The lost of the necklace is really a catastrophe to Mme.Loisel. But what if she had not lost it? No doubt great changes would have taken place on her life. By a successful ball with first-class people in the society, her amour-propre might be satisfied, her energy filled and her confidence enhanced. Could it last forever on the fact that the necklace did not necessarily belong to her.
Of course no. I cannot image that if there was a second invitation for her, she could resist her temptation to refuse it. She would probably be plunged into a grievance a second time. Maybe she could fulfill her amour-propre by borrowing a necklace or a diamond from another Mme. Forestier, but could her always succeed? From the passage, I can confer that Mme. Forestier seemed to be the only affluent dear friend. Can she brazen the borrowing, or more explicitly, the begging out for more than one time?
If she failed to borrow a valuable article that agreed with the ball, her own choice was to decline the invitation reluctantly. However, a peacock in her pride would soon lose her way when all the glories and adoration died away. In this way, her vanity would make her life gloomier, for a one-time success of showing herself will not cool, but increase her peacockery. She had to live under the enormous contrast between her cradle-to-grave dream with her unromantic reality.
I can imagine her life if that happened: She suffered ceaselessly, feeling herself born for all the delicacies and all the luxuries. “I deserve it” She murmured, with her everlasting sweet memory of the successful ball, the dainty dinners, the shining silverware, the tapestry which peopled the walls with ancient personages. She was extremely afraid of encountering anyone she had accosted in that ball on the street or receiving their invitation. She had to conceal her real status of lowlife by drawing up ceaseless lies to all her acquaintances.
Compared with the ending of the story, she didn’t need to burden a 10-year debt, nor would she be reduced to poverty. But does it mean that the suppositional life will exceed the real one? No! For all the setbacks and hardships, her bravery, honest and hardworking would surely conquer it, just as the author wrote in the story: She had the ability to repay the debt! She succeeded!
In my eye, her spiritual agony of peacockery and the sequel unduly disappointment will be more catastrophic than her material poverty. So her life would have been even worse if she had not lost the necklace.