Narrator’s Biases Against Asians

Place and time: On a ship after the end of WWII

The characters in the story are going to Japan on a ship after the end of WWII. The narrator is
British and walks into a cabin occupied by an Asian named as Mr Kelada. The narrator is at the
outset unimpressed by Kelada and his eastern mannerisms.
He is biased and slightly hateful in his thoughts. However, Kelada is unaffected by such hate and
contempt. On the contrary, he is outspoken and quick to chat with anyone on any topic. He is
very knowledgeable, to the point of arrogant. He is named ‘Mr Know All’ by the shipmates due
to this trait.
An American Couple
The two are joined by a lovely American couple the Ramsays. Mr Ramsay is American while his
wife is an Asian. They seem to be in love. Mrs Humphrey is quiet and beautiful and Mr Ramsay
is very appreciative of her.
One day, the shipmates notice the magnificent pearl necklace worn by Mrs Humphrey. It is quite
striking and Kelada claims it to be worth a small fortune. However, Mr Ramsay protests and
claims it to be a cheap knockoff. They enter a wager of 100 dollars to decide who is correct.
When observed under a magnifying glass it becomes clear to Kelada that it is real and expensive
however, he also notices Mrs Ramsay trepidation and anxiety. Her body language signals
disloyalty and guilt.
Kelada realizes that it must be a present from an affair. He realizes that it could split the couple
and decides to take a hit to his reputation. He calls it to be a fake and offers the wager to Mr
Ramsay. This creates a stir on the ship and everyone mocks at Kelada for losing the bet and not
knowing enough about pearls.
Token of Appreciation

One day, while the narrator and Kelada are resting in their cabin, they receive an envelope with a
100 dollar bill. It is from Mrs Ramsay. It is a token of appreciation and acknowledgement of his
merciful act.

The narrator is shocked and realizes how mistaken he was to presume things about Kelada and
his culture. He learns an important lesson in humility and never judging people on the basis of
their appearances or distinctions. 

The climax lies in the episode when Mr. Kelada and Mr.Ramsay argued among themselves about
the pearl bracelet. And the main character sees Mrs. Ramsay's face: “It was so white that she
looked as though she were about to faint. She was staring at him with wide and terrified eyes.
They held a desperate appeal; it was so clear that I wondered why her husband did not see it.

Mr. Kelada stopped with his mouth open. He flushed deeply. You could almost see the effort he
was making over himself “

William Somerset Maugham (25/1/1874 – 16/12/1965) was an English writer, he was well-
known for his plays, novels and short stories. Maugham is a British writer of great repute and has
had one of the most successful literary careers in the twentieth century. He was born in Paris,
where he spent his first ten years. Maugham was schooled in England and went to a German
university. He became a medical student in London and qualified as a physician in 1897. He
never practiced medicine, and became a full-time writer.
The Character:
The Major Characters: Mr. Kelada and the narrator.
Talking about Mr. Keleda or Mr. Know All which is also the title of this short story, first we will
be looking into his appearance. He looks nothing like a typical British. “Mr. Kelada was short
and of a sturdy build, clean-shaven and dark skinned, with a fleshy, hooked nose and very large,
lustrous and liquid eyes. His long black hair was sleek and curly. He spoke with a fluency in
which there was nothing English and his gestures were exuberant.”
Secondly, his characteristics. He is portraited to be loquacious or chatty, hearty, jovial and
argumentative. He takes part in any conversations, any argument even the smallest ones. But the
point here is that he is always right because he is intellectual, and he literally can interfere with
any subjects that is being discussed during the conversation. That’s why people on the cruise
name him “Mr Know all”. Another examples for his loquacity, that he interrupted the narrator’s
solitaire games which annoys him very much. Then, he even perfomed card tricks which the
narrator really hated. He is everywhere and always
Besides, he is kinda exaggeratedly friendly which leads to informality when talking to the
narrators. He didn’t add “Mr” before the narrator’s name and this greatly made the narrator feel
unpleasant. And Mr Keleda also made a reservation for him and the narrator before asking for
the narrator’s opinion and permission. After knowing about the unpredicted reservation, he stated
in the story: “I did not like Mr.Kelada” for the forth time.
But eventually, there was a special action done by Mr Know All that he admitted he was wrong
about the authenticity of Mrs. Ramsay’s pearl chain when examining it although he was
absolutely right. This was because he didn’t want to destroy the Ramsay family marriage.
This is an act of mercy and delicacy. This event made his kindness become dominant among all
the bad first impression and prejudice of the narrator about Mr Know All.

Talking about the narrator,

The story is told in the first person – the narrator sees everything and is a part of the plot. The
narrator, an unnamed Englishman, who is the stereotypical British. He would rather not have
anyone else in the room, and he is disdainful of those British citizens who are colonials and not
from England. He does not like having to share a cabin with Mr. Kalada.
The sub-character: Mr Ramsay and Mrs. Ramsay.
Mr. Ramsey is in the American Consular Service and has been stationed at Kobe for the last
year. He is described as “a great heavy fellow from the Middle West, with loose fat under a tight
skin, and he bulged out of his ready-made clothes”. And he just cared about winning the bet
but not his wife’s attitude and expression.

About Mrs.Ramsay, the narrator describes her as “a very pretty little thing with pleasant
manners and a sense of humor”, the narrator liked her, about her simple dressing style but she
knew how to wear her clothes. But despite her decent appearance, she is not an faithful woman
because she cheated on her husband with an affair during the year her husband left her alone
to station at Kobe. The evidence is her expensive and luxury pearls chain.

Talking about the narrator, The story is told in the first person – the narrator sees everything and is a part of the plot. The
narrator, an unnamed Englishman, who is the stereotypical British. He would rather not have anyone else in the room, and he is
disdainful of those British citizens who are colonials and not from England. He does not like having to share a cabin with Mr.
Kalada. The sub-character: Mr Ramsay and Mrs. Ramsay. Mr. Ramsey is in the American Consular Service and has been
stationed at Kobe for the last year. He is described as “a great heavy fellow from the Middle West, with loose fat under a tight
skin, and he bulged out of his ready-made clothes”. And he just cared about winning the bet but not his wife’s attitude and
expression. About Mrs.Ramsay, the narrator describes her as “a very pretty little thing with pleasant manners and a sense of
humor”, the narrator liked her, about her simple dressing style but she knew how to wear her clothes. But despite her decent
appearance, she is not an faithful woman because she cheated on her husband with an affair during the year her husband left her
alone to station at Kobe. The evidence is her expensive and luxury pearls chain.