World Health Organization Essay Example for Free

World Health Organization Essay Genetically modified food, also known as GM food refer to as animals or plants that had their genetic makeup altered to make them grow bigger, stay fresher and other benefits that will make human life more simple. The concept of genetically modified (GM) foods has existed for many years. Cross-breeding of plants, has been applied before with the purpose of transferring a desirable trait from one plant species to another. However, a substantial amount of time is required to obtain a specific result. This is because all of the genes are pooled together and numerous attempts are required for the production of offsprings with the preferred trait. Tomatoes are the first GM crop introduced to the world. Although genetically modified foods arises many concerns regarding its safety and consequences of consumption, the real question posed by the society is whether these GM foods should be banned for the benefit of mankind. Even if GM foods have been known to trigger allergic reactions and toxicities, is environmentally hazardous and costly, it should not be banned because it is confirmed to be beneficial to human health, environmentally friendly and able to improve the quality and quantity of life. This report is mainly focused on the benefits of GM food towards mankind. This is due to GM foods being present in almost all countries worldwide. Additionally, to fulfill ever-increasing needs of humans, conventional crops are genetically being replaced by GM crops. (World Health Organization) GM food brings many advantages to mankind. First of all, GM food that was engineered genetically is able to sustain favorable human health and enrich the wellbeing of its consumers. This is because it can remove the malnutrition problem faced by the current world and GM crops can be modified to become edible vaccines to reduce vulnerability towards diseases. Malnutrition problems can be solved by introducing GM foods enhanced with nutrition that humans are lacked of, such as vitamin D and iron that will cause rickets in children or osteoporosis in aged adults as well as iron deficiency. Susceptibility to a certain disease can be reduced if edible vaccines are added into the GM foods such as the GM banana. Hepatitis B can be prevented by eating such genetically modified bananas. Genetically modified foods can remove malnutrition problems faced by mankind today. Vitamins and minerals can be inserted into GM crops such as GM rice to make humans healthier. GM rice contains high amounts of Vitamin A compared to non-GM rice. The other malnutrition problem often faced by humans is iron deficiency. Approximately two billion people prove to be tested positive for iron deficiency. As such, researchers have invested in GM rice by intensifying the iron content in polished rice to solve the iron deficiency problem. The genes that were inserted into the GM foods have a positive effect on the accumulation of iron in the rice kernel that causes the GM rice to contain 6 times more iron compared to the original variety. Some GM crops are modified to become edible vaccines that can reinforce the immune system of humans. Some GM crops have been inserted with DNA sequences encoding for antibodies into their genome. This enables the crops to produce antibiotics in their cells. GM crops such as banana, tomato and potato have been altered to contain bacterial or rotavirus antigens. Large scaled immunizations can be made by introducing edible vaccines to patients, rendering the vaccinations of these diseases considerably easier, painless, and accessible. Per se, antibodies contained in such GM foods will be able to enhance the immune system of human bodies to combat against pathogens when consumed orally. Therefore, it will not be uncommon in the near future when humans can merely ingest GM tomatoes instead of waiting in line to see a doctor. (Galina 2006) Opponents of GM foods claim that GM foods are potentially risky to human health. They assert that GM foods will trigger an allergin in the human body should it be eaten. There is a possibility that a new allergen will be created and result in susceptible individuals exhibiting symptoms of allergic reactions when a foreign gene is introduced into a crop. GM foods are genetically engineered to have their allergenic-causing proteins to be removed. As such, they do not contain potentially harmful proteins as compared to non-GM foods such as peanuts, cereals and eggs. Producing hypoallergenic GM foods would be a desired commodity as these foods will possess the ability to notably decrease the danger of adverse reactions. (Union of Concerned Scientists 2009) One of the benefits introducing GM foods is that the plantation of GM crops is environmentally affable. Currently, our world is afflicted with the issue of pollution. To rectify this problem, GM crops are modified to resistance to insect and pest attack as well as to herbicides. Additionally, another process which is applied in an effort to make GM crops environmentally friendly is phytoremediation. Therefore, pollution can be greatly reduced and eventually be eliminated altogether. Phytoremediation is defined as the rectification of environmental issues through the usage of plants which alleviate the environmental problem without the need to relocate and dispose contaminant materials somewhere else. (World Health Organization 2002) With the population of the world growing substantially each year, significant amounts of stress are placed on resources of land fit for plantation, water, energy, as well as other biological reserves to supply sufficient food whilst sustaining the coherence of the ecosystem. Roughly 1 to 2 billion humans suffer from malnourishment, signifying a sign of scarce food supply, low incomes and sparse allocation of food supplies. Introduction of GM foods have greatly lessened the problem. GM crops are modified to produce greater amounts and increase the nutritional value in crop-derived foods. Substantial amounts of products are able to solve the world food crisis. Desperate pleas for richer, better-off countries to utilize genetic engineering in diminishing famines are a result of thousands losing their lives daily and millions on the verge of starvation. By revising the genetic make-up of plant strains, biotechnology will be able notably lessen world hunger. Crops can be engineered to resist diseases, resulting in the quantity of yield succumbing to disease to decrease. In another case, cold-resistant crops are able to benefit countries enduring from winter the whole year round. (Union of Concerned Scientists 2009) GM foods have raised much controversy in many nations throughout the world. People are still indecisive in their choice to consume products containing GM foods. It stands to be true that doubts concerning GM foods were widespread when first introduced to the public, but through many years of experimental analysis as well as safety tests, GM foods have been confirmed to be safe for human consumption with numerous benefits as a bonus. In fact, GM foods are essential now in resolving the crisis of hunger and scarcity of food around the world. Acceptance of GM foods are beginning to increase significantly over the years as more and more people are convinced of their benefits in terms of cost, health, and nature. (Galina 2006). Therefore, it cannot be denied that GM foods should be legalized for the benefit of mankind. As mentioned in the report, GM foods promote good human health, are environmentally friendly. Hence, it is irrefutable that its advantages totally outweigh its drawbacks and that GM foods are the way to go in ensuring a brighter future for us and for the whole world. Bibliography World Health Organization. (Internet). (2002). Foods derived from modern technology: 20 questions on genetically modified foods.(2012) Available from: http://www. who. int/foodsafety/publications/biotech/20questions/en/index. php Union of Concerned Scientists (2009). Failure to Yield: Biotechnologys Broken Promises. Cambridge, MA, Union of Concerned Scientists. 2012. http://www. ucsusa. org/assets/documents/food_and_agriculture/failure-to-yield-brochure. pdf Gaivoronskaia, Galina (2006). Consumers with Allergic Reaction to Food: Perception of and Response to Food Risk in General and Genetically Modified Food in Particular. 2012. http://www. jstor. org/stable/29733966.

Downfall Of Roaring Dragon Hotel Management Essay

Downfall Of Roaring Dragon Hotel Management Essay This proposal will give us a clear description for the downfall of Roaring Dragon Hotel after the change in their management to Hotel International which has failed to improve their profits and quality standards of their hotel. Big issue in the organization was the conflicts between management and their employees which need to be solved in order to get better performance and profits. These conflicts occur between management and employees are due to many reasons like cultural conflicts, inadequate training, and lack of understanding and strict management policies. Applying a single management approach across all work settings around the world may not be effective for motivating the workers and may not yield desired productivity (Najera, 2008). In order to overcome these conflicts the company management should develop strong relationship with employees, understand cultural differences, provide adequate training, and improve employee benefits. This will help improve employee performance , employee relationship, increases organizations profits, margin, and revenue and helps in reducing turnover rate. Introduction: RDH organizations downfall HistoryThe Roaring Dragon Hotel (RDH) was one of the three star hotels in the south-west China, which is famous state owned enterprise (SOE), has 40 years of history. RDH had a very good reputation but the popularity of the hotel started to fade by changing the management to Hotel International (HI). The Hotel International organization had good reputation and recognized as suitable organization to takeover the managment of RDH. Hotel International management took some steps to change the policies of RDH both internally and externally in order to reach international standards which were failed to improve quality standards and resulted great loss.The root cause for this problem is the organizational conflict between management and employees.The HI management failed to understand the culture and failed to develop employee trust and relationship. According to Drucker et al. (1997) the intelligence and spirit of people at all levels of an organization to contin ually build and share knowledge should be the first priority to face global competition and to succeed in their domain. This knowledge sharing is lacking from HI management which created lot of new problems to organization. Background: From early 1960s Roaring Hotel Dragon had good reputation and went through series of changes for surviving from highly competitive world. Being a SOE with 40 years long history, it was one of the regions best premium guest offices for the government officials. The employees of RDH felt proud working for a SOE organization. Cultural difference is the the root cause for increased turn over rate and reduced RDHs glory.In 2001, the government decided to hand over the management control of RDH to HI organization for improving the hotels quality, reputation and brand name. This corporation hired a new manager and replaced the existing manager Mr. Wen to second in command, lost his power and privileges Mr. Wen raised the differences between management and employers. This is one of the root cause for loosing RDHs reputation and its glory. So government decided to end the contract with HI Corporation, taking over the management back by provisional government. Due to management change and cultural differences between employees and management the hotels reputation decreased and continued to fail even though the contract was terminated. The problems will be rectified with good planning, trusting, training and motivating employees and taking decision more effectively. Problem: HI management failed to build trust and employee relationshipThe Major problem in the RDH organization is caused because of the conflicts and cultural differences between the management and employees. This problem is clearly ignored by the HI management after it takeover RDH. One source of conflict may arise out of the division between those who give orders and those who receive them: this, we would suggest, is a problem not only between workers and management, but also within management itself (Stephenson, 1960). Some of the major problems with HI management are listed below: The RDH employees did not will to work under HIs management. Cancellation of their agreements with the Nu Fu travel agency and Loss of critical industry contacts and guanxi connections. Short term contract, Decreased occupancies and motivation, lay off of young employees, Uncertainty of Job security and Increasing the employee workload without paying their wages Older employees were uncomfortable working under non-mandarin speaking HIs managers. Employee dissatisfaction, loss of guanxi cotacts, and lack of motivation caused problems to HI management The first occurred problem for RDH organization is conflict between the KYZ Corporation and the former manager Mr. Wen felt guilty about his privileges when he was a manager were lost and made him second in command. Chinese people had a strong responsibility and relationship with the people who they trust when compared to western culture. Commitment to the supervisor may be particular relevance for understanding the work behavior of Chinese employees (Wang and Kung, 1999). The above reason made Mr. Wen to bring differences in between employees and Hotel international management. Even though Hotel International (HI) management tried to get rid of Mr. Wen, they could not get any support from older employees who were working with the RDH past a long time. HI failed to understand the Chinese culture so they made lot changes to improve the standards to international goals without considering the reactions from its employees. Opportunities: The HI management should have focused on history of the RDH and should have respected the Chinese culture. They should have done more research to analyze the root cause made by KYZ Corporation. They had very good opportunity to understand the culture and involve their employees in decision making process. By respecting their employees interests and thoughts would have improved HIs performance rather than making the decisions on their own. Management should analyze the mistakes and develop employee relationshipBy disrespecting the elderly employees and losing the guanxi connections they failed to build employee relationship. They could have motivate the employees and develop the ethics in the employees. They failed to utilize the best use of their customer relationship. Hotels should also consider including indirect contributors such as word of mouth communication, customer referrals and endorsements (Noone, B. N., Kimes, S. E., Renaghan, L. M, 2003). Recommendations: Management should understand cultural differences and employee opinionsHI management should try to understand the culture and interests of the employees, consider their personal opinion, build the relationship with the employees, provide adequate training, and often conduct employee feedback. The Chinese Employees who are dedicated to their supervisors with who they have a very good relationship. Management should resolve conflicts with their business partners and motivate others to work together in the process of developing their motel to keep-up the global competition. Management should provide training to motivate employeesThe employees should try to ware of the international standards which should be motivated in order to understand their responsible of their work, which should be achieved effectively by providing a proper training. Management should identify the ways to improve the business like build good relationship with their customers who can help in increasing publicity. The longer relationship we have with the customers is important for success of any business. Finally the management and employees should put their efforts as a team instead of going in their individual direction. Their language might be the fundamental barrier between people from many different traditions and cultures of the organization, they should provide translators of different languages in order to maintain the synchronization between employees and management. The employees should be given training by the management regarding their new policies of the organization. The feedback from their employees should be taken frequently to ensure their employee satisfaction. Employees should be given rewards based on their performance, hard work, experience, and annual basis. Conclusion: One of the best example would be Roaring Dragon hotel which had a successful history but then later it had a great downfall, due to which the change of management with lack of communicational skills with its employees. Assigning new management for the hotel caused to the downfall, because of their negligence. The organizational success depends on correcting their mistakes and taking actions towards resolving them. So that we can avoid repeating those mistakes in future. The conflicts between the management and its employees are a well-known issue in any organization and needs to be rectified as soon as possible. Then any organization will be succeeded.

The Changing Character Hamlet in Act II and Act IV of Shakespeares Hamlet :: Shakespeare Hamlet Essays

The Changing Character Hamlet in Act II and Act IV of Shakespeare's Hamlet In Shakespeare's Hamlet, although the character Hamlet makes similar points about himself in the soliloquies of Act II and Act IV, he seems to be less self-blaming and more in control of his emotions in the Act IV soliloquy. In the Act IV soliloquy, Hamlet is less self-blaming and more in control of his emotions. In Act II Hamlet blames himself for the delay in his revenge, "O, what a rouge and peasant slave am I!" (2:2:519). He also seems to be more self-abusive in his expressions, "Why, what an ass am I!" (2:2:553). Hamlet's deep depression is expressed through his comparison of himself to the lowest and most worthless things he can think of. However, in the Act IV soliloquy, Hamlet uses logic to reason his delay in killing Claudius, "How all occasions do inform against me and spur my dull revenge!" (4:4:32). While he is still a bit emotional, he is less self-abusive and more in control of his feelings, "How stand I then, that have a father killed, a mother stained." (4:4:56). Hamlet's reproach of his actions is gentler and less derogatory. He uses reason to explain how certain occasions have delayed him rather than blaming himself for backing out on his plans. In both soliloquies Hamlet makes comparisons between himself and other characters. In Act II he compares himself to an actor and in Act IV he compares himself to Fortinbras. In both soliloquies Hamlet uses the comparisons to put himself down for not carrying out his actions. In Act II Hamlet is angry with himself because he doesn't understand how an actor can get so emotional over a speech that he is reading, while Hamlet, who is actually in the real situation, is passive in his emotions, "Is it not monstrous that this player here, but in a fiction, in a dream of passion, could force his soul so to his own conceit." (2:2:520). In Act IV Hamlet expresses admiration for Fortinbras' courage and ambition to succeed and to fight for his name and honor, (".led by a delicate and tender prince, whose spirit, with divine ambition puffed." (4:4:48). Although both comparisons are different, both the actor and Fortinbras serve as role-models to Hamlet. He looks up to their actions to spur his am bition for revenge. At the end of each soliloquy Hamlet reaches a state of resolution, in which he seeks to find certain truths about himself and the outside world.

my life ant its ways :: essays research papers

My Thinking and its Ways   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A utopia is a place of ideal perfection especially in laws, government, and social conditions. When I sit to think I think of my own utopia. I dream of things that I could not do the normal world but in my own utopia. In my utopia a key phrase and motto is â€Å"don’t worry†. I want to have no worries in what I do, think, feel, and every other aspect that would worry about. In my utopia, I am the utopia. I am the one and only in my world. Temptation to do things and the will to not do things is what separate the strong and the weak. I feel and many others may disagree when I say that everyone will fall to temptation. I am not a perfect individual and many others are not either and if you think your perfect certainly you are to bigheaded to be perfect. So in my world I like to be by myself. How can one be tempted if there is no one to tempt him? A main reason for me to be by myself is so I can live in a world without temptation. I know I am not a weak person but I am not the strongest and I fall to temptation. I think that I could do everything by myself. I think that I can depend on myself and no one else. I know in a real world this could not happen that you cannot make it by yourself, but in mine you can make it by yourself because you are the one that makes it. No one can challenge you and it is not necessary to not challenge anyone else. Life is hard and harsh place to be so to be somewhere else would be a dream. Being alone would not bother me; I would be able to do it. Sometimes I love being myself just thinking about this little world that I could live in and do things my way. You may think being by yourself would be dull because there is no impact, but when your alone you can think of the most imaginative places and scenarios. From reading this you might think that I am an anti-social person, but I am not one. I love the people around me but when you dream and think you can do things you cant do on earth or in reality.

The Job of Police Officers :: Police Law Enforcement Essays

The Job of Police Officers   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  A police officer’s duty is to maintain public order, preventing, and detecting crime. The concept of police officers, also known as cops, and law enforcement has been around ever since the ancient Romans had a theory that an organization of â€Å"peacekeepers† would reduce the crime and violence being committed. This theory stuck with society and is still around today. People of law enforcement have a mission when they step into their police car, that mission is to enforce the rules of conduct or law. Of course, accomplishing this mission can be dangerous. Often when a cop leaves his or her house to go to work worries start to set it, such as â€Å"will I be coming back home when my day is over† or â€Å"will a simple traffic stop go sour and someone ends up dead?† These thoughts are apart of the stress that comes with the job and most people are trained to deal with this stress.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Speaking of training, there are classes that a high school student can take to prepare for a career in law enforcement. Psychology, sociology, foreign languages, and computer courses are recommended for those students who plan to take criminal justice as their higher education major. Participating in sports can improve your chances on becoming an officer of law because it improves strength and endurance. Other student activities can be helpful in this career because they help to improve leadership skills and other publications. Every law enforcement agency has different requirements for qualification; however, almost all of them require a college degree. You can either have a degree in police science, administration of justice, public administration, or criminal justice to qualify for employment. English, Sociology, Psychology, Personal Computer Operations, Survey of Criminal Justice, and Principles of Criminology are classes that need to be taken to complete a cr iminal justice major. Almost every college nationwide offers these classes. (â€Å"Police and Detectives†). There are many colleges that offer either an Associate’s degree or a Bachelor’s in criminal justice or any other type of law enforcement class. However, the decision is whether to attend a two-year community college and receive an Associate’s degree or whether to attend a four-year community or state college to receive a Bachelor’s degree. Some colleges that offer an Associate’s degree in criminal justice are Delaware Technical and Community College, Gibbs College, and Hagerstown Business College. Some colleges that offer a Bachelor’s degree in criminal justice are Wilmington College, Brown College, and Parks College.

Frederick Douglass Essay

Frederick Douglass was a United States abolitionist, journalist, lecturer, who escaped slavery and urged other blacks to do likewise before and during the American Civil War. As a forceful and eloquent orator and a writer of inspiring prose, he was probably emancipation in the 19th century. Frederick Douglass conceived of freedom for blacks note merely as the abolition of slavery but also as their advancement in social and economic status. He saw the black cause as part of a broad struggle to advance human rights for all people, and thus was a strong supporter of woman suffrage. The purpose of this paper is to know the life of Frederick Douglass and be aware of his contributions and importance to our history. II. Discussion A. Who is Frederick Douglass? Frederick Augustus Washington bailey was born in February 1817 in Tuckahoe, Maryland. His father was a white man; his mother, a black slave named Harriet Bailey. As a young boy, he worked for a time as a house servant in Baltimore, Maryland. His mistress, a Northerner, taught him a little of reading and writing. Later, he was put to work in the fields and then in the Baltimore shipyards. He was often treated cruelty for his resistance to slavery, and he was determined to be free. â€Å"I wish myself a beast, a bird, anything rather than a salve,† he said. Poor treatment instilled in him a hatred of slavery; he failed in an attempt to escape in 1836. But two years later, in 1838, he escaped from slavery and settled in New Bedford, Massachusetts, where he changed his name from Bailey to Douglass. He was largely self-educated and in 1841, he joined the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society. B. His contributions and importance At an abolitionist meeting of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society in Nantucket, he made his first public speech and related his slave experiences, and for the next four years, despite many indignities, he lectured throughout the East for antislavery groups. His audience was deeply moved by the tall young man’s story. From then on Douglass became a leader in the antislavery cause and became one of the abolitionist movement’s most effective public speakers. Moreover, his speeches in the following years in the northern states and his works for the Underground Railroad did much to further the cause of the abolitionists and made his name a symbol of freedom and achievement among whites and blacks alike. So impressive were Frederick Douglass’ oratorical and intellectual abilities that opponents refused to believe he had been a slave and alleged that he was an impostor foisted on the public by abolitionist. To answer doubters that he had ever been a slave, he wrote an autobiography in 1845, The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, An American Slave—which he revised in later years, in final form, it appeared in 1882 under the title Life and Times of Frederick Douglass—which revealed his master’s identity and endangered Douglass’ liberty. In the same year, the tall, handsome, and articulate Douglass, at the urging of his friends, went to England to escape the danger of seizure under the fugitive slave laws. His lectures in the British Isles on the slavery question in the United States aroused sympathy for the abolitionists’ cause and prompted his admirers to raise funds to purchase his freedom. After returning to the United States in 1847, Douglass became the â€Å"station-master and conductor’ of the Underground Railroad in Rochester, New York where for 17 years he published and established an antislavery and abolitionist newspaper North Sta r—it also supported women’s rights, a cause that Douglass championed from his participation in the first women’s rights convention in 1848—which he edited until 1860. Moreover, he gradually broke with William Lloyd Garrison’s â€Å"moral suasionist† policy and became a political abolitionist, ultimately supporting the Republican Party. In addition, during these years, Frederick Douglass became friendly with the American abolitionist John Brown and was given a hint of Brown’s strategy of destroying â€Å"the money value of slave property† by training a force of men to help large numbers of slaves escape to freedom in the North via the Underground Railroad. In other words, he used his lecture fees to aid fugitive slaves and headed the Rochester station of the Underground Railroad. He was forced by a lack of funds to abandon his scheme for an industrial college for Negroes. Despite his opposition to the Harpers Ferry raid, Douglass Fled to Canada because he had raised money for the ventures of his friend and confidant John Brown. When Frederick Douglass learned on the eve of the raid on Harper’s Ferry in 1859 that it was Brown’s intention to seize the federal arsenal there, he objected warning Brown that an attack on the arsenal would be tantamount to an assault on the U. S. government and would prove disastrous, Douglass withdrew from further participation. After the raid, fearing reprisals by the government, Frederick Douglass fled to Europe, where he stayed for six months. On his return to the United States, he campaigned for Abraham Lincoln during the presidential for Abraham Lincoln during the presidential election of 1860 and, following the outbreak of the Civil War, helped raise two regiments of black soldiers, fought for enactment of the 13th , 14th, and 15th Amendments of the United States Constitution. He became United States marshal for the District of Columbia (1877-81), recorder of deeds for the District of Columbia (1881-86), and United States minister to Haiti (1889-91). He died in Washington, D. C. on February 20, 1895. Furthermore, he was able to write other memoirs, My Bondage and My Freedom (1855) and Life and Times of Frederick Douglass (1881). III. Conclusion In conclusion, Frederick Douglass is truly an important personality in the history of United States because his experiences become an eye-opener to those people who abuse and those people who are abused. He fights for equality and freedom of the slaves and thanks to him because if not of his braveness, maybe up to now, slavery continues. He never withholds himself to speak up in spite of the fact that his life is at stake. Many people, especially those who are in the government, do not like what they hear from Douglass yet he continues to seek liberty for the blacks. He awakens the â€Å"deep-sleep† Blacks that it is about time to live freely and enjoy the privileges as citizen of the country. Reference: 1. Brewton, Vince (2005). â€Å"Bold Defiance Took Its Place†-â€Å"Respect† and Self- Making in Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave. The Mississippi Quarterly, Vol. 58. 2. Connery, William S. (2003). Proud Lion of Baltimore – the Life and Legacy of Frederick Douglass. World and I, Vol. 18. 3. Horton, Lois E. (2001). Radical Passion: Ottilie Assing’s Reports from America and Letters to Frederick Douglass. American Studies International, Vol. 39. 4. Scott, Neil (1999). An Alliance between Two Giants: Frederick Douglass Turns from Critic to Adviser, Friend of Abraham Lincoln. The Washington Times.

The Moon and Sixpence Summary

THE MOON AND SIXPENCE Topic: The theme revealed in the novel â€Å"The  moon and sixpence† Outline: I. Summary about  writer  and the  novel â€Å"  The moon and  sixpence† II. Two  themes  revealed  in  the  novel  Ã¢â‚¬Å"The  moon  and  sixpence† 1. The revolt of an individual against the well- established conventions of  Ã‚  bourgeois society 2. No rooms  for trivial and  ordinary  pleasures of  life  in  Great Art III. Conclusion Summary about the writer and the novel â€Å"  The moon and sixpence† 1. William  Somerset Maugham (1874-1965) W. S.Maugham is famous English writer, well-known as a novelist, playwright and shortstory writer. In his writings he kept to the principles of Realism, but his method of writing was also influenced by Naturalism, Neo-romanticism and Modernism. W. S. Maugham was born in Paris where his father worked as solicitor for the English Embassy. At the age of 10, Maugham was orpha ned and sent to England to live with his uncle, thevicar of Whitstable. Before becoming a writer he was educated at King's School, Canterbury, and Heidelberg University, Maugham then studied six years medicine in  London.William worked in a hospital of Saint Thomas, which placed in a poor block of London the experience  found its  reflection in  the 1st novel. During World War, Maugham volunteered for the Red Cross, and was stationed in France for a period. There he met Gerald Haxton (1892-1944), an American, who became his companion. Disguising himself as a reporter, Maugham served as an espionage agent for British Secret Intelligence Service in Russia in 1916-17, but his stuttering and  poor health hindered his career in this field. In 1917 he married Syrie Barnardo, an interior  decorator; they were ivorced in 1927-8. On his  return from Russia, he spent a  year in a sanatoriumin Scotland. Maugham then set off with Haxton on a series of travels to eastern Asia, th e Pacific Islands, and Mexico. In many novels the surroundings also are international. Maugham's most famous story such as â€Å"Ashenden: or the British agent ’’Maugham died in Nice, a small French town from pneumonia on December 16, 1965. During the war, Maugham's best-known novel, Of Human Bondage(1915) was published. This wasfollowed by another successful book,The Moon and Sixpence(1919).Maugham also developed areputation as a fine short-story writer, one story,Rain, which appeared in The Trembling of a  Leaf  (1921), was also turned into a successful feature film. Popular plays written by Maugham include The Circle(1921),East of Sue(1922), The Constant Wife1926) and the anti-war play,For Services Rendered   (1932). In his later years  Maugham wrote his autobiography,Summing Up (1938) and works of fiction  such as The Razor's Edge (1945),Catalina (1948) and Quartet   (1949). After the 1930s Maugham's reputation abroad was greater than in England.Maugha m once said,†Most people cannot see anything, but I can se what is in front of my nose with extreme clearness;the greatest writers can see through a brick wall. My vision is not so penetrating. † His literaryexperiences Maugham collected in The Summing Up, which has been used as a guidebook for  creative writing. William Somerset Maugham died in 1965 in a small French town from  pneumonia. â€Å"I have never pretended to be anything but a story teller. It has amused me to tell stories and I  have told a great many.It is a misfortune for me that the telling of a story just for the sake of the  story is not an activity that is in favor with theintelligentsia. In  endeavor  to  bear  my  misfortunes  with  fortitude. † (from  Creatures  of  Circumstance, 1947) The novel â€Å"The  moon and sixpence† Charles Strickland, a good, dull, holiest,  plain man who is  a conventional stockbroker. He is  probably a worthy member of so ciety, a good husband and father, an honest broker, but he abandoned his wife and two nice looking and healthy children, a boy and a girl. A supposition is putforth: Charles walks out upon his wife to  run after some woman.A friend of Strickland is sent to Paris to find out who the woman is and if possible to  persuade him to come back to his wife. After a long talk with Strickland, the man understands that the real reason that inspires him to run away is not woman. He decided to be a painter. Living in Paris,  Strickland  comes into  contact with  a  Dutch  painter, Dirk  Strove . Strove  is presented  as an antipode to Strickland. Strove is a kind hearted man but a bad painter. He is the first to discover the real talent of Strickland. When Strickland falls seriously ill, it is Strove who comes to help.Strove  persuades his wife to let him bring the  artist home to look after him. To  his surprise, his wife falls inlove with Strickland who she holds in disgust. Later his wife, a housemaid rescued by Strove, kills herself by drinking acid after Strickland leaves her. What Strickland wants from Blanche is not sexual relation but the nude picture of her beautiful figure. Leaving France for Tahiti, Strickland is in search of a world of his own. In Tahiti, he marries a native girl Ata and he  has about three years of happiness. He has two children. Strickland contracts leprosy and later becomes blind.He wants to leave the family but Ata doesn’t let him do it. His eyesight gets worse but he continues painting. Ata couldn’t go to the town and buy canvases; he uses the walls of his house. Strickland gets rid of some strong irresistible obsession imprisoning his soul with the help of those paintings. He has achieved what he longs for  on this land. He has painted his masterpiece. Knowing that he is going to die, he makes his wife  promise to burn down his masterpiece after his death in fear that it will be contaminated by the commercial world of money.Two themes  revealed in the  novel â€Å"The moon and sixpence† 1. The revolt of an  individual against the well- established conventions of bourgeois society In many of his stories, Maugham reveals to us the unhappy life and the revolt against the set social order. The  Moon and Sixpence was  written  in this  line. It  is a  story of the  conflict between the artist and the conventional society based on the life of a painter. The revolt of an individual against the well-established conventions of bourgeois society was shown in the following two aspects: 1. 1. Money worship societyThe bourgeois society with its vices such as: snobbishness money worship, pretense, self-interest†¦made their profit of the frailties of mankind. To them, money was a useful tool to dominate both economics and politics. Money also helped the bourgeois maintain their regal life and it connected the members in family, on the other hand, husban d had obligated to support his wife and children for whole his life. Therefore, the last generations of the bourgeois forced the young generation to continue their domination. It was mentioned in the conversation betweenStrickland and his friend. I rather wanted to be a  painter when I was a boy, but  my father made me go into  business because he said there was no money in art†. In this society, art was non-profitable. Therefore, it must be looked down upon. In their  Ã‚  point of view, art was nothing more than just a job to earn money. They did not see the beautiful things that art brings. When Strickland decided to follow in his father's footsteps, his dream and aspiration were hidden on the bottom of his heart. After working hard for ages, he became a  prosperous stockbroker. He is probably a worthy member of society.However, there is in streets of the poor  quarters a thronging vitality which excites the blood and prepares the soul for  the unexpected. It w as actually happened in Paris, because Strickland gave up the luxury life and got acquainted with hard life just only wanted to fulfill a long-cherished dream. He had to give up his dream to follow his father’s wishes. â€Å"I want to paint. †Ã¢â‚¬Å"I’ve got to paint. † The brief answer expressed his willingness to get out of ideology ties which were imposed  by his father. And his hand and mind would express his big dream by painting masterpieces. I couldn’t get what I wanted in  London. Perhaps I can here. †Ã¢â‚¬Å"I tell you I’ve got to paint. † The author said that â€Å"I seemed to feel in him some vehement power that was struggling  within him, it  gave me the sensation of  something very strong, overmastering, that held  him† And Strickland cannot have a comfortable life any more. â€Å"I haven’t any money. I’ve got  about a  hundred pounds. † We could probably see it  through St rickland’s appearance when he came to Paris. â€Å"Sitting there in his old Norfolk jacket and his unnourished bowler, his trousers were baggy, ishands were not clean; and his face, with the red stubble of the unshaved chin, the little eyes, and  the large, aggressive nose, was  uncouth and coarse. † 1. 2 Family and social responsibilities Painting is not only a ‘dreamy moon’ of Strickland but also of many progressive people in  bourgeois society. According to bourgeois concepts, all the men have to be responsible for hisfamily and children. He’s forced to have a strong connection with what is considered to belong tohim. Strickland’s life is tied tightly down to family’s contract. However, all that sort of thingsmeans nothing at all to  him.He doesn’t let those reasons impact on  his way chasing his passion any longer. It can be obviously proved through the conversation between two men, Strickland and the author, in ch apter II of the  novel. ‘Hang it all, one can’t leave a  woman without a bob. ’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœWhy not? ’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœHow is she going to live? ’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœI’ve supported her for seventeen years. Why shouldn’t she support herself for  a change? ’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœLet her try. ’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœDon’t you care for  her anymore? ’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœNot a bit’   When Strickland talks about his children, his attitude is revealed to be heartlessly scornful. ‘They’ve had a good many years of comfort. It’s much more than the majority of children have. Dirk Stroeve was one of those unlucky persons whose most sincere emotions are ridiculous. † On the nature of art â€Å"Why should you think that beauty, which is the most precious thing in the world, lies like a stone on the beach for the careless passer-by to pick up idly? Beauty is something wonderful and strange that the artist fashions out of the ch aos of the world in the torment of his soul. And when he has made it, it is not given to all to know it. To recognize it you must repeat the adventure of the artist. It is a melody he sings to you, and to hear it again in your own heart you want knowledge and sensitiveness and imagination. Besides, somebody will look after them. When it comes to the point, the Mac Andrews will pay for  their schooling. ’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœI like them all right when they were kids, but now they’ve growing up I haven’t got any particular  Ã‚  feeling for them. ’     He totally gives up on his own family, children and thinks  that they could live by themselves without his care. Even if they can’t make arrangement for their life, his relatives might come to help. Strickland also doesn’t mind what  people loathe and despise him. ‘Everyone will think you a  perfect swine. ’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœLet them. ’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœWon’t it mean anything to you that people loathe and despise you?   Ã¢â‚¬ËœNo’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœYou don’t care if  people think you an utter  black-guard? ’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœNot a damn. ’  Ã‚  He really doesn’t care any longer. ‘You won’t go back to your wife? ’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœNever’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœYou don’t care if she and your children have to beg their bread? ’  Ã¢â‚¬ËœNot a damn. ’     He does everything: abandoned wife and children; left his successful career behind just  because he totally hates that gloomy  society and its old  customs. Only by a short conversation between two men, the author already describes the strongly reactive mind of Strickland, a man who dares to stand up and fight over the old customs of that  boring society and bourgeois.Regarding to Strickland’s point of view, his escape is the only decision; it’s also the solution to release his imprisoning mind. He doesn’t regret or be ash amed of  what he’s done. He accepts the eyes of society because he doesn’t care. Actually, it’s never ever  meant anything to him. The only thing that he really cares is  his mind right now freely to follow anddo everything he ever dreams of in his own ‘dreamy moon’. 2. No rooms for trivial  and ordinary pleasures of life in  Great Art 2. 1  Sacrifice everything to be an artist. At the beginning, the stockbroker Strickland had a stable life with happy family.However,when he started to chase his path as an artist, he had to experience a poor situation. Moreover, he was  willing  to  get  rid  of  everything  to  be  an  artist. Great art  don’t depend  on age  as long  as you have real passion. Even though at the age of fortyâ€Å"the chances are a million to one†, Stricklandstill wants to be a  painter. â€Å"I can learn quicker than I could when I was eighteen†, said he. He wanted to be a painter when he was a boy but his father didn’t allow him. His father  consumed that there was money in art. Therefore, he had to give up his passion for such a long time. However,  his fire for art wasn’t  stamped  out.And this  was  the perfect  time  for him to implement his dream again. On  his way chasing that dream, he had to  sacrifice everything. He  passed by the material and the sensual to fulfill spiritual needs. He got rid of a happy family with acomfortable life to go to Paris  and lived in destitute life there Although he knew that his family needed him and they had to suffer difficulties in life without him, he didn’t intend to change his mind and he accepted to be considered as a selfish man. He understood that his action weren’t highly appreciated; however, he still wanted to pursue art in his own way.Strickland accepted to live in a bad condition, without money, job, food and at last he found a Shelter at a hot el. Afterward, despite the fact that he got a serious disease and became  blinded; he still  tried to  fulfill  his masterpiece  on the  walls of his  house. During the  first daysstaying in Paris, he only found a cheap hotel to live. He appeared with such a miserable, untidy image. â€Å"He sat there in his old Norfolk jacket and his unnourished bowler, his trousers werebaggy, his hands were not clean; and his face, with the red stubble of the unshaved chin, the littleeyes, and the large, aggressive nose, was uncouth and coarse.His mouth was large; his lips wereheavy and sensual. †He desired to paint. He repeated his speech many times when answering his friend. â€Å"I want to paint. †Ã¢â‚¬Å"I’ve got to paint†Ã¢â‚¬Å"I tell you I  have to paint†. 2. 2. Strickland protects Beauty and Art. Art is very  pure. It can not be  measured by the value of money or sexual relation. Stricklandstruggled to abandon his appetence for art. â₠¬Å"Let me tell you. I imagine that for months the matter never comes into your head, and you’re ableto persuade yourself that you’ve finished with it for good and all.You rejoice in your freedom, and  Ã‚  you feel that at last you can call your soul your own. You seem to walk with your head among the  stars. And then, all of a sudden you can’t stand it any more, and you notice that all the time your  Ã‚  feet have been walking in the mud. And you want to roll yourself in it. And you find some woman,coarse and low and vulgar, some beastly creature in whom all the horror of sex is blatant, and you  fall upon her like a wild  animal. You drink till you’re blind with rage. † He assumed that as an artist he shouldn’t have trivial fun such as desire of  women.For Strickland, woman is like an invisible rope tightening his life. It is very hard to escape from  them. Therefore,  he  tried  to  avoid  it. He  was  willing  to  give  her  up  as  well  as  his unsatisfactory painting. He did everything to be a true artist even though it made him become acruel man. Finally, he achieved what he wanted. He created a masterpiece. It was worth what he’d spent. He devoted all his life to pursue art. As an artist, he didn’t care about fame or wealth. He  painted pictures only to satisfy his love to art. He never sold his pictures to get money.He did not toaccept his masterpiece to be contaminated by the commercial world of money. His dream was very  beautiful III. Conclusion Based on the life of Paul Gauguin, â€Å"The Moon and Sixpence†is W. Somerset Maugham'sode to the powerful forces behind creative genius. Charles Strickland is a staid banker, a man of  wealth and privilege. He is also a man possessed of an unquenchable desire to create art. As Strickland pursues his artistic vision, he leaves London for Paris and Tahiti, and in his quest makes sacrifices that lea ve the lives of those closest to him in  tatters.Through Maugham's sympathetic eye Strickland's tortured and cruel soul becomes a  symbol of the blessing and  the curse of transcendent artistic genius, and the cost in human’s lives it sometimes demands. Topic 2: Impression of  characteristic THE ANALYSIS  OF STRICKLAND CHARACTER 1. Strickland as an ordinary man 1. 1 Strickland is irresponsible inconsiderate toward his wife Strickland used be a good husband to his wife. Actually, he owns a happy family and goodeconomic condition. For many people, Strickland is good businessman and has good status insociety.However, he suddenly abandoned his wife and  went another place. Strickland leaved his wife and children behind without a word. His leaving makes her very miserable and she had asuspicion that he run  away with other women. His wife- Army is a pleasant hospital woman. Strickland can’t find any reasons which belong to Arm to leave her. When Army sends him many letters to persuade him to come back, Strickland doesn’t read any letters from her. It  meansthat he doesn’t concern anything related to his wife. When making conservation with friend sent to persuade him, Strickland expresses a coollyattitude to his wife. I can not describe the extraordinary callousness with which he made this reply†Although Strickland acknowledged his action, he still  does like that. Has she deserved that you should treat her like that? NoThen, isn’t it monstrous to leave her in  this fashion after seventeen years of married life withouta fault to find with her  Monstrous†Abandoning wonderful wife is faulty. However, letting a woman without a bob is more pitiless. He also knows before that his wife and children will have to suffer difficulties in life withouthim. But he still leaves them to  pursue his aim. Hang it all, one can’t leave a woman without a  bobWhy not? Don’t you care for her any more? N ot a bit†Strickland does not try thinking whether a weak woman can live without support from man;especially she has to nurse two children. They don’t know what they should do in order to support their life and what will wait for them in the future. He supposed that he no longer haveany responsibility to his family and all things that he  did before be enough. 1. 2 Strickland is irresponsible selfish father Strickland does not want to take any responsibility to his children. His children are very youngand innocent.They have never done any harm to  Strickland. â€Å"Damn it all. There are your children to think of. They’ve never done you any harm. They didnot ask to be bought in to the world. If you chuck everything like this, they’ll be thrown on thestreet. They have had a good many years of comfort. It’s much more than the majority of childrenhave. Besides, somebody will look after them. When it comes to the point, the Mac Andrewswill pay for t heir schooling†. How can children live without support from their father? He did not care about his children anymore, even though they could be thrown out in the street. Read also:  Moon By Chaim PotokFor many people, rearing children isvery holly duty and happiness. For children, father is the material and spiritual favor. It is very  poor for children when he entrusts them to the care of  Mac Andrews. Especially, Strickland thought that he did not have any special feeling to  his children. For many men, children are always very special and take really important part in their emotional life. Strickland only had special feeling to his children when they were small. When they grow  up, heno longer loves them. It seems that the nature of a father in Strickland has disappeared. He  became an unemotional father. 1. Strickland is ungrateful to his friend Dirk Strove is a very kind- hearted person. Dirk Strove is the person who recognizes the talentof Strickland and helps him everything in bad days. When Strickland falls seriously ill, it isStrove who comes to help. Strove persuades his wife to let him bring the artist home to look  after. St rickland must have gratitude all the things that Strove had done for him. On the other  hand, Strickland has an adulterous affair with his best friend’s wife. Moreover, Strickland justwants to take use of her body for  the nude picture and causes the death of Strove. 2. Strickland  as an  artist . 1 Strickland is a  really passionate painter .He compares his passion to paint is like the desire to breath. He abandoned his wife andchildren to pursuit his dream of painting. He gives up a happy life to go strange place to learn painting. He gets divorced with his wife without any reasons and lets his children alone to devotefor art. â€Å"I have got to paint† is repeated four times in conservation with the friend. It means thatthe desire to paint is full  of in his head all the  time. When family’s friend is sent to persuade Strickland, he used all the tactics and arguments tochange Strickland’s decision.However, Strickland still expresses a con sistent attitude to allarguments. Strickland believes that his wife could take care of herself and also is ready to  provide all necessary background for her to divorce. His children can grow without his support. Strickland reckons that it is the high time for him to realize his dream. For Strickland, painting is the air of life, an interest. The painting is all. He does not concernabout all the worst things people can think about him. â€Å"Everyone will think you are perfect swineLet themWon’t it mean anything to you to  know that people loath and despise you?No†Short answers contain a terrible determination. It seems that the art  is the only meaningful thingto him now. The passion of painting is covering all his body and  will. Behind the dull appearance, Strickland has the true passion to art. Strickland- a man with old  Norfolk jacket, unnourished bowler, his trouser was bagging, his hand were not clean, his facewith red stubble of the  unsaved chin, little eye, the large aggressive nose, his mount large and hislip were heavy and sensual. On the surface, he was not born for art. The rude and sensualappearance is completely contrary to deep passion on art and artist soul.The narrator feels  powerful desire to paint in his voice and vehement power. There is strong struggle between willand passion inside this man. Strickland decides to leave all his family and material values, loveand lust behind to scarify for art. Strickland accepts a poor life to devote for art and passion. From a prosperous stockbroker,Strickland became a poor man for only reason of being a painter. He  can live in cheap hotel withabout hundred pounds to learn painting. When coming Tahiti, Strickland marries with a nativegirl and lives in forest far away from town. They live in misery. When there was no food to behad, he seemed capable†. It seems that he â€Å"lived a life wholly of the spirit† . All the materialvalues do not have any meaning t o him. He wants to spend the rest of the life painting. He couldsuffer the poorest conditions to draw. Strickland decides to paint at the age of 40. â€Å"Do you think it is likely that a man will do any good when he starts at your age? Most people  begin painting when they were eighteen. I can learn quicker than I could when I  was eighteen†. The age is one of the most important barriers for Strickland to overcome. People mainly paintwhen they were eighteen.In spite of acknowledging this, Strickland still decides to paint by allmeans. In fact, there is no limitation of age in art. However, Strickland must have had the trulystrong desire to art because it is very difficult and unusual for people to start learning painting atthis age. Strickland had dream of painting when he was very small. At his time, the values of  man are measured in terms of money. His father said that there was no money in art and obligedhim to do business. Obeying his father’s speech, Stric kland became a prosperous stockbroker. He owns a happy family and good social status.Strickland does not satisfy with the current life. He feels the life is so boring and not meaningful. After 40 years, the dream of childhood stillobsesses him and wins other things. It seems that the man is cut for painting. At the age of 40,after many years of empty soul, he realizes clearly what he wants, what is important to his life. Panting is the job which he really wishes to do and  succeed. 2. 2 Strickland understands the rotten society and he is very brave man who sacrifices for the real art   When Strickland abandons his wife and spends all the rest of life for painting, many peoplewould think he is not usual.His action is different from the normal people in society. In the  bourgeois society, money is highly appreciated and most of people live for money. They supposethat there is no money in art and artists are not highly evaluated in social order. In contrary,Strickland can give up everything to pursue art. Strickland wishes to paint because of true  passion, but not for money. He never sold a single picture and he was never satisfied with whathe had done. In the end, Strickland obliged his wife to burn all his picture and house so that allhis products are not survived for commercial purpose.He has the great art concept and is acourageous man who devotes everything to art. With the endowed talent and passion, Strickland creates the wonderful pictures which containthe great content and perfect beauty. Strickland can go anywhere to find inspiration for his  picture. He decides to move from London to Paris, after that he came to Tahiti and live in aforest. Strickland is in search of a world of his own. When he contracts leprosy, he still draws. As he becomes blind, he continues painting until he died. Strickland is worth to  be great and realartist. 3. Conclusion For Strickland’s family, he is a bad father and husband.In term of the normal concepts in the society, Strickland is considered to be a selfish person who can abandon all important things to  pursue his own passion. Strickland is a real artist  and brave man in bourgeois society. He abandons all the normal thingsincluding family, money, social status, moral values to sacrifice for the real art. With deep enthusiasms, Strickland creates the great product and paints until his the last breaths. Hesupposes that the true art should not be contaminated by the commercial world of money. He isthe typical artist who can scarify for the  real art in the bourgeois society. Some comments:This is a fictionalized account of the life of artist Paul Gaugin. It's the best fictionalized biography I've ever read. From the moment I learned he's left his wife and children to the death of his mistress, I've been captivated by this intense personality. I'm reminded of Steve Jobs, a heartless man obsessed by work, by a vision. But the most interesting thing so far is the art itself. Th e narrator, a writer, admits that the first time he sees â€Å"Charles Strickland's† paintings, he's disappointed. The oranges are swollen and lopsided. He doesn't have the craftsmanship of the old masters. (And no wonder. He's only been painting for five years. Yet he says to himself, it's because it's a new style. This is key. Would anything ever make it in art if it weren't new? It goes through a couple of stages. Total rejection, then wild acclaim. The narrator is disappointed in himself for not recognizing genius. Only later, after he's seen these works in museums, acclaimed by others, is he able to recognize the hand of a master. It brings to mind Tom Wolfe's â€Å"The Painted Word. † Nothing is art until a story makes it so. And yet†¦ A major character in â€Å"The Moon and Sixpence† is a hackneyed artist who has great technical skill yet paints for the vulgar masses, making a comfortable living.He sees the genius of Gaugin (or in this case â€Å"Ch arles Strickland†) as no one does. He tries to get dealers to take the works though Strickland is uninterested in selling them. This character is the polar opposite of Strickland. He thinks only of others. If it weren't for him, Strickland would have died. Yet he gets no respect. He's other-directed in a world where the inner-directed rule. Yet he's a great judge of art. I can't help concluding that nearly every new style offers something, however turned off we may be initially. But I still prefer representational work to most modern art. The Right TimeThere are some books that walk into your life at an opportune time. I'm talking about the books that send a pleasant shiver down your spine laden with â€Å"Man, this is meant to be! † as you flip through its pages cursorily. Or those that upon completion, demand an exclamation from every book-reading fibre of your body to the effect of â€Å"There couldn't have been a better time for me to have read this book! † N ow, I come from deferred-gratification stock. So books like these, you don't read immediately,. You let them sit there on your table for a while. You bask in the warm expectant glow of a life-altering read.You glance at the book as you make your way to office, take pleasure in the fact that it'll be right there on your table when you open the front-door wearily, waiting to be opened, caressed, reveled in. And when that moment of reckoning arrives, you don't stop, you plunge yourself straight into the book, white-hot passionate. The Moon and Sixpence was just that kind of a book for me. I had just completed (and thoroughly enjoyed) a course on Modern Art in college and could rattle off the names of Impressionist painters faster than I could the Indian cricket team.I was particularly intrigued by Paul Gauguin, a French Post-Impressionist painter, after reading one of his disturbingly direct quotes. â€Å"Civilization is what makes me sick†, he proclaimed, and huddled off to Tah iti to escape Europe and â€Å"all that is artificial and conventional†, leaving behind a wife and five children to fend for themselves, never to make contact with them again. This struck me as the ultimate expression of individuality, a resounding slap to the judgmental face of conservative society, an escapist act of repugnant selfishness that could only be justified by immeasurable artistic talent, genius, some may call it.My imagination was tickled beyond measure and when I discovered there was a novel by W. Somerset Maugham (the author of The Razor's Edge no less! ) based on Gauguin, my joy knew no bounds. I was in the correct frame of mind to read about the life of a stockbroker who gave up on the trivial pleasures of bourgeois life for the penury and hard life of an aspiring painter without considering him ridiculous or vain. Supplied with the appropriate proportions of awe that is due to a genius protagonist, I began reading the book. I have to admit I expected a whol e lot from it.I had a voyeuristic curiosity to delve into the head of a certified genius. I was even more curious to see how Maugham had executed it. At the same time, I was hoping that the book would raise and answer important questions concerning the nature of art and about what drives an artist to madness and greatness. The Book The book's title is taken from a review of Of Human Bondage in which the novel's protagonist, Philip Carey, is described as  Ã¢â‚¬Å"so busy yearning for the moon that he never saw the sixpence at his feet. † I admired Maugham's narrative voice.In his inimitable style, he flits in and out of the characters' life as the stolid, immovable writer who is a mere observer, and nothing more. His narrator defies Heisenberg's uncertainty principle as in observing his characters, he doesn't change their lives or nature one bit. He has a mild disdain for the ordinary life of a householder and relishes his independence. â€Å"I pictured their lives, troubled by no untoward adventure, honest, decent, and, by reason of these two upstanding, pleasant children, so obviously destined to carry on the normal traditions of their race and station, not without significance.They would grow old insensibly; they would see their son and daughter come to years of reason, marry in due course – the one a peretty girl, future mother of healthy children; the other a handsome, manly fellow, obviously a soldier; and at last, prosperous in their dignified retirement, beloved by their descendants, after a happy, not unuseful life, in the fullness of their age they would sink into the grave. That must be the story of innumerable couples, and the patter of life it offers has a homely grace.It reminds you of a placid rivulet, meandering smoothly through green pastures and shaded by pleasant trees, till at last it falls into the vasty sea; but the sea is so calm, so silent, so indifferent, that you are troubled suddenly by a vague uneasiness. Perhaps it is only a kink in my nature, strong in me even in those days, that I felt in such an existence, the share of the great majority, something amiss. I recognized its social value. I saw its ordered happiness, but a fever in my blood asked for a wilder course. There seemed to me something alarming in such easy delights.In my heart was a desire to live more dangerously. I was not unprepared for jagged rocks and treacherous shoals if I could only have change – change and the excitement of the unforeseen. † In Maugham's hands, Gauguin becomes Charles Strickland, an unassuming British stockbroker, with a secret unquenchable lust for beauty that he is willing to take to the end of the world, first to Paris and then to remote Tahiti. He is cold, selfish and uncompromising in this quest for beauty. â€Å"The passion that held Strickland was a passion to create beauty. It gave him no peace. It urged him hither and thither.He was eternally a pilgrim, haunted by a divine nostalgia, an d the demon within him was ruthless. There are men whose desire for truth is so great that to attain it they will shatter the very foundation of their world. Of such was Strickland, only beauty with him took the place of truth. I could only feel for him a profound compassion. † However words such as these serve to romanticize Strickland's actions which at first glance, remain despicable. (view spoiler)Maugham paints him as a rogue loner, an unfathomable apparition, compelled to inhuman acts by the divine tyranny of art. He lived more poorly than an artisan. He worked harder. He cared nothing for those things which with most people make life gracious and beautiful. He was indifferent to money. He cared nothing about fame. You cannot praise him because he resisted the temptation to make any of those compromises with the world which most of us yield to. He had no such temptation. It never entered his head that compromise was possible. He lived in Paris more lonely than an anchori te in the deserts of Thebes. He asked nothing from his fellows except that they should leave him alone.He was single-hearted in his aim, and to pursue it he was willing to sacrifice not only himself – many can do that – but others. He had a vision. Strickland was an odious man, but I still think he was a great one. † In these beautiful words he describes Strickland's strange homelessness and suggests a reason for his subsequent escape to Tahiti. â€Å"I have an idea that some men are born out of their due place. Accident has cast them amid strange surroundings, but they have always a nostalgia for a home they know not.They are strangers in their birthplace, and the leafy lanes they have known from childhood or the populous streets in which they have played, remain but a place of passage. They may spend their whole lives aliens among their kindred and remain aloof among the only scenes they have ever known. Perhaps it is this sense of strangeness that sends men f ar and wide in the search for something permanent, to which they may attach themselves. Perhaps some deep-rooted atavism urges the wanderer back to lands which his ancestors left in the dim beginnings of history. Sometimes a man hits upon a place to which he mysteriously feels he belongs.Here is the home he sought, and he will settle amid scnes that he has never seen before, among men he has never known, as though they were familiar to him from his birth. Here at last he finds rest. † By the end of the book, Maugham's narrator somewhat loses his grip over the reader and I could picture him in my mind floundering around the island of Tahiti, interviewing the people who came in contact with Strickland, trying to piece together a story. He finds himself in the â€Å"position of the biologist, who has to figure out from a bone, not only a creature's body, but also its habits. The reader is promised the ineffable, a study of genius and is only delivered an admission of its elusive nature. Also the tone of the novel tends to get slightly misogynistic in places. But I suppose that is more a failing of the protagonist rather than the author. As compensation, Maugham offers delicious crisp cookies of wisdom throughout. In simple lyrical language, he penetrates to the core of the human condition and offers invaluable advice to the aspiring writer, the hopeful lover and the wannabe genius.For its unpretentious, sympathetic and humane portrayal of a deeply flawed protagonist, its quotable quotes and its ironic humour, this book shall rank as my one of my favourite books on the life and development of an artist in search of the unknowable. My Master Maugham I strongly believe that the adjectives one throws around are a barometer of one's sensitivity or at the minimum, one's desire to be accurate. Both of these qualities are indispensable to the aspiring writer because honestly, what is there to writing exceptfresh verbs, evocative adjectives, searing honesty and an unbounded imagination.Also, that it's easier said than done. In this context, there are moments when I feel utterly stupid and unimaginative. My inner monologues resemble the chatter of teenage girls in their lack of content and use of worn-out adjectives. I mean, awesome and amazing, like seriously? Bleeuurghh!! During such exasperating times, my inner world aches to devour a mouthful of good-looking words in the Queen's English. I head to my dusty book-closet and roughly displace its contents until I find a book either by one of the barons of British literature, a W. Somerset Maugham/PG Wodehouse or a laid-back satire along the lines of Yes Minister.The book usually serves its purpose admirably. It manages to extract me from my predicament by either making me split my sides laughing or by drowning me in a stream of sentences so beautifully constructed that I completely forget my insecurities and start shaking my head ponderously at the writer's virtuosity instead. Coming to the to pic of the writer himself, W. Somerset Maugham is one of my favourite writers in the English language. Being an aspiring writer who's yet to find his voice myself, his novels never fail to stab me with a hopeful optimism. My premature belief, that I can write well, is reinforced when I read Maugham.He never intimidates me or bores me, commonplace sins many writers will have to go to confession for. While reading his prose, he possesses the singular ability of making the difficult art of writing seem pretty doable. This, I've realized with the passing of time, is due to one simple reason. It is because W. Somerset Maugham never shows off! Never! Never does he ramble pointlessly. Never does he merely graze the point instead of hitting it fair and square because he was too busy fooling around with the language. Never! He hits bulls eye with eloquence and a kind of frugal, flowing lyricism.There is always a single-minded purpose behind his writings. It is to spin a mighty good yarn by g etting the point across without making his readers consult a dictionary. He even propounds profundity in a manner that typically makes me re-read the paragraph(and underline it) to admire the economy and ease with which the thought was expressed in words. I find the writing styles of Hemingway and Maugham similar in form, but while Hemingway's writing is austere to the point of being skeletal, Maugham clothes his words until they can be considered passably pretty.For his remarkable abilities, Maugham's opinions about his own writing were always modest. He believed he stood  Ã¢â‚¬Å"in the very first row of the second-raters. †Ã‚  Asked about his method of writing, he simplified it to a matter of keen observation and honest reproduction. â€Å"†Most people cannot see anything,†Ã‚  he once said,  Ã¢â‚¬Å"but I can see what is in front of my nose with extreme clearness; the greatest writers can see through a brick wall. My vision is not so penetrating. † My f avourite excerpts Advice to aspiring writers I forget who it was that recommended men for their soul's good to do each day two things they disliked: it was a wise man, and it is a precept that I have followed scrupulously; for every day I have got up and I have gone to bed. But there is in my nature a strain of asceticism, and I have subjected my flesh each week to a more severe mortification. I have never failed to read the Literary Supplement of The Times. It is a salutary discipline to consider the vast number of books that are written, the fair hopes with which their authors see them published, and the fate which awaits them.What chance is there that any book will make its way among that multitude? And the successful books are but the successes of a season. Heaven knows what pains the author has been at, what bitter experiences he has endured and what heartache suffered, to give some chance reader a few hours relaxation or to while away the tedium of a journey. And if I may judg e from the reviews, many of these book are well and carefully written; much thought has gone to their composition; to some even has been given the anxious labour of a lifetime.The moral I draw is that the writer should seek his reward in the pleasure of his work and in release from the burden of his thoughts; and indifferent to aught else, care nothing for praise or censure, failure or success. † â€Å"Until long habit has blunted the sensibility, there is something disconcerting to the writer in the instinct which causes him to take an interest in the singularities of human nature so absorbing that his moral sense is powerless against it.He recognizes in himself an artistic satisfaction in the contemplation of evil which a little startles him but sincerity forces him to confess that the disapproval he feels for certain actions is not nearly so strong as his curiosity in their reasons. The writer is more concerned to know than to judge. † On the ironic humour of life â €Å"Dirk Stroeve was one of those unlucky persons whose most sincere emotions are ridiculous. † On the nature of art â€Å"Why should you think that beauty, which is the most precious thing in the world, lies like a stone on the beach for the careless passer-by to pick up idly?Beauty is something wonderful and strange that the artist fashions out of the chaos of the world in the torment of his soul. And when he has made it, it is not given to all to know it. To recognize it you must repeat the adventure of the artist. It is a melody he sings to you, and to hear it again in your own heart you want knowledge and sensitiveness and imagination. † B? kh? n kh? ? nha c? a chu c? a minh va ? tru? ng, chang trai Maugham b? t d? u phat tri? n m? t cai tai kheo dua ra nh? ng nh? n xet gay t? n thuong cho nh? ng ngu? i ma c? u khong ua. Cai tai nay doi khi du? c ph? n anh trong cac nhan v? t van h? c c? a Maugham