# Mademoiselle Pearl — Short Fiction character guide

> Mademoiselle Pearl in Short Fiction by Guy de Maupassant.

**Role:** supporting

**Also known as:** Pearl, Mademoiselle

**First appearance:** 0003-short-fiction

## Snapshot

A quiet governess whose long devotion to an adopted boy hides a past that a festive evening will finally expose.

## Who they are

Mademoiselle Pearl — called Mademoiselle Source in the household — raises a frail, bookish boy with patient, jealous love, watching him drift from her knee to his chair by the fire. As he grows silent and unreachable, she is left weeping in the long tête-à-tête, frightened by a danger she cannot name. Her secret, whatever it is, sits under the surface of every ordinary evening, and the story's festive gathering is where it finally surfaces.

## In the story

### [Short Fiction](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_23_se/chapters/short-fiction)

Title character of 'Mademoiselle Pearl', a woman whose quiet life hides a secret past.

### [A Dead Woman's Secret](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_23_se/chapters/a-dead-woman-s-secret)

The daughter, a nun, initially reads the letters aloud but stops in shock when she uncovers the passionate correspondence.

### [A Widow](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_23_se/chapters/a-widow)

The old aunt who tells the story of the ring and her tragic past.

### [Mademoiselle Pearl](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_23_se/chapters/mademoiselle-pearl)

The central figure of the story, an elderly spinster living with the Chantal family, whose secret past and unrequited love are revealed during the New Year's dinner.

### [I](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_23_se/chapters/i)

She keeps the keys to the kitchen cupboards and participates in the household's provisioning discussions with Madame Chantal.

### [II](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_23_se/chapters/ii)

The quiet, overlooked maiden lady of the Chantal household, whose hidden grace and sorrow are noticed by the narrator for the first time.

### [III](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_23_se/chapters/iii)

The abandoned baby girl discovered on Epiphany night, now a grown woman living with the Chantal family.

### [IV](https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_23_se/chapters/iv)

The quiet, gentle woman whose hidden love for Monsieur Chantal is revealed; she faints upon learning of his past feelings.

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_23_se/characters/mademoiselle_pearl
- Book: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_23_se
- All characters: https://www.betterreads.dev/discover/short_fiction_23_se/characters