The Pursuit Of Freedom In "the Painted Veil"

William Somerset Maugham is a famous British novelist and playwright. He created more than ten novels, more than one hundred short stories, more than thirty dramas, many prose, and travels notes in his life. His works have been widely spread in the world. "The Painted Veil" is the first novel which took him many years to finish. It is also the only novel which is based on the story but not characters. Maugham pursued the freedom in his entire life; literature became a main approach to express his desire for freedom. In his opinion, the human could not become free because they were always chained by all kinds of bondages. The human should use reason to control their emotions and instincts, so they could be free from the bondages. By analyzing the heroine -Kitty's life, this essay interprets the eternal proposition of pursuing freedom in this novel.This essay has five parts, including the introduction, chapter one, chapter two, chapter three and the epilogue. The introduction focuses on current research and the main contents of this essay. Chapter one, explores the bondages of freedom. This will be demonstrated based on two aspects: one is utility marriage; the other one is human's emotions and instincts. Chapter two will discuss how to be free of bondages and gain freedom. Kitty's experience reveals that there are two way. Self-examination and contemplation of life in extremity is the first way; the redemption of religious spirit, especially the Christian loving spirit and reasonable spirit is the second way. In chapter three, this essay will make a concrete analysis of the twists during the pursuit of freedom. First, because the emotions are affected by the environments, they are not easily conquered, so the route to freedom is tortuous. Kitty's second fall emphasizes that regeneration is not a simple matter; however, as long as people use reason to guide their life, restrain their emotions and desires, they will gain the freedom at last. The epilogue reviews the pursing of freedom in Maugham's life and his writing experiences. It provides the researchers a new point of view to understand Maugham's ideological system.