English 201-
October 16, 2013
The Mirror
A long time ago the difference between perception and reality was defined as the act of understanding in contrast to the act of being real. Reality could be tricky; most of us including myself depending on scenarios of our lives tend to give in to ideas which are not applicable to reality as a whole. The best example of this is written in the short story “All Over” by Guy de Maupassant. In which his main character Lormerin is very self conscious and narcissistic also Lise de Vance, a former old love plays a big role in hurting Lormerin ego and opening his eyes by showing him, his real self. Many would say that when reality knocks it could be harsh and confusing. In the next couple of …show more content…

It might be envy, that she grew old and he still look handsome. Once he finished reading the letter, the mixed emotions and the heart beat went out the roof. After all, Lise might have been the only woman for which Lormerin actually felt love for. The letter that she wrote seemed friendly and touching. As he is preparing to encounter Lise for dinner he revises his appearance from head to toes. He thinks so highly of himself and expects her to look old and fragile. A very self centered character, Lormerin plans to shatter her world, he actually felt good at the thought to belittle her. As he is making his way into the apartment, the first thing he sees is his own portrait hanging on the wall. A picture of when he was the young and handsome Lormerin. Many thoughts come to mind, what was the purpose of this portrait there? After all it was the first thing he saw, even before meeting Lise. Perhaps this was Lise’s idea to open up his eyes and show him the contrast of how he really looks. His self esteem has suffered a big blow while entering and encountering the beau on the portrait from twenty five years ago. It seemed from here on that Lise had something else planned for dinner.
His confidence has now suffered a big blow, he is more vulnerable. As they continued the conversation, Lise introduced her daughter which resembled her quite a lot. Lise transports Lormerin to a time well beyond his reach, a time when he actually felt love for another person. Lormerin