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    The Luncheon': by - William Somerset Maugham

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    Madhu Gupta
    William Somerset Maugham's short story "The Luncheon" follows a young, poor writer who is flattered into having an expensive lunch with an admirer at Foyot's restaurant in Paris. During the lunch, the woman consumes extravagant dishes while scolding the writer for eating a small chop of mutton. Twenty years later, the writer meets the woman again and notes that divine justice has been served - she now weighs over 300 pounds. The story explores themes of appearance versus reality, manipulation, and revenge through dramatic irony as the woman claims to eat lightly but indulges heavily at the writer's expense.

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    The Luncheon': by - William Somerset Maugham

    Uploaded by

    Madhu Gupta
    98 views14 pages
    William Somerset Maugham's short story "The Luncheon" follows a young, poor writer who is flattered into having an expensive lunch with an admirer at Foyot's restaurant in Paris. During the lunch, the woman consumes extravagant dishes while scolding the writer for eating a small chop of mutton. Twenty years later, the writer meets the woman again and notes that divine justice has been served - she now weighs over 300 pounds. The story explores themes of appearance versus reality, manipulation, and revenge through dramatic irony as the woman claims to eat lightly but indulges heavily at the writer's expense.

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    William Somerset Maugham's short story "The Luncheon" follows a young, poor writer who is flattered into having an expensive lunch with an admirer at Foyot's restaurant in Paris. During the lunch, the woman consumes extravagant dishes while scolding the writer for eating a small chop of mutton. Twenty years later, the writer meets the woman again and notes that divine justice has been served - she now weighs over 300 pounds. The story explores themes of appearance versus reality, manipulation, and revenge through dramatic irony as the woman claims to eat lightly but indulges heavily at the writer's expense.

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF, TXT or read online from Scribd
    Download as pdf or txt
    98 views14 pages

    The Luncheon': by - William Somerset Maugham

    Uploaded by

    Madhu Gupta
    William Somerset Maugham's short story "The Luncheon" follows a young, poor writer who is flattered into having an expensive lunch with an admirer at Foyot's restaurant in Paris. During the lunch, the woman consumes extravagant dishes while scolding the writer for eating a small chop of mutton. Twenty years later, the writer meets the woman again and notes that divine justice has been served - she now weighs over 300 pounds. The story explores themes of appearance versus reality, manipulation, and revenge through dramatic irony as the woman claims to eat lightly but indulges heavily at the writer's expense.

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    ‘The Luncheon'

    By – William Somerset Maugham

    B.A. First Year: English Language


    About the author

    William Somerset Maugham (1874-1965)


    was a British playwright novelist and short
    story writer.
    ▪ He was one of the most popular writers
    of his time and the highest paid
    authors of the 1930s.
    ▪ Some of his famous work include
    ➢ Human Bondage (1915)
    ➢ The Moon and Sixpence (1919)
    ➢ Cakes and Ale (1930)
    ➢ The Razor’s Edge (1944)
    ➢ The Circle (1921)
    ➢ Our Betters (1923)
    Summary

    ‘The Luncheon’ is one of the most


    delightfully amusing stories. It is
    a story about a lunch date with a
    lady who is an admirer of
    Maugham’s stories. She wins the
    author's favor and expresses her
    wish to meet him at a high class
    restaurant called Foyot. In the
    story, the author exposes the
    false motives of modest eating
    habits, of the middle classes with
    a touch of humor.
    The Story is set in Paris and can be
    divided into three Parts.

    Part I Part II
    Part III
    Present 20 years later
    Present
    Part 1
    The book writer and the woman meet again after
    they last saw each other 20 years before, and
    then he starts to recall the luncheon at that day.
    Part 02

    • The author only communicated with the lady through the mail.
    So, he is rather surprised to meet a woman of forty. She gives
    him "the impression of having more teeth, white and large and
    even, than were necessary for any practical purpose.”

    • The author has only eighty francs in his pocket to last him
    the rest of the month. But the lady proposed to eat at one
    of the most expensive restaurants. So, he is anxious about
    eating at Fayot where only rich and influential can afford to
    dine.
    Part 02 (continue…)

    At the restaurant, she keeps consuming such rich foods and


    drink. But all the time, she keeps on scolding Maugham for
    eating red meat, as he has ordered mutton:

    "You see, you've filled your stomach with a lot of meat"—my


    one miserable little chop— "and you can't eat any more. But
    I've just had a snack and I shall enjoy a peach."
    Part 03
    This brings us back to the present time, where the narrator and the
    lady are meeting after twenty long years. At the end, the author
    explains that he is not a vindictive man. But the immortal gods taken the
    revenge for the luncheon ordeal. Now this woman, who only eats light
    lunches and only one thing at a time. She now "weighs twenty-one
    stones" (nearly 295 pounds).

    BEFORE AFTER
    The Main Character: The Protagonist
    The narrator: He is young, inexperienced young writer who
    is living in Paris.
    Well-Mannered: He is also a educated man, polite from a
    good family tradition.
    Poor: He is very poor and can hardly keep body and soul
    together. When the narrator meets the lady at foyot’s , he
    has only eight franes to pay the bill. At last narrator is left
    with no money at all.
    Gullible and Easily-Manipulated: When he gets the letter
    from the lady who was admired by his work and want to
    meet him. He feels flattered and is unable to be honest with
    her. He cannot say ‘NO’ to woman because of his traditional
    etiquettes . He cant afford expensive food but still allows
    her to have it.
    Development in His Character: His Character develops
    throughout the story. His feelings change from FLATTERY
    AND EXCITEMENT to DISGUST AND ANGER to REVENGE.
    The lady

    Name Not Mentioned: The lady was 40yrs old, talkative and not
    attractive. She was in fact a women of a charming age. But she is not one
    that excites a sudden and overwhelming passion at first sight.
    Probably a fan: she loved the writing of narrator. She had read of his
    books and wrote a letter to congratulate him on his work.
    Manipulating and Insincere: She manipulates him by requesting to chat
    with him and a little lunch at foyot- an expensive restaurant that he
    cannot afford to dine at. She gets what she wants but the poor author
    has to pay the price.
    Bold and Self-Centered: She has her own way and just thinks about
    herself: her interests, her longings etc.. She doesn’t consider whether
    the poor author can afford such expensive dishes.
    Demanding, Inconsiderate and Extravagant: She is extremely food loving
    and ravenous woman. She doesn’t even think a bit about the costs of the
    expensive dishes, that narrator have to pay for the lunch. Her, ”I never
    eat more than one thing“ is her signature dialogue. This woman is smart,
    experienced, selfish and hardly bothered about the expense.
    Theme of the Story
    The leading themes of the short story 'Luncheon' by Somerset Maugham are appearance
    vs. reality, manipulation and revenge.
    The speaker, in 'Luncheon', wishes from the beginning that his date (the lady) would be a
    beautiful woman. He imagines a portrayal of a graceful lady in his mind. But, when he
    goes to have a lunch with her, she appears as a surprising blast. She is totally opposite to
    his imagination. She is a food-loving and ravenous woman who does not even think a bit
    about the costs the speaker would have to pay for the lunch. She has a very good appetite,
    and gobbles a lot of expensive dishes also. The most interesting part is the verbal irony
    hidden in the lines she utters to the speaker: ”I never eat more than one thing“.
    The irony concealed in her speeches helps to develop the main theme.
    Irony

    ❖ The story is full of irony. The luncheon date is proposed to the author
    by a woman whom he ironically thinks as a supporter of his art. But,
    the lady intends to exploit the narrator by pretending an interest and
    admiration for his work. She was not feeling any actual interest.

    ❖ The irony is that the narrator takes her to an expensive restaurant


    where he’d never dared to go himself. He can never afford it because
    of his meagre income.
    ❖ ”I never eat more than one thing“, “I never eat anything for
    luncheon”, and “I never drink anything for luncheon” are the very
    ironical statement made by the lady. Because, she ends up eating a lol
    of horribly expensive dishes like: Salmon, Caviar, Asparagus, Peaches,
    Exotic Ice-cream etc.
    Moral Lesson
    ❖It is necessary to say “no” when it is necessary.

    ❖People receive the impact of their own behavior. People who


    manipulate others are sure to receive their just punishment.

    ❖When one tries to covet small gains, one may suffer a great loss.
    (Made for Teaching and Learning Purpose Only)
    Dr. Shashi Bhushan
    Govt. Degree College Tilhar, Shahjahanpur.

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