First of all I want to begin with the narrative perspective. In the short story “Mr. Know-All” by William Somerset Maugham there is a first person narrator‚ who takes an active part in the story. He is a very important character. It is not easy to tell whether he is a minor or a major character. On the one hand he is a major character because the way he presents Mr. Kelada influences the reader a lot. On the other hand he is just a minor character because he is only the presenter of Mr. Kelada. The
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Mr. Know-All – Literary analysis THE STORY Mr. Know-All is a story with a moral lesson. The subject is simple. A rich British merchant of Oriental origin‚ named Mr. Kelada‚ meets a group of Westerners on a ship sailing across the Pacific Ocean from San Francisco to Yokohama. His cabin-mate‚ a British citizen who is the nameless narrator of the story‚ dislikes Mr. Kelada even before he sees him. However‚ at the end of the story Mr. Kelada‚ the Levantine jeweler‚ proves to be a real gentleman
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When? Post-World war I (after 1918). "I did not like Mr. Kelada” - Why? Before their first meeting: His name (Max Kelada) – not English‚ indicates middle-eastern origin (“I should have looked upon it with less dismay if my fellow passenger’s name had been Smith or Brown”). The look of his luggage – too many labels on the suitcases‚ the wardrobe trunk was too big. His prestigious toiletries – filthy (“would have been all the better for a scrub”). After they meet: His body language
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impressions‚ values and – most importantly of all – prejudice. Prejudice arises because it is human nature to stereotype new people we meet based on race or how they look before getting to know them. The messageof the story can perhaps best be summed up in the English proverb: You should not judge a book by its cover. The author of “Mr. Know-All”‚ W Somerset Maugham (1874–1965) was a popular English playwright‚ novelist and short story writer. Maugham is said to have been the highest paid author
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Mr. know all William Somerset Maugham was a British playwright‚ novelist and short story writer. He was among the most popular writers of his era and reputedly the highest paid author during the 1930s. Maugham’s style is clear-cut and elegant. The attitude of the novelist to his character seems mostly to be cynically sarcastic. A play upon contrasts and contradictions lies at the basis of Maugham’s sarcastic method in portraying his characters. The author often thought upon the problems of relationship
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The ant and the grasshopper by W. S. Maugham The aim of the following paper is to analyze a story by Mark Twain called A Curious Dream. We propose in this paper firstly‚ to analyze characters‚ theme and point of view; secondly‚ the author’s style and thirdly‚ the author’s beliefs. Firstly‚ Characters The participants in the story are: the author‚ John Baxter Copmanhurst (the skeleton). The author in the story is the narrator presented with the subject pronoun “I”; he is the one who describes
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Literary analysis THE STORY Mr. Know- All is a story with a moral lesson. The subject is simple. A rich Britishmerchant of Oriental origin‚ called Mr. Kelada‚ meets a group of Westerners on a shipsailing across the Pacific Ocean. His cabin-mate‚ a British citizen who is the nameless narrator of the story‚ dislikes Mr. Kelada even before he sees him. However‚ at theend of the pride and reputation to save an American ladys marriage.As a result‚ he earns the respect of the narrator.story Mr. Kelada‚
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Mr. Know-All by W. Somerset Maugham This story deals with prejudice‚ hasty judgements and stereotypes. The story examines the relationships that develop when people are confined to a ship (which is a small sample of society) for an extended period of time. The writer criticizes the racial prejudices and snobbish attitude of the British people. He tries to show why people are disliked and prejudiced against and at the same time makes the reader look closely at the character of the narrator‚ who
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ready for the Summative Assessment on Thursday. 1. First‚ go into this site: http://www.allthetests.com/quiz29/quiz/1305962385/Mr-Know-All-content-quiz and do the quiz on Mr. Know All. Use a dictionary for words you don’t know. 2. Now‚ read the following summary and analysis of Mr. Know All. An analysis of Mr Know All written by William Somerset Maugham The story takes place in international waters on an ocean going liner sailing from San Fracisco‚ U.S.A to Yokohama‚ Japan on the Pacific
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citizen of the British colonies‚ interferes in other people’s lives. He is dogmatic and thinks that he knows everything better than anybody else‚ he is certain that you are as glad to see him as he is glad to see you. He argues a lot and always has something to say‚ runs everything‚ conducts the auction‚ collects money for prizes at the sports‚ organizes the concerts and arranges a ball. All these annoy the passengers and the narrator‚ but Mr.Kelada doesn’t want to annoy them‚ he has good intentions
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