THE BUM, a Short Story by Somerset Maugham

An interesting look at the downfall of a once-promising career... won't reveal more here.

[@AliceJones-yc1kh]

What a story! The reader really knew how to emphasize the literal meaning of each word. A master piece.

[@maryearll3359]

I am loving all these stories. Maugham is my hero and so are you for posting them all. Thank you ❤😊

[@Matilda-jt3kc]

How is it that the man on the bench appears to be wearing 3 shoes?

[@HughesMath1]

Artificial intelligence drawing

[@jeridoney7604]

Oops. AI broke the illustration!

[@FuckYouWhosNext]

Its his coat hanging down you goof

[@davo4174]

The magic of AI

[@FuckYouWhosNext]

has nothing to do with AI goofballs.

[@tom-kz9pb]

Sounds like Somerset Maugham was writing about his own insecurities as writer, wondering if it was an ego-trip, not really being good enough, and contemplating the possible life of failure. There can be a lot of insecurity hiding behind success. "This feeling of faking it, I still haven't shaken it. I'll play the game, and pretend, but all my words come back to me in shades of mediocrity. " (Paul Simon)

[@thomasdwan82]

We should thank those who beg.They provide us with golden opportunities to practise generosity.

[@lyndaproper1313]

Who is the Bum? Maugham recounts a man of sufficient practical means who is annoyed by the idleness thrust upon him by a delay in his travel plans. He reflects on his situation. He sees that in the past he had conjured up an image of what situation was necessary for him to indulge his "true self" - time stretching, unstructured, before him as far as he could imagine. He imagined he would revel in those moments, but he finds that Instead of drinking the beaker of wine with the pearl dissolved in it, he is spending his time reading last month's advertisements. Then he notices the beggar, who, in contrast to the other beggars who detail their desperate situations, stands silent before him - a monk/pilgrim passively embodying his need for alms. The man recollects having known this beggar years before in Rome as a young artist of arrogance and, perhaps, even genius. He finds the beggar/monk/pilgrim/artist sitting on the church steps in front of a pack of squabbling vulchures. The man reaches into his pocket and retrieves a bit of money, which he gives to the beggar/artist/monk/pilgrim. The beggar/artist/monk/pilgrim, in a silent grand gesture, flicks the money into the gaping yaw of a vulchure who carries it off. The beggar/artist/monk/pilgrim disappears. To me this piece is Maugham's mulling over youth's quest to manifest their "true self", and presents to me the concept of living life as an art form One of the things I'm liking about Maugham is that he puts a well composed little vignette before the reader's eyes, and, by doing that, he essentially says, "Look at this. What do you think about it?" By the comments here, I see a broad range of answers, as varied as the images in our mirrors. How interesting!

[@RkristinaTay]

Don't bother to summarise short stories. The story is short enough and beautiful unto itself. Don't spoil it for others by unnecessary brevity.

[@jenniferabel2811]

​@@RkristinaTayThis was not a summary. It was an interpretation. And, it was a different interpretation than my own. For my part, it was for the interpretations of others that I am down here in the comments at all.

[@maryearll3359]

I think you're all overthinking ! Sorry ! Maugham was a genius at observing people, the times etc. He sees, hears or involves himself, a snapshot of time, and writes about it to get the reader to think about his words. He was a critic of his time and would often make fun of the actors. How else could he be so prolific ?

[@JoanKentBible]

This sad story is read with great sensitivity. Maugham is a master of story-telling. Thank you for uploading.

[@annetufano5200]

Somerset, a truly gifted writer ✍️

[@ajoyandbasantibaksi5236]

Read this story first about 45 years ago. My wife gave me a four volume collection of Maugham's short stories for my fiftieth birthday - she knew how much I liked his short stories. Oddly enough I do not like his longer stories - Of Human Bondage, The Moon and Sixpence, and even The Razor's Edge. I consider him the best short story writer in the English language. The Bum is one of the very best (powerful, well crafted) and along with The Alien Corn - a much longer story - are my favorites.

[@childjusticenow881]

Yellow-backed note? Money? Great story. Possibly an angel testing the man's generosity? He didn't give until he thought he may know him. Is it more difficult to bless a stranger than one whom you may have known?

[@alidabaxter5849]

I found this story so tragic, and in such a short tale Maugham describes a whole life that has become a tragic travesty of what had been a future filled with incredible promise. Are we supposed to see that the arrogance of youth has been the ruin of the rest of a life? That we should be kind to those who are very poor and surround us? That there but for the grace of God we go? Maugham supplies us with no answers but only reminds us of the everyday tragedies we should be aware of. In his short stories he says so much in such short tales.

[@lindacarter457]

Heartbreakingly sad. And even more not being able to help...😢

[@kathleenellenford4816]

Thank you!!

[@Grace.allovertheplace]

Thank you 🙏

[@brendabiffibaldovino8306]

Thanks so much for sharing 💙💙💙

[@HarryMarsee-fw9ot]

All that lead up then nothing. It's like listening to the crescendo of a musical piece to just stop before it should and the listener is left wondering why. Incomplete.

[@silverrose6583]

Whats with the 3 shoes? 👞👞👞

[@dazgreen63]

What’s with the three legs more to the point.😁 Well spotted though.I never noticed till you said👍😆

[@patsysmothermon7861]

NO, that's the edge of His long coat !!😊

[@user-ck5ho3di2o]

Think because he has three legs,da

[@CasperLCat]

A glitch in the AI rendering software, I bet. I’ve seen similar weirdness in the other illustrations with these stories.

[@CasperLCat]

@@patsysmothermon7861no, it’s a 3rd shoe, expand the scene and look closer.

[@darrylakiotsutsui7846]

The bum is the writer's true nature, keeping his dignity and not doing anything for money, unlike Maugham who becomes popular and rich. Maugham wonders how much more genius his art would have become if he did not prostitute his art for money.

[@oldishandwoke-ish1181]

Or Maugham is imagining what might have been his own fate if he had not succeeded as a writer - he started out qualifying as a medical doctor...

[@dontaylor7315]

​​@@oldishandwoke-ish1181 Maugham explored that question in Of Human Bondage, whose protagonist does become a doctor. I imagine you know that already but I replied because others might not

[@kauffrau6764]

Did he prostitute his work for money?

[@dontaylor7315]

@@kauffrau6764 Loaded question. if you mean did he make a good living at it the answer is yes.

[@darrylakiotsutsui7846]

@@kauffrau6764 I miswrote and should have said the writer instead of Maugham, not leaving the fiction sphere.

[@judyrussoniello1497]

Good story❤

[@denisedaisy3357]

Ai at its finest. If you want to see something creepy zoom in on the eyes

[@christopherherron4458]

anybody know who's doing the piano music bookending this reading? Too bad the poster doesn't say - it's great.

[@maryearll3359]

Google it ?

[@leimaniax]

It’s probably AI generated. Same as the cover photo. Same as the voice that reads the story.

[@MollyCasey369]

Don't understand. There's no point to this story Just as you get into it it ends. I don't get it!!??

[@edreynolds2819]

Yeah, I’ve read lots of these kind of stories. The author thinks he’s being cool. In my opinion, unless it was a true auto biographical story, it’s just melodrama.

[@MollyCasey369]

@@edreynolds2819 I think he may have adhd and got distracted before he thought of a point to this story 😂I can relate ! but still I was invested and then... nada !!

[@mattneillninasmom]

The "Bum" like the narrator, remembers back to the days in Rome, when he was young and full of promise, considering himself superior. Now, his former contemporary is successful and he is a penniless beggar = but, he still considers himself superior and in contempt, flings the money offered, to the buzzards.

[@user-hy4ny8uk2m]

Hey aqualung 🎉

[@Charles-oo8bq]

It's a pigeon. Relax

[@surosu9227]

That handsome guy turn into thin beggar? 😮😮😮 😢

[@cathcolwell2197]

Thanks, I’ll never read Somerset Maugham We live in a time when we have much more direct contact with suffering Perhaps people who read this author lived in a previous time when there wasn’t so much news.

[@brunovanhove1832]

I was brought up respecting and helping the elderly, and thought it quite normal, but at the age of 8 , my grandfather said these true word's, " boy!,there are two kind of people in this world, those who would help everyone, "selflessly"!, and those who take it for granted, and normal that you do this for them ! But if you don't have a problem with this !, you should definitely get married and have a lot of children! , or work for a boss ! " I have a lot of bums in family, but they don't live on the streets.

[@arnoldbioursckii6639]

3 feet?

[@normabuccianti2681]

Artificial intelligence drawing? Nevertheless, it looks quite interesting.

[@samsum3738]

A yard

[@gretamurphy3704]

AI screw-up

[@gretamurphy3704]

​@samsum373😂8

[@brendabiffibaldovino8306]

His left leg is crossed over his second left leg 🙂

[@pakde8002]

True to his noxious personality.

[@oldishandwoke-ish1181]

Whose?

[@kathleensmith644]

All the feet look odd.

[@bealreadyhappy]

Has he 3 legs/feet?

[@FuckYouWhosNext]

He has two legs crossed and his coat is hanging down on the right side. Just open your eyes and look.

[@RkristinaTay]

IS THIS BOING TO BE ANOTHER AI READ? IT SOUNDS INHUMAN. SAD

[@helenamaria710]

EXACTLY....ALWAYS THE SAME upper crust Brit voice. And the 3 footed AI image! 🤮

[@robstevens9667]

A lovely Story, but the narrator needs to move on! 🤚 no understanding of the story or of life.

[@leimaniax]

It’s AI generated. That’s why. All the stories on this channel are AI. Same as the cover photo.

[@robertjarman4261]

Author was homosexual so apt title.

[@lyndaproper1313]

It would be nice if some people could look through binoculars rather than the spyglass they carry. Better yet, how about using a kaleidoscope?

[@oldishandwoke-ish1181]

Seriously????