Grandmother: Good Man Is Hard to Find & Mathilde in Necklace

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Grandmother
“A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor and “The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant reveal two protagonist characters namely Grandmother and Mathilde respectively. Through the elaboration of different settings such as traveling to Florida via Tennessee and the party, both authors through the use of characters reveal the theme of pride to get anything they need. However, such pride lands the characters in different problems. Flannery in his novel shows the pride of Grandmother in Bailey family through her manipulative traits while Guy shows Mathilde as a person who is in constant need of material life in the upper social class. In both cases, the behaviors of the protagonists lead to their fall.
Grandmother in “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by Flannery O’Connor is a character who is boastful and determined in getting whatever she wants. The Grandmother reveals her manipulative trait and shows Bailey family that she does not want to go to Florida. Instead, she remembers that she has relatives in Tennessee that she has to see. The Grandmother is quick to seize any opportunity to change Bailey's mind by coming up with a scary report on a criminal who is on the loose. Grandmother says, "Just you read it. I wouldn't take my children in any direction with a criminal like that aloose in it. I couldn't answer to my conscience if I did." (O'Connor1). Realizing that the manipulative story does not materialize, the Grandmother says that the children had been to Florida.
Mathilde as a protagonist is a lady who is materialistic and a high maintenance woman who desires wealth, parties, jewelry and a comfortable life. The woman becomes bitter and resentful because she has no money and servants, nice clothes, a nice house, nice jewelry, and friends. Mathilde longs for a better life and money and demands money from her husband to get a one-night party with rich people (De Maupassant 3). Mathilde through her manipulative ways, decides to borrow a necklace from Madame Forestier. Besides, she forces her husband to buy her a new dress. Later on, she manages to attend the party with her husband. Mathilde loves the party and feels good when men think she is the most beautiful lady at the party. However, her pride and lusts for wealthy life land her to problems. She realizes that the necklace is gone and both search for the diamond necklace in vain. Therefore, the couple decides to take loans to pay for the replacement necklace hence they live in poverty for ten years (De Maupassant 3).
Separately, both Flannery and De Maupassant use pride to portray the feeling of status for Grandmother and Mathilde. For example, Grandmother in “A Good Man ...