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The moon and sixpence

The moon and sixpence

By Tak SilaganPublished 10 months ago 4 min read
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Maugham's The Moon and Sixpence is an easy novel to read. No wonder Maugham was the best storyteller. Maugham had a keen insight, which was shown in his love of dissecting the behavior of his characters in order to see their hearts. Every child who was isolated in childhood would probably develop a sensitive mind. I rather like this novel, because I see a feeling that makes me happy. It is a feeling of choosing to follow the holy but slightly ethereal moon in the moon and sixpence. It is not worth living a life of abundance and security, but always ignoring the desires of one's heart. In his delight, he gave me a slap on the head, for this romantic and brave practical idealist was in one way a morally corrupt jerk, even a kind of conscience numb to fulfill his dream and ultimately the great name of genius. This is life and art pursuit in the protagonist of the tear, the novel is a novel, genius is only an exception, but this similar contradiction will not be unfamiliar to every reader.

'Then why did you leave her? "I want to paint."

This simple but cold sentence is from the book's protagonist Strickland (said to be based on the French painter Gauguin), as a stockbroker, he should have a good income, should be considered a successful person in the common definition, stable and peaceful family life in the eyes of the secular can be called a blessing. His life seemed to have nothing to do with art, even in his wife's eyes, he was a "little citizen without literary literacy", but he suddenly gave up all the foundations he had accumulated in this society, including his virtuous wife and lovely children, and went to Paris to concentrate on painting. His enthusiasm also lies in his complete lack of consideration as to whether he really has the artistic talent to prove it over time. He is like a man who is endowed with perfect talent by God and used by God to vent his creative desire uncontrollably. Perhaps, as Stroeve said in the book, "Genius is the most wonderful thing in the world. For them, genius is a big burden." We can accuse him of selfishness and irresponsibility, but we will find that such accusations do not make him feel guilty at all. They have a kind of crazy temperament, just as we can not talk with a crazy person about what is right and what is wrong, if we use their own set of moral standards to measure and demand them is a very ridiculous thing.

He abandons his wife and children and betrays his benefactors. He is really a nasty guy, but in fact, he does not bother anyone. He just lives for the call of art in his heart. His wife, his wife's sister, and so on, they would live largely for respectability in the eyes of others, and the name of love might be a mere ornament to a respectability marriage. For the sake of respectability is, in fact, the root of many misfortunes. Under the cloak of civilization, there is another face of barbarism. Maugham's scathing brush was directed at the wife, but she was still a poor victim.

We are all faced with the choice of betraying the people around us (especially our family) or betraying ourselves (our ideals, love, etc.). Usually our conscience and moral sense tell us that going against the will of our loved ones is not the right thing to do and should not be done, so we are all good and ordinary people. Maugham said, "Everything should be done with the permission of others. Perhaps one of the most deeply rooted instincts of civilized humans." Therefore, most people live their whole life only to fulfill a set pattern of life.

Why does Maugham set the protagonist as a stockbroker? I think such an arrangement is really a shock of contrast. They are people who deal with sixpence every day, and their lives are so monotonous and similar that in time they think the round, white things are coins and forget the shape of the moon. Nietzsche said, "Idleness is the ideal of a genius, idleness is the virtue of a romantic." The aspirant young man must turn his nose up at this, not a romantic, let alone a genius. But on the way to follow the sixpence, don't forget to look at the moon overhead.

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