logo

91 pages 3 hours read

W. Somerset Maugham

The Painted Veil

W. Somerset MaughamFiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 1925

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Introduction

The Painted Veil

  • Genre: Fiction; historical classic
  • Originally Published: 1925
  • Reading Level/Interest: College/Adult
  • Structure/Length: 80 chapters; approx. 280 pages; approx. 7 hours on audio
  • Protagonist and Central Conflict: In 1920s Hong Kong, Kitty Fane’s husband Walter discovers her love affair with another man. When her lover refuses to marry her, Kitty accompanies Walter to a remote cholera-stricken village in China, where her experiences change her perception of Walter and impact her future choices.
  • Potential Sensitivity Issues: Racist/Intolerant language choices

William Somerset Maugham, Author

  • Bio: 1874-1965; English novelist, playwright, and short story writer; educated as a physician but abandoned medicine in favor of writing; served in England’s secret service during World War I; popular, successful, and most highly paid author of the 1930s
  • Other Works: Of Human Bondage (1915); The Moon and Sixpence (1919); The Razor’s Edge (1944)
  • Awards: In 1947, Somerset Maugham instituted The Somerset Maugham Award, a prize given to promising young authors under the age of 35.

CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit:

  • Inequality in Love
  • The Subjugated Other: White Women and Colonial Subjects
  • The Tension Between Character and Personality

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Unit, students will:

  • Gain an understanding of the British colonial historical and social context of the novel; apply this knowledge to the study of the novel’s portrayal of characters and events.
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text
blurred text