Introduction
Appearances can often be deceiving, and both Guy de Maupassant in The Jewelry and William Blake in The Chimney Sweeper explore this theme through their works. Maupassant uses a surprise ending to reveal the unsavory reality behind the conventional wisdom, while Blake employs a more subtle approach with the use of an unself-aware child narrator.
This essay contends that Maupassant’s surprise ending more effectively highlights the contrast between appearances and reality, leaving a strong impact on the reader and confronting their assumptions. On the other hand, Blake’s choice of an unaware child narrator adds complexity and subtlety to his exploration of the theme. Both authors employ literary and poetic techniques to support their respective approaches.
Maupassant’s Surprise Ending
Maupassant’s The Jewelry offers an ostensibly mundane tale concerning the marriage of M. Lantin and his wife. The consensus of opinion is that the wife is virtuous and devoted, manifesting the qualities of an ideal wife and housekeeper. Nevertheless, the abrupt ending reveals her infidelity and twofold lifestyle, contradicting the reader’s suppositions and illuminating the disparity between surface appearances and veracity. The couple appears to be deeply in love, and M. Lantin idolizes his wife, believing her to be virtuous and faithful. However, conventionally wise readers may suspect that appearances can be deceiving. Maupassant subtly hints at this by describing the extravagant lifestyle that the couple enjoys on M. Lantin’s modest salary (Maupassant 90). Despite these hints, the surprise ending of the story shatters the reader’s assumptions and reveals the unsavory reality of the wife’s infidelity.
Maupassant’s utilization of irony is notably successful in delineating this discrepancy. Throughout the narrative, he portrays Mme. Lantin is the acme of a dutiful spouse, highlighting her pulchritude, tidiness, and domestic proficiency. He writes, “The young girl seemed to be the very ideal of that pure good woman to whom every young man dreams of entrusting his future” (Maupassant 90). These delineations contribute to the orthodox wisdom that she is a righteous female. Nevertheless, the unexpected conclusion exposes that she had been duping M. Lantin the entire time, leading to an existence of opulence and profligacy clandestinely.
This revelation forces the reader to reevaluate their initial assumptions about the characters and the nature of their relationship. The surprise ending is effective in highlighting the stark contrast between appearances and reality. Maupassant’s use of a sudden and unexpected revelation creates a powerful impact on the reader, challenging their preconceived notions and leaving them with a sense of unease.
The powerful effect of Maupassant’s unexpected conclusion is intensified by the contrast between the accepted understanding and the unpalatable veracity. The reader is compelled to reflect on their preconceptions and reassess the figures and their deeds. This unforeseen aberration leaves a resounding effect on the reader and successfully conveys the motif of seeming versus reality.
Blake’s Un-Self-Aware Child Narrator
In The Chimney Sweeper, Blake subtly investigates the disparity between appearance and veracity through the outlook of an oblivious juvenile storyteller. The poem follows the narrative of an immature chimney sweeper who appears to be content with his life. He characterizes his work as a chimney sweeper as a pleasant episode and assumes that he will be compensated divinely for his labor.
Nevertheless, the judicious use of an oblivious child narrator unveils the disagreeable actuality of child labor and exploitation. Blake’s implementation of a childish voice as the narrator deepens and complicates his examination of the motif. The naivete of the storyteller heightens the incongruity between what is seen and the truth. The child’s obliviousness to their own maltreatment amplifies the general acceptance of youthful toil throughout Blake’s era.
Through the juvenile protagonist, Blake also proffers a censure of the current credence, which insinuates that child labor is permissible and even advantageous. The narrator’s supposition that his toil as a chimney sweeper will lead to remuneration in paradise reflects the communal conviction that affliction on Earth will be recompensed in the hereafter. As Blake writes, “And by came an Angel who had a bright key, And he opened the coffins & set them all free;” (Blake, lines 13-14).
Nevertheless, the disagreeable verity is that child labor is a mode of exploitation and strips youngsters of their liberties and prospects. Blake’s poetic techniques further enhance the impact of his exploration of appearances versus reality. His use of vivid imagery, such as “black coffins,” evokes a sense of darkness and oppression (Blake). The contrast between the child’s innocent perception of his reality and the harshness of his actual situation is effectively conveyed through these poetic details.
Conclusion
In conclusion, both Maupassant in The Jewelry and Blake in The Chimney Sweeper play on the difference between appearances and conventional wisdom and unsavory realities. Maupassant’s surprise ending leaves a lasting impression on the reader, forcing them to question their initial assumptions, Blake’s use of an un-self-aware child narrator adds depth and nuance to his exploration of the theme. Maupassant’s irony effectively conveys the discrepancy between appearances and reality, while Blake’s poetic techniques enhance the impact of his exploration. Ultimately, both approaches are effective in conveying the theme, but Maupassant’s surprise ending leaves a lasting impression and challenges the reader’s assumptions in a more direct manner.
Works Cited
Blake, William. The Chimney Sweeper. 1789. Web.
Maupassant, Guy de. The Jewelry. 1883.