"The Selfish Giant" by Oscar Wilde: An Introduction and Summary

 "The Selfish Giant" by Oscar Wilde

Oscar Wilde: Novelist, short sotry writer and playwright

One of the leaders of ‘Art for art’s sake’ movement

·      Novel – ‘The Picture of Dorian Gray’,

·      Comedies ‘The Importance of Being Earnest’ and ‘Lady Windermere's Fan’.

·      Short stories such as ‘The Canterville Ghost’, fairy tales including ‘The Happy Prince’,

·      Poem ‘The Ballad of Reading Gaol’.

"The Selfish Giant" by Oscar Wilde (1854-1900) is a story about a giant who, after returning from a long absence, prevents children from playing in his beautiful garden by building a high wall.

“My own garden is my own garden,” said the Giant; “any one can understand that, and I will allow nobody to play in it but myself.” So he built a high wall all round it, and put up a notice-board.

TRESPASSERS WILL BE PROSECUTED

This action causes his garden to fall into a perpetual winter, with seasons changing everywhere else. Eventually, he realizes his mistake, lets the children back in, and becomes kind. The story ends with the giant growing old, and a special, wounded child leads him to a garden in paradise, where he dies happily. 

• The giant's selfishness: A selfish giant builds a wall around his garden to keep children out after he finds them playing there.
• Eternal winter: As a result of his selfishness, the garden is plunged into a perpetual winter, frozen with snow and frost.
• Return of spring: One day, the giant sees that the children have returned through a hole in the wall, and where they play, spring returns.
• A changed heart: This sight makes him realize the joy of the children and he breaks down the wall, allowing everyone to play freely. He becomes a kind and loving figure.
• And the Giant’s heart melted as he looked out. “How selfish I have been!” he said; “now I know why the Spring would not come here. I will put that poor little boy on the top of the tree, and then I will knock down the wall, and my garden shall be the children’s playground for ever and ever.” He was really very sorry for what he had done.
• A final reward: Years later, the now-elderly giant finds a small boy with nail wounds on his hands and feet in a corner of the garden. The boy explains that the garden he is going to is paradise, and the giant dies peacefully, covered in white blossoms, with the children around him. 

 

·      Allegory

·      Allusion

·      Anthropomorphism

·      Symbols – The Tree, The Child