate her husband to buy her a dress. She is well aware of her husband's financial issues when he suggests that her theater dress will suit just fine for the occasion. Mathilde is still unhappy even after her husband bought her a new expensive dress, because she has no fine jewelry to wear with the dress. Once again, her greed and anguish control her actions. She borrows a necklace from a friend, loses the necklace, and spends the next ten years of her life paying what she thought was a real pearl nec
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