The Hairpin and Humiliation

Many people believe that it is easier to have relationship with someone who has the same background. And most of the time, people think economic background as the most important aspect. Guy de Maupassant, in his two stories “Humiliation” and “The Hairpin” relates love and economic background in unique way. Of these two, I prefer “Humiliation” to “The Hairpin.” That is because even though “The Hairpin” is better in describing the conflict, the character’s feeling in “humiliation” is more understandable for most readers.

In both stories, de Maupassant explains his idea by telling the former experience of the main character. However, there are some differences between the two stories. In “Humiliation,” the main character – Margeurite is loved by someone’s from lower background. Her experience start when she had a new female maid, Rose, who Margeurite likes very much. She let Margeurite handle everything. Until someday Margeurite knows that in fact, Rose is a man who has committed a crime. However, in the end, she is still flattered because she feels that Rose’s attention and handling means love from him. While in “The Hairpin”, the story itself focused on a man who is deeply in love with a woman from a higher society. Although the woman only looks him from his wallet, the man still loves her very much. He has lost all his wealth because of his experience with her, yet he still works like a mad man to have enough money, so that he could back to her for another one year.