The main theme of this story from Henry James is that things aren’t always as they appear. The stepson of a deceased vicar’s wife offers her gaudy costume jewellery to his young cousin. Later, the cousin learns that one piece, a pearl necklace, may be genuine. This is one of those rare stories where a protagonist who chooses to do the right thing is the only loser. Mystery surrounds how the dead woman came by such a necklace, and its fate after she returns it. Other themes: temptation, morality, vanity, greed, betrayal.
James freely admitted that the story was inspired by (and is a reversal of) Guy de Maupassant’s The Necklace. Its charm lies in the fact that everything is left up in the air. Did Mrs. Guy really buy the necklace in Bond Street, or did she negotiate directly with Arthur? Did Arthur really have the necklace valued, or did Mrs. Guy “luridly” intervene earlier… in which case it may still be paste! For Mrs. Guy, the value of the necklace lies not in what it cost her, but in the way it makes her feel.
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