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A String of Beads
- GenresShort Stories
15 pages, Unknown Binding
About the author
W. Somerset Maugham
1,829 books6,224 followersWilliam Somerset Maugham was born in Paris in 1874. He spoke French even before he spoke a word of English, a fact to which some critics attribute the purity of his style.
His parents died early and, after an unhappy boyhood, which he recorded poignantly in Of Human Bondage, Maugham became a qualified physician. But writing was his true vocation. For ten years before his first success, he almost literally starved while pouring out novels and plays.
Maugham wrote at a time when experimental modernist literature such as that of William Faulkner, Thomas Mann, James Joyce and Virginia Woolf was gaining increasing popularity and winning critical acclaim. In this context, his plain prose style was criticized as 'such a tissue of clichés' that one's wonder is finally aroused at the writer's ability to assemble so many and at his unfailing inability to put anything in an individual way.
During World War I, Maugham worked for the British Secret Service . He travelled all over the world, and made many visits to America. After World War II, Maugham made his home in south of France and continued to move between England and Nice till his death in 1965.
At the time of Maugham's birth, French law was such that all foreign boys born in France became liable for conscription. Thus, Maugham was born within the Embassy, legally recognized as UK territory.
His parents died early and, after an unhappy boyhood, which he recorded poignantly in Of Human Bondage, Maugham became a qualified physician. But writing was his true vocation. For ten years before his first success, he almost literally starved while pouring out novels and plays.
Maugham wrote at a time when experimental modernist literature such as that of William Faulkner, Thomas Mann, James Joyce and Virginia Woolf was gaining increasing popularity and winning critical acclaim. In this context, his plain prose style was criticized as 'such a tissue of clichés' that one's wonder is finally aroused at the writer's ability to assemble so many and at his unfailing inability to put anything in an individual way.
During World War I, Maugham worked for the British Secret Service . He travelled all over the world, and made many visits to America. After World War II, Maugham made his home in south of France and continued to move between England and Nice till his death in 1965.
At the time of Maugham's birth, French law was such that all foreign boys born in France became liable for conscription. Thus, Maugham was born within the Embassy, legally recognized as UK territory.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
April 4, 2021
An interesting and well-written little story, but not one that seemed to have any great import at the base of it. I suppose the moral might be that life can change in a moment, so be prepared to take advantage of the opportunities that come your way.
September 8, 2023
Somerset Maugham was one of the most well-known — and well-paid — authors of his day, and he wrote many short stories that appeared in magazines all over the world.
I was somewhat surprised by this trifle: surprised that it appears in the collection 50 Great Short Stories, filled as the anthology is with respected, even legendary, weighty literary works.
In "A String of Pearls" Maugham does not concern himself with characters as much as storytelling. There is a story within a story, someone telling a story to a dinner companion who hears rather too many anecdotes (this narrator reads as a stand-in for the author himself). Nonetheless the story is told, a simple story, completely unbelievable. The diners then discuss how they might rewrite the story, and although that may make it "dull" it would become "moral."
One supposes Maugham the author is lifting the curtain here, allowing readers a peek at how the literary sausage is made, the limitless choices facing a writer, and the need to impose a narrative despite the facts.
I was somewhat surprised by this trifle: surprised that it appears in the collection 50 Great Short Stories, filled as the anthology is with respected, even legendary, weighty literary works.
In "A String of Pearls" Maugham does not concern himself with characters as much as storytelling. There is a story within a story, someone telling a story to a dinner companion who hears rather too many anecdotes (this narrator reads as a stand-in for the author himself). Nonetheless the story is told, a simple story, completely unbelievable. The diners then discuss how they might rewrite the story, and although that may make it "dull" it would become "moral."
One supposes Maugham the author is lifting the curtain here, allowing readers a peek at how the literary sausage is made, the limitless choices facing a writer, and the need to impose a narrative despite the facts.
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December 21, 2017How difficult it can be sometimes to distinguish a cheap fake from the treasure of the true value. What the difference between a piece of glass and the cut diamond? What’s the difference about real pearls and piece of plastic? Nothing more than outward similar signs. And for this similarity wealth people pay a huge amount of money.
In the story of the English writer Somerset Maugham «The String of Beads» described an amusing and teaching case, which occurred in the house of some noble people.
During a social occasion The Livingstones had to invite to join the event their servant named Miss Robinson. The thing is that one of the guests of Livingstone was not able to come. Without that guest the number of the people was thirteen and it was an unlucky number. Englishmen rely on superstitions to make decisions. That’s why Miss Robinson really did help them out when she agreed to be fourteenth.
She put on one of dresses which her mistress gave her and around her neck she was wearing a string of false pearls. Miss Robinson told the guests that she bought the jewelry for fifteen shillings. But that her statement made a honorary jeweler surprised. He was sure that the pearls which Miss Robinson was wearing cost no lesser than fifty thousand pounds. And then happened something that no one could have expected.
This story by Maugham is a copy, in a way, of one of his other famous stories. The author doesn’t make a secret from that fact. But this is not because of the absence of some other ideas. It was a calculated action which very harmoniously went together with the whole story.
The story «The String of Beads» is short but there is a big deal of moral in it. Maugham teaches us not to do anything on impulse, think twice before making any decision and don’t blindly trust immediately what other people say.
I recommend this story if you have some time to spare and want to spend it with pleasure.
In the story of the English writer Somerset Maugham «The String of Beads» described an amusing and teaching case, which occurred in the house of some noble people.
During a social occasion The Livingstones had to invite to join the event their servant named Miss Robinson. The thing is that one of the guests of Livingstone was not able to come. Without that guest the number of the people was thirteen and it was an unlucky number. Englishmen rely on superstitions to make decisions. That’s why Miss Robinson really did help them out when she agreed to be fourteenth.
She put on one of dresses which her mistress gave her and around her neck she was wearing a string of false pearls. Miss Robinson told the guests that she bought the jewelry for fifteen shillings. But that her statement made a honorary jeweler surprised. He was sure that the pearls which Miss Robinson was wearing cost no lesser than fifty thousand pounds. And then happened something that no one could have expected.
This story by Maugham is a copy, in a way, of one of his other famous stories. The author doesn’t make a secret from that fact. But this is not because of the absence of some other ideas. It was a calculated action which very harmoniously went together with the whole story.
The story «The String of Beads» is short but there is a big deal of moral in it. Maugham teaches us not to do anything on impulse, think twice before making any decision and don’t blindly trust immediately what other people say.
I recommend this story if you have some time to spare and want to spend it with pleasure.
Currently Reading
December 19, 2017W. Somerset Maugham is a prominent writer whose short stories and novels are read by people of all age and all over the world. This author is mostly famous for his short stories in which not only the story itself but also a moral, some philosophical discussion can be noticed. One of such short novels is “A String of Beads”.
This story was written in 1943 and tells us about one very lucky governess. The narration comes from a woman Laura, who is speaking with the author about this maid. So Laura mentions that the whole story begins when this governess, Miss Robinson, is invited to a dinner where mostly people from the high class can be seen. So having this lucky chance to dinner with successful people she tries her best and finally decided to wear a dress with a pearl necklace. Of course, this pearl, she thinks, is fake as she doesn’t have money to buy something genuine, however, during the lunch, it turns out that this necklace is made from the authentic pearl and, consequently, costs 50000 pounds. After discussions, it turns out that the necklace is really expensive and she has to return it to the shop and buy a simple one. But having a wish to thank that woman for returning the necklace a shop assistant gives her 3000 pounds which she decided to spend on her holidays during which she finds a man from Argentina she falls in love with and never comes back to the Livingstone family.
The moral of this story is not everybody can be lucky, but if you are such person and you are given a chance to change your life do your best and do it as nobody knows whether you will have the same chance ever again. And I strongly recommend people to read it as after learning the plot and the philosophy of the book, one has an impression that the life is not so bad and we should always not rely but hope for the best as any of us can win a lucky chance to change their lives.
This story was written in 1943 and tells us about one very lucky governess. The narration comes from a woman Laura, who is speaking with the author about this maid. So Laura mentions that the whole story begins when this governess, Miss Robinson, is invited to a dinner where mostly people from the high class can be seen. So having this lucky chance to dinner with successful people she tries her best and finally decided to wear a dress with a pearl necklace. Of course, this pearl, she thinks, is fake as she doesn’t have money to buy something genuine, however, during the lunch, it turns out that this necklace is made from the authentic pearl and, consequently, costs 50000 pounds. After discussions, it turns out that the necklace is really expensive and she has to return it to the shop and buy a simple one. But having a wish to thank that woman for returning the necklace a shop assistant gives her 3000 pounds which she decided to spend on her holidays during which she finds a man from Argentina she falls in love with and never comes back to the Livingstone family.
The moral of this story is not everybody can be lucky, but if you are such person and you are given a chance to change your life do your best and do it as nobody knows whether you will have the same chance ever again. And I strongly recommend people to read it as after learning the plot and the philosophy of the book, one has an impression that the life is not so bad and we should always not rely but hope for the best as any of us can win a lucky chance to change their lives.
December 19, 2017
The review “A string of beads” by W.S.Maugham
I’m going to write about very thoughtful and exciting story. The book is written by the well-known Britain writer of the twentieth century William Somerset Maugham. The title of the story is “A string of beads”.
W. S. Maugham was an English novelist, playwright, and short-story writer whose works are characterized by a clear simple style, and a deep understanding of human nature.
I have read “ A string of beads” written by Somerset Maugham. The plot is simple: the author shows the conversation between him and woman who’s name is Laura. She told him a very interesting story about the governess Miss Robinson, who worked in Livingstone’s house. She was invited to the dinner at the last moment one of the guests couldn’t come. While the dinner guests were talking about a string of pearls that was on the Miss Robinson’s neck. They thought that it cost fifty thousand pounds, but Miss Robinson said that she bought it for fifteen shilling. Nobody believed her, everybody thought that she is a robber or something like that. Suddenly two men came into Livingstone’s house and they wanted to talk with Miss Robinson. When she came back to the guests the necklace was gone. She said that those two men were shop assistants and they made a mistake (they sold her the wrong string) and gave her the string of pearls for fifteen shillings. As a compensation she got a cheque of three hundred pounds. Miss Robinson decided to spend money on holidays in Deauville. There she met rich men, married and moved in Paris with him. Laura, who told all this story to the author, said that saw her in Paris and “cut her dead”, because she couldn’t understand how it is possible to become so rich. Many people, who knew Miss Robinson were furious and envy her.
The author shows us that life can change in every minute. Happiness can find us everywhere and in time when we don’t expect it. I really liked this story. Also, the author shows us how disgusting is to think bad things about people and from this story we can find, how terrible is it to envy people. No matter are you rich or not, you can’t make gossips.
Maugham’s language helped me imagine it very clear and I thought this happened with me. This is how truly the author showed things in this story. I really recommend it to you because the story isn’t big, it is very easy to read and it is interesting.
By Sokolyan Valeria
I’m going to write about very thoughtful and exciting story. The book is written by the well-known Britain writer of the twentieth century William Somerset Maugham. The title of the story is “A string of beads”.
W. S. Maugham was an English novelist, playwright, and short-story writer whose works are characterized by a clear simple style, and a deep understanding of human nature.
I have read “ A string of beads” written by Somerset Maugham. The plot is simple: the author shows the conversation between him and woman who’s name is Laura. She told him a very interesting story about the governess Miss Robinson, who worked in Livingstone’s house. She was invited to the dinner at the last moment one of the guests couldn’t come. While the dinner guests were talking about a string of pearls that was on the Miss Robinson’s neck. They thought that it cost fifty thousand pounds, but Miss Robinson said that she bought it for fifteen shilling. Nobody believed her, everybody thought that she is a robber or something like that. Suddenly two men came into Livingstone’s house and they wanted to talk with Miss Robinson. When she came back to the guests the necklace was gone. She said that those two men were shop assistants and they made a mistake (they sold her the wrong string) and gave her the string of pearls for fifteen shillings. As a compensation she got a cheque of three hundred pounds. Miss Robinson decided to spend money on holidays in Deauville. There she met rich men, married and moved in Paris with him. Laura, who told all this story to the author, said that saw her in Paris and “cut her dead”, because she couldn’t understand how it is possible to become so rich. Many people, who knew Miss Robinson were furious and envy her.
The author shows us that life can change in every minute. Happiness can find us everywhere and in time when we don’t expect it. I really liked this story. Also, the author shows us how disgusting is to think bad things about people and from this story we can find, how terrible is it to envy people. No matter are you rich or not, you can’t make gossips.
Maugham’s language helped me imagine it very clear and I thought this happened with me. This is how truly the author showed things in this story. I really recommend it to you because the story isn’t big, it is very easy to read and it is interesting.
By Sokolyan Valeria
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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December 25, 2017The story I have recently read impressed me and made me think about many things. It is called “A string of beads” and was written by Somerset Maugham.
The beginning is quite simple – the main character meets woman whose name is Laura. They are talking about everything and by the way Laura tells the story of miss Robinson. Miss Robinson was a governor in Livingstone`s house. Once she was invited for dinner as one of the guests was absent. Unexpectedly her string of pearls became the main topic for conversations during that dinner. The reason was that miss Robinson had bought it for fifteen shillings but expert said that the real price of those pearls was fifty thousand pounds. Somebody even began thinking she was a thief, but everything became clear when two men from the shop where miss Robinson had taken her beads for repair came. They said it was a mistake, returned the real string of pearls and three hundred pounds to governor. She decided to spend that money on something she had never done and went to the South of France. From that moment her life changed. She met a rich count, married him and never returned to her motherland. By the way Laura said that if she were a writer she would change the end of the story. She would prefer that miss Robinson`s husband was a mangled soldier working as a clerk and they would be living in a small house in the city outskirts.
The story is easy to read, it has no sad ending and I should say I really enjoyed reading it. I guess Maugham wanted to say us that all your life may change every moment. We should not only think about the future but about our present life as well. Who knows it may be you to make a packet.
But there were also several unpleasant moments too. For example those rumours and suspicions which appeared when miss Robinson left the room. It was said she had a perfect reputation and manners, but despite all these her mistress trusted that suggestion without any doubt. Guests just wanted some entertaining and a topic for conversation and they easily tared miss Robinson`s reputation.
One more thing I did not like is Laura`s imagination about the governor`s future. What did she want to express saying that it would be better if miss Robinson`s wife was a usual clerk? Was she not worth a better life? I think everybody can believe in a wonder and may be it will become the real life. Such stories just support our faith and it is amazing.
The beginning is quite simple – the main character meets woman whose name is Laura. They are talking about everything and by the way Laura tells the story of miss Robinson. Miss Robinson was a governor in Livingstone`s house. Once she was invited for dinner as one of the guests was absent. Unexpectedly her string of pearls became the main topic for conversations during that dinner. The reason was that miss Robinson had bought it for fifteen shillings but expert said that the real price of those pearls was fifty thousand pounds. Somebody even began thinking she was a thief, but everything became clear when two men from the shop where miss Robinson had taken her beads for repair came. They said it was a mistake, returned the real string of pearls and three hundred pounds to governor. She decided to spend that money on something she had never done and went to the South of France. From that moment her life changed. She met a rich count, married him and never returned to her motherland. By the way Laura said that if she were a writer she would change the end of the story. She would prefer that miss Robinson`s husband was a mangled soldier working as a clerk and they would be living in a small house in the city outskirts.
The story is easy to read, it has no sad ending and I should say I really enjoyed reading it. I guess Maugham wanted to say us that all your life may change every moment. We should not only think about the future but about our present life as well. Who knows it may be you to make a packet.
But there were also several unpleasant moments too. For example those rumours and suspicions which appeared when miss Robinson left the room. It was said she had a perfect reputation and manners, but despite all these her mistress trusted that suggestion without any doubt. Guests just wanted some entertaining and a topic for conversation and they easily tared miss Robinson`s reputation.
One more thing I did not like is Laura`s imagination about the governor`s future. What did she want to express saying that it would be better if miss Robinson`s wife was a usual clerk? Was she not worth a better life? I think everybody can believe in a wonder and may be it will become the real life. Such stories just support our faith and it is amazing.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 24, 2017
Briefly, it’s just another short and simple story of W. S. Maugham to entertain you. It is a story which is as old as hills, that’s why the author tells it from his acquaintance point of view, and there is also the reference to his story “Mr. Know-All”, that is they are quite similar. The narrator used the dialogue style to help readers be imbued by the story better. Now, I’m going to tell you the plot due to it you will decide whether you want to read it or not.
The story consists of the dialogue between the narrator and his friend Laura, who sat with him to tell him the interesting story which was absolutely truth and could be confirmed by the people, she was going to tell about. The author didn’t have any wish to listen to some gossips but was too polite to refuse. The story took place in the Livingstone where people just had dinner, as there were only 13 people present on the dinner, Mrs Livingstone asked her governess Miss Robinson to join them. During the dinner, Count Borselli, the specialist in precious stones, noted that the governess’ pearls cost 50 000 pounds. The guests including Laura were shocked but Miss Robinson flushed and assured that she bought it for 15 shillings. Then the butler whispered something into the governess’ ear and she said that the two men were waiting for her in the hall. The guests fell silent. Who were the two men? What did they want? Where did Miss Robinson take these pearls? You will know the answers when read this intriguing story.
“A String of Beads” shows us not only ordinary story of misunderstanding and distrust, but essentially social prejudices of those time and an occasion of “luck”. As far as I’m concerned, it demonstrates the lifestyle and the theme of discussing of those times, so the people who are interested in it will read it with pleasure. For others this story just kills your time during some trips or your rest but it won’t leave your disappointed it is quite interesting and is read in a single sitting.
The story consists of the dialogue between the narrator and his friend Laura, who sat with him to tell him the interesting story which was absolutely truth and could be confirmed by the people, she was going to tell about. The author didn’t have any wish to listen to some gossips but was too polite to refuse. The story took place in the Livingstone where people just had dinner, as there were only 13 people present on the dinner, Mrs Livingstone asked her governess Miss Robinson to join them. During the dinner, Count Borselli, the specialist in precious stones, noted that the governess’ pearls cost 50 000 pounds. The guests including Laura were shocked but Miss Robinson flushed and assured that she bought it for 15 shillings. Then the butler whispered something into the governess’ ear and she said that the two men were waiting for her in the hall. The guests fell silent. Who were the two men? What did they want? Where did Miss Robinson take these pearls? You will know the answers when read this intriguing story.
“A String of Beads” shows us not only ordinary story of misunderstanding and distrust, but essentially social prejudices of those time and an occasion of “luck”. As far as I’m concerned, it demonstrates the lifestyle and the theme of discussing of those times, so the people who are interested in it will read it with pleasure. For others this story just kills your time during some trips or your rest but it won’t leave your disappointed it is quite interesting and is read in a single sitting.
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December 25, 2017A few years ago, I have already read a short story «A String of Beads» by William Somerset Maugham, but it was quite amusing to read it again. I will not say that after the second reading I opened something new for me, but still it was rather entertaining.
The plot of this story compared with other Maugham’s stories that we have read is not very complicated. The story took place at the Livingstones. They arranged dinner, but one of the guests could not come, so they had to invite their governess named Miss Robinson. During the dinner It revealed that the string of beads that Mrs. Robinson bought for fifteen shillings turned out to be a necklace with real pearls that cost fifty thousand pounds. Everyone began to suspect her of stealing, and Mrs. Livingstone was already mentally beginning to sort out her jewelry, remembering whether it was in place or not. The situation became clear when two men came to the Livingstones and asked Mrs. Robinson to talk. After that her life completely changed.
I enjoyed the structure of this story. The story itself is told by one of the participants named Laura with her own remarks and opinion. It makes the story more dynamic. It also helps to understand the Laura's and the narrator’s attitudes to this situation.
To sum it all up, I’d like to say that I liked the story, but it will not become one of my favorite ones. It is not very difficult, not very long, but still fascinating and original. I would say that it is a story for one evening, but if you want to spend this evening well, this story is worth reading.
The plot of this story compared with other Maugham’s stories that we have read is not very complicated. The story took place at the Livingstones. They arranged dinner, but one of the guests could not come, so they had to invite their governess named Miss Robinson. During the dinner It revealed that the string of beads that Mrs. Robinson bought for fifteen shillings turned out to be a necklace with real pearls that cost fifty thousand pounds. Everyone began to suspect her of stealing, and Mrs. Livingstone was already mentally beginning to sort out her jewelry, remembering whether it was in place or not. The situation became clear when two men came to the Livingstones and asked Mrs. Robinson to talk. After that her life completely changed.
I enjoyed the structure of this story. The story itself is told by one of the participants named Laura with her own remarks and opinion. It makes the story more dynamic. It also helps to understand the Laura's and the narrator’s attitudes to this situation.
To sum it all up, I’d like to say that I liked the story, but it will not become one of my favorite ones. It is not very difficult, not very long, but still fascinating and original. I would say that it is a story for one evening, but if you want to spend this evening well, this story is worth reading.
December 21, 2017
Do you enjoy reading books whose authors can be self-critical? Who care about their works and don't want to repeat themselves? Somerset Maugham appears to be one of them. “A String of Beads” illustrates it very well.
The story describes the narrator and his friend, Laura, who are having dinner together. Laura is excited to tell him about a curious event. She wants the narrator to write about it. The narrator seems quite dispassionate. Probably, Laura is a famous gossiper, and he doesn’t trust her words. But she swears that a lot of people can confirm her story. Laura depicts a gathering which she attended. There weren't enough people, so the hostess invites her maid, Miss Robinson. During the meal, something unusual happens.
I really enjoyed the story. It doesn't take a lot of time to read it, but the work is eventful, exciting to read. It even has an alternative ending, which Laura wants to use in her version of the story. It is worth mentioning too. It makes one think about what is moral.
I liked the joke about another story with pearls, which, I suppose, was «Mr. Know-All». Both stories seem realistic and it is funny that life can repeat itself. It is true to say that there is nothing new under the sun.
The story describes the narrator and his friend, Laura, who are having dinner together. Laura is excited to tell him about a curious event. She wants the narrator to write about it. The narrator seems quite dispassionate. Probably, Laura is a famous gossiper, and he doesn’t trust her words. But she swears that a lot of people can confirm her story. Laura depicts a gathering which she attended. There weren't enough people, so the hostess invites her maid, Miss Robinson. During the meal, something unusual happens.
I really enjoyed the story. It doesn't take a lot of time to read it, but the work is eventful, exciting to read. It even has an alternative ending, which Laura wants to use in her version of the story. It is worth mentioning too. It makes one think about what is moral.
I liked the joke about another story with pearls, which, I suppose, was «Mr. Know-All». Both stories seem realistic and it is funny that life can repeat itself. It is true to say that there is nothing new under the sun.
December 29, 2019
Too predictable.
October 29, 2025
"A true story is never quite so true as an invented one"
"The long arm of coincidence came in and was about to make a gesture"
"The long arm of coincidence came in and was about to make a gesture"
August 11, 2024
A dinner party .. about a dinner party ! Never seen this type of layering before, and very well crafted . All characters have distinctly unique personalities, including the first layer’s two narrators. Keeps you guessing until the end.
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December 28, 2017The novel “String of Beads” written by William Somerset Maugham gives us a full image of the class distinction and prejudice.
The main character of the story, Miss Robinson, is a governess. She was invited to a dinner party hosted by the people she worked for, when one of the other guest was not able to attend. The table's conversation was about a pair of pearls another guest was wearing when one man suddenly noticed the pair Miss Robison has on. The guests couldn't undestand how a plain governess like Miss Robinson could afford buying such an expensive string of beads. Everybody considered her a thief. However,it turned out that she was not a thief, there was a mix up at the store she purchased them from. In gratitude for her honesty the jeweler gave her £300.
Most of all I like the ending of the story. All the guests were very proud of their statuses in society and Maugham turns everything inside out. At the end of the story he shows us Miss Robinson who becomes a wealthy governess.
To conclude, it's interesting to see Maugham's little criticism of the upper classes and I strongly recommend everyone to read it.
The main character of the story, Miss Robinson, is a governess. She was invited to a dinner party hosted by the people she worked for, when one of the other guest was not able to attend. The table's conversation was about a pair of pearls another guest was wearing when one man suddenly noticed the pair Miss Robison has on. The guests couldn't undestand how a plain governess like Miss Robinson could afford buying such an expensive string of beads. Everybody considered her a thief. However,it turned out that she was not a thief, there was a mix up at the store she purchased them from. In gratitude for her honesty the jeweler gave her £300.
Most of all I like the ending of the story. All the guests were very proud of their statuses in society and Maugham turns everything inside out. At the end of the story he shows us Miss Robinson who becomes a wealthy governess.
To conclude, it's interesting to see Maugham's little criticism of the upper classes and I strongly recommend everyone to read it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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December 29, 2017William Somerset Maugham is famous for his short, but inspirational stories and "A String of Beads" is one of them. The narration comes from a woman Laura, who is speaking to the author at a restaurant. Laura mentions that the story is about a governess, Miss Robinson, who were invited to a dinner where mostly people from the high class could be seen. Dinner table conversation turned to the cost and quality of a set of pearls worn by another guest, Mary Lyngate. She was quite pleased with herself and made it a point to show off her £8000 pearls to Count Borselli, whose knowledge of gems was vast. Although expensive, the Count was not overly impressed with Mary Lyngate's set of pearls, but he was appreciative of the set Miss Robinson was wearing. When asked the cost, Miss Robinson replied that she must have gotten a great bargain as they cost a mere fifteen shillings. Nonsense the Count replied, as their worth is at least £50,000.
At that there is a knock at the door. Two men ask for Miss Robinson. The dinner guests are sure Miss Robinson is a thief . When she returns calmly to the dinner table not the least perturbed, she drops the set of pearls on the table. The Count is quick to notice these pearls are fakes. It turns out Miss Robinson has recently had the clasp fixed and her faux set was switched with another set of actual pearls. In gratitude for her honesty the shop's owner gave her £300. Miss Robinson decided that she should use this money to travel to Southern France. Here she meets a count and becomes a countess. Laura says that there is a morality in this story. But what is this morality? I have no idea. From my point of view, this short novel shows us how unpredictable the fate can be.
To sum it up, I would like to say that this story is worth reading in order to entertain and relax yourself, it's a kind of modern "fairytale" with intriguing plot and beautiful language.
At that there is a knock at the door. Two men ask for Miss Robinson. The dinner guests are sure Miss Robinson is a thief . When she returns calmly to the dinner table not the least perturbed, she drops the set of pearls on the table. The Count is quick to notice these pearls are fakes. It turns out Miss Robinson has recently had the clasp fixed and her faux set was switched with another set of actual pearls. In gratitude for her honesty the shop's owner gave her £300. Miss Robinson decided that she should use this money to travel to Southern France. Here she meets a count and becomes a countess. Laura says that there is a morality in this story. But what is this morality? I have no idea. From my point of view, this short novel shows us how unpredictable the fate can be.
To sum it up, I would like to say that this story is worth reading in order to entertain and relax yourself, it's a kind of modern "fairytale" with intriguing plot and beautiful language.
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