One of the most famous examples of alliteration in literature is “The Necklace” by Guy de Maupassant. This story is about a woman named Mathilde who receives a necklace from her husband as a gift, but loses it before she can wear it. The story uses the sound of the letter “n” throughout its description of Mathilde and her necklace. For example, the first sentence begins with the phrase “She was one of those pretty and charming girls born, as though fate had blundered, into a family of artisans.” This sentence uses the alliterative sound of “n” six times in just five words—a very effective start to an alliterative story!
The story also uses alliteration in its descriptions of the necklace itself. For example, it describes the necklace as “a string of small pearls that sparkled and shone.” In this sentence, notice how both parts of the description start with an “s” sound: “sparkled” and “shone.” This makes for an even more effective description because both parts flow together smoothly—they’re like two parts of one sentence rather than two separate sentences that happen to be next to each other.
