Mathilde Loisel from “The Necklace” and Dee from “Everyday Use” can easily be compared and contrasted, as they treat others very similarly and the situations they put themselves or, unfortunately, fall into are ironic. Although the stories take place in completely different settings, the similarities between the two are striking. The authors of “The Necklace” and “Everyday Use” use irony and characterization to illustrate the personalities and motivations of Mathilde and Dee. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay The most significant aspect to observe in Mathilde is her great attention to image. Throughout the story, her behaviors revolve around her motivation or desire to create a positive self-image for society. This is seen most profoundly when she prepares for the ball; she wants to make sure she is dressed well so she can be considered rich. The way Mathilde speaks to her husband gives the reader the impression that she is spoiled and very ungrateful. When she is told that they have received an invitation, Mathilde responds, with an exclamation of disgust: “What do you want me to do with that? (Maupassant 2). She continues to act ungrateful, complaining about having nothing to wear and not having any nice jewelry or stones to wear. Her husband encourages her behavior when he gives her money for a new dress and when he takes out the huge amount of loans he took out to pay off the replacement necklace. Of course, we can infer that perhaps her husband cared as much about her image as she did, because he goes out of his way to help her. At the beginning of the story, she was obsessed with appearing rich and felt like she deserved to be rich. After she and her husband replace the necklace with a brand new one, thus falling into debt, Maupassant describes her impending descent into poverty. She had lived as she had never lived and finally, once the debt had been completely repaid, she told Madame Forestier what she had done and that she felt happy to have repaid the necklace. As the reader has just discovered, the original necklace was a fake. Guy de Maupassant used a bit of irony towards the end of the story to further develop Mathilde's character. Mathilde is quite privileged at first and, although she was not rich, she had the luxury and money to live comfortably. She aspires to be rich and complains about her poverty. In the end, she is poor and worse off than when she started. Dee, from “Everyday Use,” is very concerned about separating herself from her family, or so it seems. Mom explains how she was as a child and teenager, and her motivation doesn't change much; she continues to move further and further away from her family. This motivation is intentional and is proven when the author writes: “[Dee] She once wrote to me that no matter where we “choose” to live, she will manage to come see us. But she’ll never bring her friends” (Walker 493). The author's choice of the word manage, instead of promise or another equivalent word, gives the reader the feeling that Dee feels obligated and only said this because she felt it. According to the narrator, Dee always had confidence in herself and wanted to study rather than work in the same way as her mother. The narrator explains that Dee often read to her family, but she read in a condescending manner. When Dee explains that she wanted to be called Wangero, she says, "I couldn't bear to be named after the people who oppress me...I wasn't there until 'Dicie' appeared in our.