Human Nature in Maugham's The Moon and Sixpence
This essay examines how W. Somerset Maugham's novel The Moon and Sixpence uses its narrator's retrospective account of Charles Strickland's life to illuminate broader truths about human nature. Through close reading of three key narrative moments, the paper traces the narrator's growing awareness of humanity's innate capacity for myth-making, its tendency toward self-deception, and its persistent drive toward contentment. The analysis argues that, while the narrator ostensibly reports on Strickland's bohemian pursuit of art, the telling of that story becomes its own journey of self-realization — one that reveals as much about the observer as it does about the observed.
- Introduction: The Narrator as Learner: Narrator observes Strickland to understand human nature
- The Innate Human Capacity for Myth: Myth-making as a core human faculty
- Self-Deception and Incongruity: Characters fool themselves to preserve comfortable realities
- The Persistent Drive Toward Contentment: People find happiness despite hardship and loss
- Conclusion: What Strickland's Story Reveals: Storytelling itself becomes a journey of self-realization
✍️ How to write this paper — guide, tools & examples ▾
What makes this paper effective
- The essay moves through three clearly distinct observations about human nature — myth, self-deception, and contentment — giving the argument a logical, cumulative structure that builds toward a meaningful conclusion.
- Direct quotations from the novel are integrated smoothly and used analytically rather than decoratively; each passage is followed by interpretation that advances the paper's central claim.
- The paper maintains a consistent focus on the narrator's perspective, treating the act of storytelling itself as a site of insight — a nuanced move that elevates the analysis beyond simple plot summary.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates close reading: identifying specific passages, quoting precisely, and then unpacking the implications of the language for the essay's broader argument. This technique is especially visible in the discussion of the narrator's remark about Strickland's "incongruity," where a single observation is used to illuminate a general claim about human self-deception.
Structure breakdown
The essay opens with an introductory paragraph establishing the novel's premise and the narrator's role. It then proceeds through three body paragraphs, each organized around a distinct aspect of human nature revealed through the narrative. A brief concluding paragraph ties the observations together and gestures toward the reader's own takeaway. The structure is tight and straightforward — appropriate for a focused literary analysis essay at the undergraduate level.
Introduction: The Narrator as Learner
In The Moon and Sixpence by W. Somerset Maugham, the main character's life becomes a lens through which the narrator examines human nature. Charles Strickland abandons his family to find success as an artist, leaving England to pursue the life of a bohemian in Paris. Success does not come quickly to Strickland, nor is it easy to define. Though he possesses great skill as a painter, he demonstrates far less skill in his dealings with people. The way he treats those around him makes a deep impression on the novel's narrator, who tells Strickland's story retrospectively, after the painter's death. It is not always clear which of the narrator's observations pertain directly to Strickland's story, but what is certain is that through his examination of this fictional painter's life, the narrator learns a great deal — not just about the artist's temperament, but about human nature at large.
Create your account
Always verify citation format against your institution’s current style guide requirements.