Salvatore by William Somerset Maugham: Analysis

Rarely has English literature produced such a prolific short story writer, playwright, and novelist
as William Somerset Maugham (1874-1965). He began writing when he was in college studying
to become a doctor. His first novel, ‘Liza of Lambeth’ flew off the shelves, giving Maugham a
flying start to Maugham’s literary ambitions. His reputation as a novelist rests primarily on four
books: ‘Of Human Bondage’ (1915), ‘The Moon and Sixpence’ (1919), ‘Cakes and Ale’ (1930),
and ‘The Razor’s Edge’ (1944). Maugham’s short stories have increased in popularity often
portraying the conflict of Europeans in alien surroundings that provoke strong emotions, and
Maugham’s skill in handling plot is distinguished by economy and suspense.

The story, ‘Salvatore’ begins with the speaker expressing his concern in the first person: “I
wonder if I can do it.” This line has the uncanny ability to draw the reader in, to intrigue the
reader’s curiosity and make one expect something more. It is a very effective tool in arresting the
reader’s attention in a form (the short story) where time is limited and the reader’s attention
precious. As it turns out, he wants to hold the reader’s attention “for a few pages” while drawing
the portrait of a man and the rare quality of goodness that he possessed. Needless to say,
Maugham is a terrific storyteller and ‘Salvatore’ is also a lesson on how the writer of the short
story may achieve her/his aim within the constraints of time and space the form demands of
him/her.

Salvatore is the protagonist of W. Somerset Maugham’s short story of the same name. The story
is not only named after him but also it intends to develop him as a character filled with inherent
goodness. Salvatore, when young, was described as "a boy of fifteen with a pleasant face, a
laughing mouth and carefree eyes "and "his brown body was as thin as a rail". He had sturdy
built-up and was full of grace. Being a boy of a fishing community, he could swim effortlessly in
the sea. He gradually grows up to become a “tall, broad and big husky fellow.” He had enormous
hands, that became coarse and hard from constant toil.

Salvatore, the eldest of the brothers, was full of affection for his two brothers. He took care of
them as a caring nursemaid. “He shouted to them to come inshore when they ventured out too
far." He would also dress them when it was time to climb the hot hill for the midday meal. One
of the first qualities indirectly attributed to Salvatore is responsibility. We are told that Salvatore
“acted as nursemaid to his two younger brothers“, ever watchful of their safety and wellbeing
and in doing so comes off as a caring brother. This is one of the first among a multiplicity of
qualities that go into the making of the admirable unity of Goodness.

Salvatore was very emotional about his family and his home. He had never been alone and when
he left to become a sailor in the navy of King Victor Emmanuel, “he wept like a child.” Being
away from his home, he was dreadfully homesick. He was not comfortable with strangers on the
ship and when onshore he did not like spending time in friendless crowded cities.

“He was dreadfully homesick. But it was hardest of all to be parted from the girl he loved with
all his passionate young heart. He wrote to her (in his childlike handwriting) long, ill-spelt
letters in which he told her how constantly he thought of her and how much he longed to be
back.”
Salvatore was madly in love with a girl from his island. They were engaged and had to wait for
marriage until he completed his military service. He is a passionate lover and remains faithful
towards the girl he loves. While on his naval duty, his thoughts are preoccupied with the girl he
has left behind and he constantly writes long letters to his lover. It is a different matter that he
does not receive any letter of response from the other end. This quality of giving without
expecting anything in return speaks of the sincerity of his love and the generosity of this human
being.

When he fell ill and doctors told him that he was suffering from rheumatism, “his heart exulted,
for he could go home" to the girl, who was supposedly waiting for him. When he came back due
to his illness, he was rejected by the girl he loved. The girl’s mother bluntly told him that her
daughter would not marry a man suffering from a disease. The heartbroken Salvatore "was
terribly unhappy, but he did not blame the girl." He understood that “a girl could not afford to
marry a man who might not be able to support her." She refused to marry him but his inherent
goodness and true love that he felt for her, did not allow him to say a "hard word for the girl he
had loved so well."

When he was left heartbroken by the girl he loved, he wept on his mother's bosom. “He was
terribly unhappy, but he did not blame the girl… he did not complain, and he never said a hard
word of the girl he had loved so well.” This speaks volumes about the character of this man.
Despite being wronged, he tries to understand the other person’s situation and holds no grudge
against her. This is a magnanimous gesture on his part that is rarely seen in the real world.

Salvatore, after being rejected by the girl he loved, married Assunta. He fulfilled his
responsibilities of being a husband and a father. He kept Assunta happy; “she never ceased to be
touched by his gentle sweetness.” Even after suffering from rheumatism, he worked hard to
sustain his family. He used to work full day in the vineyard and spent the night catching the
profitable cuttlefish with one of his brothers.

As a father of two young children, Salvatore loved them and spent time with them. It seemed he
took part equally in the rearing of their children. When he used to give them a bath, he used to
hold them tenderly and delicately as if “they were like flowers.” He used to laugh with them and
they all enjoyed it. “Salvatore had enormous hands, like legs of mutton, coarse and hard from
constant toil, but when he bathed his children, holding them so tenderly, drying them with
delicate care; upon my word they were like flowers. He would seat the naked baby on the palm
of his hand and hold him up, laughing a little at his smallness, and his laugh was like the laughter
of an angel. His eyes then were as candid as his child's.”

Salvatore was a man of Inherent goodness and the author presents the story to depict the real
quality of Salvatore. This goodness did not reveal at a single moment of his life but throughout
his life. As a young boy he is affectionate and caring towards his younger brother. We can say
that Salvatore wins the hearts of the readers at the beginning of the story and this impression
becomes stronger with the progress of the story.
Like a good son he married another girl Assunta, a woman older than him, at his mother's will.
His further life was not unhappy either, blessed with two children. Being a good husband, he
kept his wife Assunta happy. He did not let his past affect his present and future. Although
affected by rheumatism, he used to work hard to support his family. When the pain racked his
limbs, he would simply "lie about the beach, smoking cigarettes, with a pleasant word for
everyone."

From the brief account of Salvatore’s life, we find such qualities scattered along his journey from
childhood to fatherhood. Salvatore has the rare quality of goodness because one glance at his
life-history shows that he is loving, carefree, humble, patient dutiful, responsible childlike,
empathic, forgiving, gentle, hardworking, well mannered, magnanimous, caring, honest and
above all has the tendency to do good despite the hardships he has endured and the unfairness
with which he has been dealt with. In short, he is a man above his circumstances he is trapped in
and the ‘goodness’ which resides in him refuses to be shaped by the hardships of life. Whether it
is his care for his brothers, his duty towards his country, his forgiveness for the woman who
rejected him, his acceptance of another who loved him, his hardworking nature, his affection for
his children and his sheer strength of character, all go into the making of this quality which sets
him apart from his fellow men – the quality of goodness. Above all, this goodness is tempered
with humility. As the narrator explicitly states:

“All I know is that it (goodness) shone in him with a radiance that, if it had not been unconscious
and so humble, would have been to the common run of men hardly bearable.”

______________________________________________________________________________