This short masterpiece tells of love, betrayal, and a search for real meaning in life. Kitty is an attractive middle class Brit. The only real future for her is to marry well. But when she finds none of her suitors quite up to her hopes, and with her younger sister becoming engaged, she succumbs to the pressure and agrees to marry Walter, a man who adores her, but whom she finds boring. He takes her with him to Hong Kong where he works as a bacteriologist. Date: September 18th 2022: This amazing MEDICAL CLASSIC, a fictionalized account of a young English couple who are hopelessly incompatible and their ultimate triumph of love, will take you on a journey through life’s vicissitudes (ups and downs), and a myriad of human emotions, love, betrayal, hatred, revenge and redemption, none of which is any less than the other in intensity. First published to a storm of protest, The Painted Veilis a classic story of a woman's spiritual awakening. Itis a beautifully written affirmation of the human capacity to grow, to change, and to forgive. The Painted Veil brings the quiet pleasures of a fine novel, showing us that the world’s complicated geography is no match for the terrain of the human heart. About the author: W. Somerset Maugham: William Somerset Maugham was one of the twentieth century’s most popular novelists as well as a celebrated playwright, critic, and short story writer. He was born in Paris but grew up in England and served as a secret agent for the British during World War I. He wrote many novels, including the classicsOf Human Bondage,The Razor’s Edge,Cakes and Ale,Christmas Holiday,The Moon and Sixpence,Theatre, andUp at the Villa. Walter laughed a cruel laugh. "Townsend will never leave his wife," he sneered. "You are just his plaything. If he promises to leave Dorothy, I will give you a divorce. Otherwise, you must come up country with me to Mei-fan-tu where I've offered to take charge of the cholera epidemic."

Before its publication as a book in 1925, The Painted Veil had originally been serialised the previous year, both in Nash’s magazine in London and in the American publication Hearst’s International Magazine in New York. Unlike the unaltered American First Trade Edition released by Doran on March 20 th; the bibliographic history of this First English edition, originally released by Heinemann on April 23 rd, is quite complex due to two threatened libel actions which caused drastic alterations in the text and necessitated its reissue due to these censorship complications. Kitty's thoughts turn to Charlie's wife, a dull but respectable woman named Dorothy. She is certain that Charlie is indifferent to his wife, and loves only Kitty. Kitty also thinks that Dorothy often looks down on her, which she finds ironic because Dorothy comes from a family that is very unimportant socially. Redemption: Thankfully, both Kitty and Walter were able to let go of their past mistakes. Walter truly forgave Kitty. Even without knowing whether he was the biological father of Kitty’s baby or not, Walter agreed to raise the child together. That’s true love. On the other hand, Kitty also took care of Walter until he passed away. She didn’t have to, but Kitty did it because she loved her man. Kitty has long known that her marriage with Walter was a mistake. She glances at the pictures of her mother and father in the living room; he a little wizened man with tired eyes, and she a thin, angular, harsh woman. Kitty is not particularly close to either of them.I can't say that there is one "moral of the story" that really stands out to me with the book. There were many. This book was a beautiful, albeit heartbreaking, account of the human experience. Walter is silent and pale for several days, and then gives Kitty an ultimatum. She will accompany him on his expedition to fight a cholera epidemic in Mei-tan-fu, a city in southern China, or he will bring her to court for her infidelity. Kitty is horrified, and certain that the cholera epidemic will mean her death. Walter gives her another out: if Charles agrees to marry her, he will allow her to divorce him and she can stay in Hong Kong. Kitty, delighted that she will finally get the chance to be with her beloved Charles, immediately confronts her lover with this proposal. Charles refuses to divorce his wife Dorothy, and Kitty, heartbroken, agrees to go with Walter to Mei-tan-fu.

Of course it was Walter, Kitty’s husband. In the aftermath of her affair, Kitty is forced to choose between divorcing Walter or following him into the midst of a cholera epidemic. He believes he can be helpful as a bacteriologist and physician, but he also wants to punish both Kitty and himself. Though Kitty’s character shows flashes of modern feminism, her initial impressions of Chinese people are racist. She improves, but her initial commentary dates the book. She and Walter live in Mei-tan-fu while he studies the disease and she volunteers at a nearby convent. Per favore vattene - singhiozzò - Questa è l'unica cosa che puoi fare per me adesso. Ti odio e ti disprezzo. Walter valeva dieci volte più di te e io ero troppo stupida per accorgermene. Va' via. Va' via. Coming to Hong Kong, Kitty had found it hard to reconcile herself to her husband's lowly position as bacteriologist and within three months of marriage she had known she had made a mistake. It had been her mother's fault.The Painted Veil is a 1925 novel by British author W. Somerset Maugham. The title is a reference to Percy Bysshe Shelley's 1824 sonnet, which begins "Lift not the painted veil which those who live / Call Life". The title is a reference to Percy Bysshe Shelley 's 1824 sonnet , which begins "Lift not the painted veil which those who live / Call Life". In his sonnet “Lift Not the Painted Veil…”, Percy Bysshe Shelley examines life as no more than an illusion. He believes most people are content living behind the opaque curtain provided for them, even though it creates a distorted view of life. Fear and hope are ever present, and truth seems disappointingly absent. The book served as the inspiration for three different film adaptions, including a 1934 version starring Greta Garbo, which broke box office records by earning over 1.6 million dollars. Other versions include 1957's The Seventh Sin, featuring Bill Travers and Eleanor Parker, as well as a 2006 version starring Naomi Watts and Edward Norton. What I learned in the reading of this wonderful short novel is that the film version is much more about the couple's relationship, whereas the book is much more about Kitty's coming of age. Maugham plunges us into the center of the action with little explanation. We meet Kitty and Charles in the bedroom, and from their fearful reaction to an unknown presence outside, the reader can infer that their union is an illicit one. The mysterious turning of the knobs suggests an ominous and imposing presence, but the identity of this intruder is not yet revealed. Gradually, this section provides evidence that it was Walter, Kitty's husband, who turned the knobs.

What is remarkable about this tale—both the book and the film—is that you come away uplifted in both instances. The film makers have changed the ending, perhaps realising that modern cinema audiences haven't the stomach of Maugham's readers 80 years ago. The denouement is not what you think. This is a lovestory and not a lovestory. It's about love and all its definitions. And for me, it was a tribute to the role of different kind of men playing a role in a woman's life.

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Maugham was intrigued by the idea of a jilted husband who forced his wife into a dangerous situation, and what the woman might experience there. In writing The Painted Veil, he decided to bring this story into a modern setting and change the ending.

Kitty, a woman used to being at the height of society, was frustrated to realize that she had little social importance as the wife of the government bacteriologist. Her husband Walter is indifferent to his social position, but recalls a time when he awkwardly tried to reassure his wife when he saw how irritated she was about this. Mind the corpses, there's a good girl," Waddington said in a jocular state of semi-inebriation. "Come and meet the French missionaries." Kitty was vain, loved to laugh and play, and found her new husband boring and sometimes disgusting. It wasn't long before she started an affair, fell head over heels in love and believed that she has found the real meaning of love. He's very fond of her. I will give him that credit. I think that is the most decent thing about him."

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Saddest lines in the book, from her husband: “I never expected you to love me, I didn’t see any reason that you should, I never thought myself very loveable. … What most husbands expected as a right I was prepared to receive as a favor.” Kitty Fane is a spoiled brat who thinks nothing more than herself. One day she meets Walter Fane who is immediately taken with her and asks for her hand in marriage. Kitty agrees, not because she loves him, but for selfish reasons and saving face. They move from Britain to Hong Kong, where he's a bacteriologist. Kitty is more interested in parties and socializing, and it's here where she has an affair. The affair is with an absolute scoundrel who also thinks nothing more than himself. But Kitty is such a child and just wants to be loved by him. Walter discovers the affair and almost forces her to go with him to the heart of a cholera epidemic in China. Kitty has no love for her husband, but due to shame, and no where else to go, she follows Walter. Here is where Kitty really begins to grow up. Walter now loathes Kitty but he is starting to see her in another light. But he is so driven in helping the people affected with cholera and trying to save those who live there. I'll not say more to ruin the story. The cholera epidemic in the city is severe, and scenes of death are all around. Kitty finds a friend in Waddington, the Deputy Commissioner of Customs in Mei-tan-fu, a short and rather ugly little man who is humorous, kind, and insightful. He introduces her to the nuns of Mei-tan-fu, French Catholics who inspire Kitty with their aura of peace and devotion. She begins to assist the nuns with their work, caring for orphans.