Analyse af 'The Force of Circumstance'

The Force of Circumstance is a short story written by W. Somerset Maugham and was published in 1924. The short story takes place in Malaysia and illuminates the lives of the colonizer and the colonized. Additionally the short story focuses on Doris’ feelings of revolt towards the Malay woman and the difficulties of living fulltime in a county with the fear of going native.

W. Somerset Maugham illustrates his idea of living in a colony and the British view on the natives. The main character, Guy is the ideal type of colonizer; second-generation and his father served under the second Sultan for thirty years. Guy works for the British Empire in Kampong and has been living at Borneo his whole life. Guy has no fear of going native; he speaks the native language fluently and moves easily between two cultures unlike Doris. Doris is an ordinary British woman, who has not been anywhere else than home; namely England. Her decision to marry Guy after knowing him only for a month was based on wanting a new and more exotic life. Even though this existing interest, Doris takes some of her original traditions with her to Malaysia, “The tennis-court was two or three hundred yards from the bungalow and after tea, anxious not to lose time, they strolled down to it.” (P. 9, L. 1). Both tennis and tea are typical British traditions and shows Doris’ fear of going native. The Malay woman is the closes connection between the natives and Guy and Doris. Guy had a big fear of being alone, and the Malay was just the right replacement. She lived with Guy for 10 years and they had three children. Their relationship works as a deal, she receives money and he does not have to live alone, “But she was never in love with me any more than was in love with her.” (P. 18, L. 8). She is a woman I need who sees a way out of poverty and in lack of everything.