What is really significant in Of Human Bondage is that it touches almost all the complexities of human life: these are upbringing and education issues, place of religion and morality, difficulties in finding an occupation, and the obstacles which are faced when having some inability. One of the last is Philip’s clubfoot, which prevented him to become a military man or a sportsman. Finally, especially prominent is the theme of love, which usually is the reason of all the troubles. The meaning of life always has been a question of all the times, and it might never be answered, but it must not become a reason not to try. Update this section! Canham, 1976 p. 75: “Miss Davis admirably projects the vulgarity and venality of the character without presenting a suggestion of depth - but then Mildred is a pretty shallow person.” a b c d e Davis, Bette, A Lonely Life. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons 1962. ISBN 0-425-12350-2, pp. 173–76, 179–80 Philip was brought up as a gentleman, and he was expected to become involved in religion and at some point to go into the Church, as his uncle was a vicar, and he grew up under the rules of church in his uncle’s house. But Philip preferred his own way, and rejected religion for art studies, even though excelled academically, and later rejected it for accounting, and finally he found himself in medicine. Philip had even some doubts about these studies, but he never got out of this path.

I made it very clear that Mildred was not going to die of a dread disease looking as if a deb had missed her noon nap. The last stages of consumption, poverty, and neglect are not pretty, and I intended to be convincing-looking. We pulled no punches, and Mildred emerged ... as starkly real as a pestilence." [7] Publicity still of Bette Davis in the 1934 film Of Human Bondage In Heidelberg, Philip lives at a boarding house with other foreigners and enjoys Germany. Philip's guardians persuade him to move to London for an apprenticeship. His colleagues there resent him, believing he is a "gentleman". He goes on a business trip with one of his managers to Paris and is inspired to study art in France.a b Chandler, Charlotte, The Girl Who Walked Home Alone: Bette Davis, A Personal Biography. New York: Simon & Schuster 2006. ISBN 0-7432-6208-5, pp. 93–100, 102 Philip lives at his uncle's vicarage. Aunt Louisa tries to be a mother to Philip, but his uncle is cold towards him. Philip's uncle has a vast collection of books, and Philip enjoys reading to escape his mundane existence. After less than a year, Philip is sent to a boarding school. His uncle and aunt plan for him to attend Oxford. Philip's disability and sensitive nature make it difficult for him to befriend other students. Philip learns that he could earn a scholarship for Oxford, which both his uncle and school headmaster view as wise, but Philip insists on going to Germany. In his review in The New York Times, Bosley Crowther described the remake as "a pale and pedestrian repeat ... so manufactured and dramatically inert that even those who did not see the original will likely find it disappointingly dull ... the role of Philip Carey is performed by Paul Henreid in a highly self-conscious and completely unconvincing style ... a girl named Eleanor Parker wiggles and whines so elaborately in the role of the licentious waitress that her manner seems almost in jest ... Edmund Goulding, the director, must share a part of the blame for the stuffed and mechanical performance of these two characters ... although the screen-writer, Catherine Turney, didn't help matters any here ... Of Human Bondage, in this version, is pretty much of a thorough-going bore." [7] Maugham's initial title was Beauty from Ashes, borrowed from Isaiah 61:3, "... to bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair"; however, it had already been used. [3] He took the new title from Spinoza. Part IV of his Ethics is titled "Of Human Bondage, or the Strength of the Emotions" ( Latin: De servitute humana seu de affectuum viribus). A free person, says Spinoza, is able to think rationally: but when one is dominated by emotion, rational thought is impossible, and one becomes a slave to the (unthinking) passions. He also defines good and bad categories based on the people's general beliefs, connecting it to their “emotions of pleasure or pain”. He defines perfectness/imperfectness starting out from the desire, in its meaning of particular aims and plans. Philip Carey, the main character of Of Human Bondage, was seeking this very useful end, and became satisfied only after realizing what his aim had been, and having found a person to share this aim with. Maugham had a stammer (instead of a club foot), lost his parents early in life, and was sent to live with his aunt and uncle. He studied medicine and his tastes in literature coincide with those of the main character in this book. Although Maugham was never an artist, he was interested in painting. He possessed in his private collection works by four painters mentioned in the book: Pissarro, Sisley, Monet, and Renoir. In The Summing Up, he discloses that he read Ruskin and became acquainted with many pieces of European art. Many of his other works are focused on this topic: The Moon and Sixpence (the main character has some resemblance to Paul Gauguin). Maugham wrote an article for Life magazine titled "Painting I Have Liked". Of Human Bondage is, probably, the most vivid instance of Maugham's inclination towards arts. According to Stanley Archer, more than 30 artists are named in the book, ten famous paintings are mentioned by name and many others are referred to. Over half of the 33 artists named in the novel were painters whose careers developed primarily in the 19th century. Of these, 13 are French, five English, and one, Whistler, is American. Eleven were alive at the time in which the plot of the novel is unfolding and five – Carolus-Duran, Degas, Monet, Raffaëlli, and Renoir – were alive when Of Human Bondage was published in 1915. [4] In other media [ edit ] Film [ edit ]

Philip, an impoverished, clubfooted, failed artist, is attending medical school in London, using a trust set up for him by a wealthy uncle for tuition. When he initially meets Mildred, she pays scant attention to him and he finds her common and crass, but his wounded pride spurs him to return to the restaurant where she works, hoping to spark her interest. He invites her to accompany him to the theatre and, because she has nothing else to do, Mildred accepts. Philip spends what little money he has on her before she breaks a date with him and an ugly argument ensues. When he discovers she apparently has run off to marry one of her regular customers, Miller, he initially is happy to be free from his emotional bondage to her.Original pre-print materials are not known to survive, but the film was preserved by the Library of Congress from archival 35mm elements and this version was released on US DVD and Blu-ray by Kino Lorber in 2013. It was a long way before Philip came up with such a conclusion, and the experience of a love for a selfish and vulgar woman, called Mildred, was the last point of his attempts to become free. His obsession with this girl can be viewed as desperate and unconscious attempt for happiness. Philip by his nature was very sensitive, but he always tried not to show his vulnerability. Mildred had no moral values and her primary interest was money and prosperity, she took advantage of Philip’s soft heart and generosity. Mildred even let herself use and hurt Philip, but he continued making efforts to win her favor and her heart. This love affair was not destined to have a happy end, but a miserable one. What he realized from this relationship was that happiness cannot be measurement of freedom, or rather the pursuit of happiness. Philip finally found peace when he stopped to look for it, and let things go their way. Higham, Charles, The Life of Bette Davis. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company 1981; ISBN 0-02-551500-4, pp. 66–72