The Painted Veil — Reader Q&A

is this book better than its movie or just the same ???? is there anything different between the book and movie???

Keely This comment contains lots of SPOILERS. There are a lot of differences. Both are to be savored and both are beautiful works of art. The movie is much …moreThis comment contains lots of SPOILERS. There are a lot of differences. Both are to be savored and both are beautiful works of art. The movie is much more romantic and scenic. It takes the story out into the open and does more with the political situation in China at the time and the cholera epidemic. The book is more introspective and profound. I would say that the biggest difference is that the book does not give you the great romantic reconciliation between Walter and Kitty that the movie depicted. The book is almost completely about the workings of Kitty's mind and her transformation in the way she sees Walter. I found that to be priceless and I wanted it to keep reading it forever. The depth of characterization is as remarkable as what Henry James did with Portrait of a Lady -- I almost felt that Maugham used Portrait as a model in the way that some of the most wonderful and moving passages of this book are nothing more than an examination of Kitty's thought processes. I agree with Carol below that the book is a must read. Still, the movie is one of the most under-valued Hollywood movies ever made and should have been up for Oscars galore. It increased the scope of the book in a very effective way and went into a great deal of detail about Walter's work on the typhoid epidemic and water crisis in that area of China. It can be difficult to translate onto screen what goes on inside of the characters' minds, especially when that is the focus of the book, but I think what the movie did by bringing in the details of what Walter was trying to do in his work was a smart substitute, because it provided justification for the great change in Kitty's attitude toward Walter - you could actually see it happening, and why. . . . Another big difference in the book is that Kitty isn't completely redeemed when she returns to Tching-yen after Walter's death, and there are new encounters with Charlie and also his wife which almost give the impression that they were complicit in his love affairs.(less)

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I just saw the movie on Netflix. Can anyone offer a comparison?

Keely Hi, Mary - If you mean a comparison between the movie and the book, browse the other questions about this book and you'll see I answered in detail. I …moreHi, Mary - If you mean a comparison between the movie and the book, browse the other questions about this book and you'll see I answered in detail. I loved both. Any difficulty finding my remarks, let me know. (less)

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Why is the book titled The Painted Veil?

Keely It comes from the poem Lift Not the Painted Veil by Percy Bysshe Shelley:
Lift not the painted veil which those who live
Call Life: though unreal shapes…moreIt comes from the poem Lift Not the Painted Veil by Percy Bysshe Shelley:
Lift not the painted veil which those who live
Call Life: though unreal shapes be pictured there,
And it but mimic all we would believe
With colours idly spread,-behind, lurk Fear
And Hope, twin Destinies; who ever weave
Their shadows, o'er the chasm, sightless and drear.
I knew one who had lifted it-he sought,
For his lost heart was tender, things to love,
But found them not, alas! nor was there aught
The world contains, the which he could approve.
Through the unheeding many he did move,
A splendour among shadows, a bright blot
Upon this gloomy scene, a Spirit that strove
For truth, and like the Preacher found it not.
#(less)

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i loved a mixture of movie and the audio book. But why is it titled painted veil?

Keely It comes from the poem Lift Not the Painted Veil by Percy Bysshe Shelley:
Lift not the painted veil which those who live
Call Life: though unreal shapes…moreIt comes from the poem Lift Not the Painted Veil by Percy Bysshe Shelley:
Lift not the painted veil which those who live
Call Life: though unreal shapes be pictured there,
And it but mimic all we would believe
With colours idly spread,-behind, lurk Fear
And Hope, twin Destinies; who ever weave
Their shadows, o'er the chasm, sightless and drear.
I knew one who had lifted it-he sought,
For his lost heart was tender, things to love,
But found them not, alas! nor was there aught
The world contains, the which he could approve.
Through the unheeding many he did move,
A splendour among shadows, a bright blot
Upon this gloomy scene, a Spirit that strove
For truth, and like the Preacher found it not.
#(less)

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Can someone explain why after hearing the last line of Goldsmith's Elegy, Kitty surmises her husband died of a broken heart?

Keely The first time she heard those words "the dog it was that died," was well before Walter died or fell ill. It was during the conversation with Walter w…moreThe first time she heard those words "the dog it was that died," was well before Walter died or fell ill. It was during the conversation with Walter when he told her he once loved her. She didn't like that because it scared her to see that he had distanced himself from her, so her response was to get angry at him and blame him for not having loved and accepted her for who she was. She's still in a state of vanity and self-centeredness, doesn't like his coldness, can't empathize with him. That's when she first tells herself that he must be suffering from a broken heart. Later, when Walter repeats the line again as his dying words, she still has no comprehension of why he said it or that he truly did regret wanting to punish her by bringing her to China. When she tells Waddington that Walter died of a broken heart, she's still under that illusion that everything is all about her. It's so sad and tragic that she couldn't truly understand Walter and have one moment of finally seeing things from his eyes and truly connect with him for once.(less)

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