Concept of Id,
Ego, and Superego in the Short Story “The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant
Rahmat
Setiawan
092154030
English Language and Literature Dept. faculty of
Language and arts
State University of Surabaya (Unesa)
Lidah Wetan
Campus
In a Short Story, there must be characters
that influence the whole of the aspect of the story like plot and conflict
through the behaviors and motivation. Sariban (2009:165) in Teori dan Penerapan
Penelitian Sastra also explain that the source of behaviors is from the motivation.
Both of them will form the personality or person’s character. Minderop
(2010:21) in the Psikology Sastra said that personality contains three
structures, Id, Ego, and Superego. Id
is the basic natural instinct and based on pleasure principle. Ego is the differential of Id and located between unconsciousness
and consciousness and as the arbiter between Id and Superego. Ego
works based on the reality principle. Superego
is the part of moral that from parents and environment.
This
analysis is purposed to analyze the character’s personality of the short story
because the analysis of psychology taken from the text of the short story.
In the short story “The Necklace”, the
main character Mathilde is in the reality that she is beautiful woman but her
husband is only a clerk. Mathilde feels so uncomfortable of it, full of regret,
and sorrowful. That feeling is the form of Mathilde’s Id that is repressed by the reality of being an only clerk’s wife.
The feelings appear to She suffered intensely, feeling
herself born for every delicacy and every luxury. She suffered from the poverty
of her dwelling, from the worn walls, the abraded chairs, the ugliness of the
stuffs. All these things, which another woman of her caste would not even have
noticed, tortured her and made her indignant” (Maupassant, 1907:3). She imagines pleasures, one dinner
shows how big her desire of luxuries. It is in “She
was thinking of delicate repasts, with glittering silver, with tapestries
peopling the walls with ancient figures and with strange birds in a fairy-like
forest; she was thinking of exquisite dishes, served in marvelous platters, of
compliment whispered and heard with a sphinx-like smile, while she was eating
the rosy flesh of a trout or the wings of a quail” (Maupassant, 1907:4). Her desire
about luxurious thing, glamour, and looked rich are the reflection of her Id. The raising conflict drives the Id “crazier”. It is when they get an
invitation from The Minister of Education and Madame Ramponneau at the Ministry
on the evening of Monday, 18th January. Mathilde is shame to wear
her dress, she cries and her husband finally gives her four hundred francs. The
husband here is like the Ego of
Mathilde, it fulfills the Id’s demand
because giving Mathilde the money is the realistic thing to stop her crying out
again. Crying here is the effect of unfulfilling the Id. Look here “All right. I
will give you four hundred francs. But take care to have a pretty dress.”
(Maupassant, 1907:29).
Then
her husband, deciding the realistic thing to fulfill the Mathilde’s Id of having new dress, it represents
the Ego. Actually, the Ego of Mathilde also tries to buy, but
it is more realistic to do by her husband because in this story the husband has
the money. It means that buying the new dress is the Ego of Mathilda, but her husband represents it. Id will never feels satisfied, after
having new dress, Mathilde wants to wear jewels. She forces to wear jewels
although either she or her husband does not have it. Her husband tries to
ensure her that it is fine without the jewels, just wearing the flower. “You will wear some natural flowers. They are
very stylish this time of the year. For ten francs you will have two or three
magnificent roses.” (Maupassant, 1907:35). Nevertheless, Mathilde keep
forcing of wearing jewels, this the riot of her Id that has been repressed for long, it demands to the Ego of Mathilde to wear any jewels.
Here, the character of Mathilde’s husband is representation of the Superego that blocks the Id’s demand and it is like a moral, that
simple and natural are better than forcing to be luxuries. This is being the
conflict between the Id and Superego; the Ego should be immediately finding the decision that is realistic to
do and fulfilling both of them. It is to reduce the internal conflict of the Ego or Mathilde’s self.
In
that case, her husband also becomes the reflected Ego of Mathilde that decides to give advice to lend the jewels to
Mme. Forestier. “What a goose you are! Go
find your friend, Mme. Forester, and ask her to lend you some jewelry. You know
her well enough to do that.” (Maupassant, 1907:39). Lending is reality to
do, and her husband reflects the Ego
of Mathilde that should decide something to do. The Id’s demand does not stop, after meeting Mme. Forestier and Mme.
Forestier allowed her to lend the jewelries, Mathilde choose the diamond
necklace whereas it belongs to the beautiful jewelry. “All at once she discovered, in a box of black satin, a superb necklace
of diamonds, and her heart began to beat with boundless desire. Her hands
trembled in taking it up. She fastened it round her throat, on her high dress,
and remained in ecstasy before herself.” (Maupassant, 1907:48). Looking at
a beautiful diamond necklace, the Id demands to select it. It seems to her
desire, and the Ego finally follows the Id. The Ego does not ponder to the Superego. Actually, after lending the
necklace, Mathilde loses the necklace. She exchanges it by buying the similar
necklace and lends money to a debt collector. She pays by installment and
spends all of her rest time by paying her installment until all about her life
has changed. She is regretful of not following and listening to her Superego or her husband.
Based
on the concept of Id, Ego, and Superego, in the short story “The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant, especially
the main character, Mathilde has the selfish character and not a wise woman.
She always tries and forces to fulfill her Id’s
demand with regardless to the Superego
that represented by her husband. When she has given money for buying new dress,
she keeps wishing of having jewelries to wear, it represented her Id that search for pleasure of herself
while her Ego ignores the Superego that is represented by her
husband. It is like in human real life that woman is more difficult to handle
the desire, especially about shopping and prestigious thing than men are. It
should be a lesson for a better life. The Id
always demands more and more with regardless to anything, the Ego should immediately decide to do
something to fulfill the Id with
pondering to the Superego. Finally,
the author inputs the moral value that someone should feel happy and fulfilled.
If someone cannot handle the Id or
ignoring the Superego, something bad
will come.
References:
Maupassant, Guy
de. 1907. The Necklace. In B. Matthews (Trans.), The Short-Story (Chapter XX). New York: American Book Company.
Minderop,
Albertine 2010, Psikologi Sastra, Jakarta:
Yayasan Obor Indonesia.
Sariban 2009, Teori dan Penerapan Penelitian Sastra, Surabaya:
Lentera Cendekia.
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