Setting And Character In Guy De Maupassant’s The String
It is difficult to believe that something as insignificant as a piece of string could cause a person to lose his mind and eventually die, but in Guy de Maupassant’s short story, The String, the reader is asked to accept such an extreme premise. De Maupassant masterfully uses the setting of a rural French town and it’s market-place to help reveal the character of everyday peasant Maître Hauchecome, thereby making the story believable.
De Maupassant introduces the town of Goderville in France by painting a literary picture of peasants on their way to the bustling market square. Their bodies are crippled from years of hard labor and they make their way slowly and painfully. One can assume they do not lead a pleasant and carefree life. The people are compared to animals: “It all smacked of the stable, the dairy, and the dung-heap, of hay and sweat, giving forth that sharp, unpleasant odor, human and animal, peculiar to the people of the fields” (25). The women have “spare, straight figures” and “flat bosoms” (25). In spite of their poor health and lack of money, the men’s clothes are “shining as if varnished,” and “puffed about their bony bodies” (25). This detail is important to introduce the crucial notion of pride to the story. Even after years of grueling, crippling work, the peasants’ spirit remains intact and they take satisfaction in their appearance. The marketplace itself is an important part of their difficult lives. They are scrounging for all they can get, “always in fear of being cheated” (26). They are clever and watch their money carefully. There is always an element of pride mixed in with their actions. The women selling their animals “stated their price with a dry air” and when their customer begins to leave they consent to their price (26). As is evidenced by the peasants clothing and actions, pride and honor are paramount. Without much wealth, it is all they really have.
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