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The Three Fat Women of Antibes and Gigolo and Gigolette
- GenresShort Stories
Audio Cassette
First published August 1, 1983
2 people are currently reading
61 people want to read
About the author
W. Somerset Maugham
2,131 books6,118 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 - 10 of 10 reviews
November 16, 2021
The Gigolo and Gigollete I had read a year ago and The Three fat women of Antibes I had read yesterday.
The Gigolo and Gigollete is a sad story. It’s a love story (or you van say that there was a love between Gigolo and Gigollete). And to earn money they made a show, when she was jumping in the pool from 40 feet hight… And it was in fire.. Poor Stella (Gigollete) was frightened to death to do that! But this show gave them lots of money. Plus they had contract… What happened at the end you have to read! Don’t going to spoil it
Now The fat women of Antibes is considered to be like a comedy. But to be honest, it’s not very funny when 3 ladies were suffering from their habits to eat a lot… It is actually a desease to overeat. And of course everyone loves food.. But it should be a limit. People eat to much from some sorrows that they have in their lives (this is my opinion).
So 3 fat women who are 11 months eating what they want and for a month they eat with restrictions. And then niece of one of the ladies comes (who is skinny and doctor prescribed her to eat a lot and drink)… And their mood changes.. by seeing her eating all the delicious things.. They even started to quarrel. But at the end she left and they ruin their fasting by eating everything they could order…
It would be a comedy if it wouldn’t be that tragic..
The Gigolo and Gigollete is a sad story. It’s a love story (or you van say that there was a love between Gigolo and Gigollete). And to earn money they made a show, when she was jumping in the pool from 40 feet hight… And it was in fire.. Poor Stella (Gigollete) was frightened to death to do that! But this show gave them lots of money. Plus they had contract… What happened at the end you have to read! Don’t going to spoil it
Now The fat women of Antibes is considered to be like a comedy. But to be honest, it’s not very funny when 3 ladies were suffering from their habits to eat a lot… It is actually a desease to overeat. And of course everyone loves food.. But it should be a limit. People eat to much from some sorrows that they have in their lives (this is my opinion).
So 3 fat women who are 11 months eating what they want and for a month they eat with restrictions. And then niece of one of the ladies comes (who is skinny and doctor prescribed her to eat a lot and drink)… And their mood changes.. by seeing her eating all the delicious things.. They even started to quarrel. But at the end she left and they ruin their fasting by eating everything they could order…
It would be a comedy if it wouldn’t be that tragic..
November 15, 2019
The short story "The Three Fat Women of Antibes" by William Somerset Maugham told readers how successful the attempts of people to withstand the temptation of eating food which they liked were.
This funny story provides the idea of uselessness of restrictions, it advises people to be a natural in fulfilling their wishes.
Here is the link to the text of the story:
http://www.haroldschogger.com/three_f...
This funny story provides the idea of uselessness of restrictions, it advises people to be a natural in fulfilling their wishes.
Here is the link to the text of the story:
http://www.haroldschogger.com/three_f...
June 21, 2025
The Three Fat Women of Antibes by Somerset Maugham – another look at this tale is at https://realini.blogspot.com/2014/04/... these are my favorite stories
10 out of 10
I have just finished reading Far Eastern Tales https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/20... and I am moving along to other magnum opera, from the same flamboyant, fantastic writer, continuing with short stories, embracing them for a second time, and then maybe some of the novels
Neil Macadam was one of the astounding narratives, wherein we have this young man, a replica of The Idiot https://realini.blogspot.com/2022/04/... by the phenomenal Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Prince Mishkin visiting the Far East, where he meets this Russian woman
Darya is married to Angus Munro, the museum custodian where Neil aka Mishkin will work, but the Russian falls in love with the handsome Scot – at least this is what she says, it may be boredom, infatuation, sexual arousal, a good number of things – and things get complicated, because the hero is a virgin
Innocence, purity has to fight with lust, passion and exuberance, and when the Prince rejects the advances of the luscious Russian, she frightens him, she would use blackmail and tell her husband that she had been assaulted – she has some proof, when she tried to get carnal, she bit him, and in response, he kicked the intruder
Let me try and return to The Three Fat Women Arrow, Beatrice and Frank, rich, interesting, voluptuous, assertive, they share a weight problem, albeit we would tread carefully here today – that is if we had people reading this, they would get furious, insult, how dare you use demeaning terms, ‘fat shaming’ and the rest
With few, if any, reaching these lines, I could write whatever I want, nobody will bother anyway, and besides, I am overweight myself, though with the new regime of running more than one hour, I am told there will be weight loss, soon, if not, there is Wegovi, if that is the name of the new miracle drug, prohibitively expensive for now
There is trend now to ‘clean’ some books, eliminate the offensive language – for instance, Huckleberry Finn https://realini.blogspot.com/2021/11/... would need a lot of work, if the n word is to be out, for it is used multiple times, these were the times, and fat was on written pages also
The Three Sensuous Women spend time in Switzerland – if I am not making this up, just now – they see a doctor, who is instructing them on diet, and they plan on getting over to The Antibes, on the French Riviera, and they will have a cook, serve meals that are easy on their line, and enjoy the company of men, young ones
They are just fine with everything – I was tempted to say, and here it is, on the page, who will not exult in the beauty, sunshine, richness of that famous coast, but then I remembered the psychology classic Stumbling On Happiness https://realini.blogspot.com/2013/06/...
This was written by Harvard Professor Daniel Gilbert, who looked at the myths of happiness, and we can add one right now, oh, living on the French Riviera must be so exhilarating, people think they would be happy, if only they were moving to California, a Pacific, Caribbean Island (or the Antibes) but it turns out, they are wrong
There is a phenomenon called The Hedonic Adaptation, which means that once you get to one of those places, you get used with the splendid weather (now that we have climate change, it is more complicated, such places have hurricanes, floods) palm trees, and then notice the downsides, prices, power cuts…
In the paradise of Antibes The Three Voluptuous Ladies are doing well in the company of each other, but they play bridge, and you cannot do that with three players, so Frank invites Lena, who is now a widow, her husband had deceased, just a few months before – anticipating, the Three Women will be somewhat aghast that she eats so much…
That is not good, in front of craving companions, but when you have just lost your spouse, it is inexplicable (they say) -also, craving is the source of misfortune, according to many, perhaps most philosophies, Nirvana is reached when you wish for…nothing else, you have no more cravings – so it is a tense situation
As soon as Lena arrives, she wants something simple to eat, and that means some butter, croissants and she will be interested in some cream, which are caloric bombs, and what the other three would so much want to indulge in themselves…then the guest says her doctor has said she is to have…Martinis, which are anathema for the party
Champagne in the evening, that is all the things that The Three Fat Women of Antibes want, but cannot have with their diet, their weight, the visitor is exalting in, right in front of their weeping (metaphorically) eyes, and they are furious and say it, at night, when they get together and express their outrage at this unbearable situation
To add insult to injury, the eating lady is a champion at bridge, she wins and gets the money from the others with her skills, and when the whole thing is finished, the Three start eating with gusto, something that might have happened anyway, guest or no guest
Now for my standard closing of the note with a question, and invitation – maybe you have a good idea on how we could make more than a million dollars with this http://realini.blogspot.com/2022/02/u... – as it is, this is a unique technique, which we could promote, sell, open the Oscars show with or something and then make lots of money together, if you have the how, I have the product, I just do not know how to get the befits from it, other than the exercise per se
There is also the small matter of working for AT&T – this huge company asked me to be its Representative for Romania and Bulgaria, on the Calling Card side, which meant sailing into the Black Sea wo meet the US Navy ships, travelling to Sofia, a lot of activity, using my mother’s two bedrooms flat as office and warehouse, all for the grand total of $250, raised after a lot of persuasion to the staggering $400…with retirement ahead, there are no benefits, nothing…it is a longer story, but if you can help get the mastodont to pay some dues, or have an idea how it can happen, let me know
As for my role in the Revolution that killed Ceausescu, a smaller Mao, there it is http://realini.blogspot.com/2022/03/r...
Some favorite quotes from To The Hermitage and other works
‘Fiction is infinitely preferable to real life...As long as you avoid the books of Kafka or Beckett, the everlasting plot of fiction has fewer futile experiences than the careless plot of reality...Fiction's people are fuller, deeper, cleverer, more moving than those in real life…Its actions are more intricate, illuminating, noble, profound…There are many more dramas, climaxes, romantic fulfillment, twists, turns, gratified resolutions…Unlike reality, all of this you can experience without leaving the house or even getting out of bed…What's more, books are a form of intelligent human greatness, as stories are a higher order of sense…As random life is to destiny, so stories are to great authors, who provided us with some of the highest pleasures and the most wonderful mystifications we can find…Few stories are greater than Anna Karenina, that wise epic by an often foolish author…’
‚Parturiunt montes, nascetur ridiculus mus’
“From Monty Python - The Meaning of Life...Well, it's nothing very special...Try and be nice to people, avoid eating fat, read a good book every now and then, get some walking in, and try and live together in peace and harmony with people of all creeds and nations.”
intent on losing weight, stay at Antibes on the French Riviera. They are on a strict diet. They like to play bridge, and Frank invites her friend Lena to make four at bridge. Lena's liking for fattening food causes tension among the other three. After she leaves, Beatrice, having had to watch Lena eating for a fortnight, gives in and starts eating the same; the others follow suit.
10 out of 10
I have just finished reading Far Eastern Tales https://realinibarzoi.blogspot.com/20... and I am moving along to other magnum opera, from the same flamboyant, fantastic writer, continuing with short stories, embracing them for a second time, and then maybe some of the novels
Neil Macadam was one of the astounding narratives, wherein we have this young man, a replica of The Idiot https://realini.blogspot.com/2022/04/... by the phenomenal Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Prince Mishkin visiting the Far East, where he meets this Russian woman
Darya is married to Angus Munro, the museum custodian where Neil aka Mishkin will work, but the Russian falls in love with the handsome Scot – at least this is what she says, it may be boredom, infatuation, sexual arousal, a good number of things – and things get complicated, because the hero is a virgin
Innocence, purity has to fight with lust, passion and exuberance, and when the Prince rejects the advances of the luscious Russian, she frightens him, she would use blackmail and tell her husband that she had been assaulted – she has some proof, when she tried to get carnal, she bit him, and in response, he kicked the intruder
Let me try and return to The Three Fat Women Arrow, Beatrice and Frank, rich, interesting, voluptuous, assertive, they share a weight problem, albeit we would tread carefully here today – that is if we had people reading this, they would get furious, insult, how dare you use demeaning terms, ‘fat shaming’ and the rest
With few, if any, reaching these lines, I could write whatever I want, nobody will bother anyway, and besides, I am overweight myself, though with the new regime of running more than one hour, I am told there will be weight loss, soon, if not, there is Wegovi, if that is the name of the new miracle drug, prohibitively expensive for now
There is trend now to ‘clean’ some books, eliminate the offensive language – for instance, Huckleberry Finn https://realini.blogspot.com/2021/11/... would need a lot of work, if the n word is to be out, for it is used multiple times, these were the times, and fat was on written pages also
The Three Sensuous Women spend time in Switzerland – if I am not making this up, just now – they see a doctor, who is instructing them on diet, and they plan on getting over to The Antibes, on the French Riviera, and they will have a cook, serve meals that are easy on their line, and enjoy the company of men, young ones
They are just fine with everything – I was tempted to say, and here it is, on the page, who will not exult in the beauty, sunshine, richness of that famous coast, but then I remembered the psychology classic Stumbling On Happiness https://realini.blogspot.com/2013/06/...
This was written by Harvard Professor Daniel Gilbert, who looked at the myths of happiness, and we can add one right now, oh, living on the French Riviera must be so exhilarating, people think they would be happy, if only they were moving to California, a Pacific, Caribbean Island (or the Antibes) but it turns out, they are wrong
There is a phenomenon called The Hedonic Adaptation, which means that once you get to one of those places, you get used with the splendid weather (now that we have climate change, it is more complicated, such places have hurricanes, floods) palm trees, and then notice the downsides, prices, power cuts…
In the paradise of Antibes The Three Voluptuous Ladies are doing well in the company of each other, but they play bridge, and you cannot do that with three players, so Frank invites Lena, who is now a widow, her husband had deceased, just a few months before – anticipating, the Three Women will be somewhat aghast that she eats so much…
That is not good, in front of craving companions, but when you have just lost your spouse, it is inexplicable (they say) -also, craving is the source of misfortune, according to many, perhaps most philosophies, Nirvana is reached when you wish for…nothing else, you have no more cravings – so it is a tense situation
As soon as Lena arrives, she wants something simple to eat, and that means some butter, croissants and she will be interested in some cream, which are caloric bombs, and what the other three would so much want to indulge in themselves…then the guest says her doctor has said she is to have…Martinis, which are anathema for the party
Champagne in the evening, that is all the things that The Three Fat Women of Antibes want, but cannot have with their diet, their weight, the visitor is exalting in, right in front of their weeping (metaphorically) eyes, and they are furious and say it, at night, when they get together and express their outrage at this unbearable situation
To add insult to injury, the eating lady is a champion at bridge, she wins and gets the money from the others with her skills, and when the whole thing is finished, the Three start eating with gusto, something that might have happened anyway, guest or no guest
Now for my standard closing of the note with a question, and invitation – maybe you have a good idea on how we could make more than a million dollars with this http://realini.blogspot.com/2022/02/u... – as it is, this is a unique technique, which we could promote, sell, open the Oscars show with or something and then make lots of money together, if you have the how, I have the product, I just do not know how to get the befits from it, other than the exercise per se
There is also the small matter of working for AT&T – this huge company asked me to be its Representative for Romania and Bulgaria, on the Calling Card side, which meant sailing into the Black Sea wo meet the US Navy ships, travelling to Sofia, a lot of activity, using my mother’s two bedrooms flat as office and warehouse, all for the grand total of $250, raised after a lot of persuasion to the staggering $400…with retirement ahead, there are no benefits, nothing…it is a longer story, but if you can help get the mastodont to pay some dues, or have an idea how it can happen, let me know
As for my role in the Revolution that killed Ceausescu, a smaller Mao, there it is http://realini.blogspot.com/2022/03/r...
Some favorite quotes from To The Hermitage and other works
‘Fiction is infinitely preferable to real life...As long as you avoid the books of Kafka or Beckett, the everlasting plot of fiction has fewer futile experiences than the careless plot of reality...Fiction's people are fuller, deeper, cleverer, more moving than those in real life…Its actions are more intricate, illuminating, noble, profound…There are many more dramas, climaxes, romantic fulfillment, twists, turns, gratified resolutions…Unlike reality, all of this you can experience without leaving the house or even getting out of bed…What's more, books are a form of intelligent human greatness, as stories are a higher order of sense…As random life is to destiny, so stories are to great authors, who provided us with some of the highest pleasures and the most wonderful mystifications we can find…Few stories are greater than Anna Karenina, that wise epic by an often foolish author…’
‚Parturiunt montes, nascetur ridiculus mus’
“From Monty Python - The Meaning of Life...Well, it's nothing very special...Try and be nice to people, avoid eating fat, read a good book every now and then, get some walking in, and try and live together in peace and harmony with people of all creeds and nations.”
intent on losing weight, stay at Antibes on the French Riviera. They are on a strict diet. They like to play bridge, and Frank invites her friend Lena to make four at bridge. Lena's liking for fattening food causes tension among the other three. After she leaves, Beatrice, having had to watch Lena eating for a fortnight, gives in and starts eating the same; the others follow suit.
October 10, 2021
These were the first 2 short stories of Maugham that i've read. From reading Of Human Bondage & Theater books i knew he writes good books but these 2 stories showed me that he's also a good writer of short stories. Both stories written well, 1st one is very funny but the second one is grim and dark. I liked the Fat Women more as i think it's harder to write funny staff then dark one (though Maugham did it very well)
June 8, 2024
I'm not sure but I feel like I don't like somerset stories, it seems to me like Fitzgerald but I'm not into his writing. I like the story of the three women, it's comedy and nice but it's missing something. the other story also feels like that.
I don't know I'm not a fan of Somerset.
I don't know I'm not a fan of Somerset.
June 6, 2024
Good stories of human relationships- the first a comic story of three dieting rich women on the Med throne into existential turmoil by the arrival of a fourth. The other about an ex-Gigolo and Gigolette, now married couple considering whether to go on with the new career of putting the wife's life at risk twice daily in a casino high five act. Wasn't sure which way the story would go but interestingly done.
April 25, 2025
(Gigolo and Gigolette review)
Very impressive how Maugham sometimes manages to start his stories with some characters that turn out not to be the focus of the story, it makes his stories really unpredictable in a nice way.
Furthermore he story was quite a good semi-tragic love story that was enjoyable but nothing too special.
3.5/5
Very impressive how Maugham sometimes manages to start his stories with some characters that turn out not to be the focus of the story, it makes his stories really unpredictable in a nice way.
Furthermore he story was quite a good semi-tragic love story that was enjoyable but nothing too special.
3.5/5
August 4, 2007
A friend sent me a tape of Somerset Maugham reading "Three Fat Women of Antibes" -- his rendition drips irony (and venom) and is truly memorable. Note to self: read more Maugham short stories.
June 6, 2013
Hilarious. Beautifully observed. Maugham writes his stories as though they are essays.
March 26, 2015
Absolutely brilliant
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews