Ah I'm glad you did a post on The Painted Veil, and your thoughts here are so rich. I can't remember if I've read it. I think I did but it was before I was tracking my reading, so this is definitely making me want to pick it up. I was very moved by the film when I saw it years ago, and have always really loved that line: “when love and duty are one, then grace is in you". A good quote to live by. I didn't know about the influence of Dante and Shelley on Maugham. Super interesting!
And agreed on Desplat's beautiful score. The film also introduced me to the French song "A la claire fontaine" which I've since sung to my babies while rocking them.
Lump in my throat just thinking of "A La Claire Fontaine!" I think you would love a read (or re-read?) of The Painted Veil. Truly one of the most ecstatic, yet quiet character transformations I've ever read.
Interesting that the story chronicles the transitions and transformation that should be part of the life experience of a true believer, without fully embracing or divulging a singular epiphanic experience that seems to accompany the life-change that belief and obedience to the call of Christ would produce. But then I guess it is the prerogative of the author to retain some mystery. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks, Craig! You're right, there's no dramatic conversion like that of Paul, but I find the slower story of her transformation more compelling, because (like Paul) no one changes completely in an instant.
I love this, Melody! The Painted Veil was one of my favorite novels of 2024. I didn’t really know what to expect going in and was so moved by Kitty’s story and Maugham’s storytelling. I think I first considered reading this because I saw your review on Goodreads, so thank you!
What an informative piece! I've never read the book, but I have seen the film (that was years ago, but I recall some vivid scenes of Mei-tan-fu). How is the film compared to the book?
You don't discuss Maugham's craft as a writer. How does he compare to Fitzgerald, Woolf, or my favorite from that era, Edith Wharton?
Thanks, Brad! I find the film a good adaptation, though without Kitty's interiority that the novel's narration provides, it ends up being a sadder story than the novel, which has a triumphant, if quiet, ending. Edward Norton's performance gives so much to Walter that just isn't there in the book, and I appreciate that. Yet, one could watch the film (as I did before I read the book) and not know it was about an inner spiritual journey. I think the novel is stronger with the film (supplying a mental image of China's natural beauty for westerners) and the film is strongest with the novel.
Maugham's craft as a writer shows in three main areas here: dialogue, Kitty's internal world (written in third person), and his exploration of beauty as spiritual encounter. Redemption is such a strong theme for Maugham in this book that I find it hard to compare him to Fitzgerald and Woolf, who don't explore that. The Painted Veil does make a good conversation partner with The Great Gatsby: Maugham strips away everything for his character so she has to rebuild, while Fitzgerald shows Gatsby acquiring everything he can (if he had won Daisy would she have been enough for him?).
I just re-read The House of Mirth in Advent, so Wharton is fresh in my mind. Both novelists write about the ways social pressure affect the inner worlds of their characters. Their narration styles are distinct--Maugham's narration is not as pithy as Wharton's, and he is more like modernist than a Progressive Era writer--but I thoroughly enjoy both. I hadn't thought of comparing them before, but they overlap for decades in their writing careers, and I'm wondering now if they read each other's work or even if they met.
Ah I'm glad you did a post on The Painted Veil, and your thoughts here are so rich. I can't remember if I've read it. I think I did but it was before I was tracking my reading, so this is definitely making me want to pick it up. I was very moved by the film when I saw it years ago, and have always really loved that line: “when love and duty are one, then grace is in you". A good quote to live by. I didn't know about the influence of Dante and Shelley on Maugham. Super interesting!
And agreed on Desplat's beautiful score. The film also introduced me to the French song "A la claire fontaine" which I've since sung to my babies while rocking them.
Lump in my throat just thinking of "A La Claire Fontaine!" I think you would love a read (or re-read?) of The Painted Veil. Truly one of the most ecstatic, yet quiet character transformations I've ever read.
Interesting that the story chronicles the transitions and transformation that should be part of the life experience of a true believer, without fully embracing or divulging a singular epiphanic experience that seems to accompany the life-change that belief and obedience to the call of Christ would produce. But then I guess it is the prerogative of the author to retain some mystery. Thank you for sharing!
Thanks, Craig! You're right, there's no dramatic conversion like that of Paul, but I find the slower story of her transformation more compelling, because (like Paul) no one changes completely in an instant.
What an incredible post! I have added this book to my TBR!
So glad you liked it! Hope you enjoy reading it whenever you get around to it. :)
I love this, Melody! The Painted Veil was one of my favorite novels of 2024. I didn’t really know what to expect going in and was so moved by Kitty’s story and Maugham’s storytelling. I think I first considered reading this because I saw your review on Goodreads, so thank you!
Thank you, Elizabeth! I took a chance on it after a Goodreads friend's review, too. So glad I did--it's become a heart book for me.
What an informative piece! I've never read the book, but I have seen the film (that was years ago, but I recall some vivid scenes of Mei-tan-fu). How is the film compared to the book?
You don't discuss Maugham's craft as a writer. How does he compare to Fitzgerald, Woolf, or my favorite from that era, Edith Wharton?
Thanks, Brad! I find the film a good adaptation, though without Kitty's interiority that the novel's narration provides, it ends up being a sadder story than the novel, which has a triumphant, if quiet, ending. Edward Norton's performance gives so much to Walter that just isn't there in the book, and I appreciate that. Yet, one could watch the film (as I did before I read the book) and not know it was about an inner spiritual journey. I think the novel is stronger with the film (supplying a mental image of China's natural beauty for westerners) and the film is strongest with the novel.
Maugham's craft as a writer shows in three main areas here: dialogue, Kitty's internal world (written in third person), and his exploration of beauty as spiritual encounter. Redemption is such a strong theme for Maugham in this book that I find it hard to compare him to Fitzgerald and Woolf, who don't explore that. The Painted Veil does make a good conversation partner with The Great Gatsby: Maugham strips away everything for his character so she has to rebuild, while Fitzgerald shows Gatsby acquiring everything he can (if he had won Daisy would she have been enough for him?).
I just re-read The House of Mirth in Advent, so Wharton is fresh in my mind. Both novelists write about the ways social pressure affect the inner worlds of their characters. Their narration styles are distinct--Maugham's narration is not as pithy as Wharton's, and he is more like modernist than a Progressive Era writer--but I thoroughly enjoy both. I hadn't thought of comparing them before, but they overlap for decades in their writing careers, and I'm wondering now if they read each other's work or even if they met.