The Lotus Eater is one of the short stories written by William Somerset Maugham（1874-1965），one of the most outstanding novelists of his day in England. He is looked on by some critics more a clever and competent craftsman than an artist， a story-teller rather than a profound author. His short story， The Lotus Eater， along with many other stories， has not only won him an important position among the greatest modern English novelists， but is also one of the treasures of the world literature.

The short story touches the readers heart not only by its interesting plot， but by its delicate description of the character involved： Thomas Wilson， an eccentric person who indulged in a carefree life but finally fell on hard times and harsh realities.

Thomas Wilson is a manager in a blank. He began work when he was seventeen. Cautious by nature and trained in a business instead of expecting too much of life， he can only look forward to doing the same old thing day after day till he retires on his pension. However， in the face of the world where the weak are the prey of the strong， each trying to cheat or outwit the other， he doesnt resign to be “sold as scrap-iron.”He has tried every means to free himself from the yoke of fate， wanting to be a man who can boldly take the course of his life into his own hands. But， alas， his struggle against society proves to be so fruitless that the rope around his neck is getting tighter and tighter. After a desperate struggle， he has got the worst thing in the world——the death of both his wife and his daughter. With a bleeding heart， he takes a close look at society， and in the face of the harsh reality he has to admit his defeat. Seeing himself friendless and wretched， he is suffering extreme distress and cant get over it. With whom can he share his gloomy mood？ Upon whom can he vent his spite？ Just as luck would have it， he happens to visit the attractively picturesque island——Capri. All at once he is struck by the beauty there——the Piazza， the bathing place， the setting sun， the blue sea and the bright moon， which arouse his hopes for a new life. With no yearning for fame and fortune for the future， he takes comfort in the legend of Sybris and Crotona （ Sybris and Crotona were two cities， nothing remaining of which except just one column to Crotona）. Enlightened by the story， he resigns and goes to live in Capri with the pension that will last him just 25 years， seeking freedom in the simple， natural life.

On Capri he spends his time by drinking， smoking and swimming， watching the blue sea and the bright full moon， playing the piano and cards. Outwardly he is leading a carefree life， but inwardly he is not so happy. Homeless， he wants to find sustenance in pleasure and use it as anesthetics. Nevertheless the kind of life on the island， the Land of Peach Blossoms， cannot help him get out of the tragic fate. After his pension ends， he becomes utterly destitute. In the world where money talks， he ， penniless and helpless， can hardly exist. The only way out for him is to commit suicide， which may be his only protect against society. But he hasnt the strength of will to carry out the plan and at length is sent to the hospital.

“He was English， and the Italian authorities did not wish to make themselves responsible for him. The British Consul in Naples had no funds to deal with the case.” At last he dies more of grief than of the natural beauty.

Through the delicate description of Wilsons misfortune， the author seems to mourn for Wilson， but in reality he is condemning the evils of the society where people seek ease and comfort and are weary of life. At the same time the author wants to shed light on the life philosophy that one shouldnt only seek pleasure but work hard.

Its obvious that the author sympathizes with Wilson in his sufferings， but overstates the characters passive factors. Though the author negates society， yet he doesnt criticize it and show people the right way. On the contrary， we can find revelation of his pessimism， dread and moral decay in the story. Exaggerating the environmental restrictions on a person， the author gives little attention to a persons initiative. We cannot but say its the storys limitation.

To sum up， through the minute description of the characters personality and the use of vivid dialogue and the third -person narrative， Maugham creates in an ironic way before us an odd sort of person--- one who wants to take pleasure in a happy-go-lucky life but gets deserted by society. The Lotus Eater is a criticism of the pleasure-seekers and an exposure of the decadence of the weary people in the world. Whats more， its an elegy for Wilson.

【作者簡介】张若兰（1957-），女，湖南新邵人，广州工商学院外语系教授，本科，研究方向：语用学，跨文化交际学。