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.