2014-46 Oscar Wilde: The Selfish Giant
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| Oscar Wilde [1854-1900] |
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| The Selfish Giant |
Every
afternoon, as they were coming from school, the children used to go and play in
the Giant's garden. It was a
large lovely garden, with soft green grass. Here and there over the grass stood
beautiful flowers like stars, and there were twelve peach-trees that in the
spring-time broke out into delicate blossoms of pink and pearl, and in the
autumn bore rich fruit. The birds sat on the trees and sang so sweetly that the
children used to stop their games in order to listen to them. 'How happy we are
here!' they cried to each other.
One day the Giant came back. He had been
to visit his friend the Cornish ogre, and had stayed with him for seven years.
After the seven years were over he had said all that he had to say, for his conversation
was limited, and he determined to return to his own castle. When he arrived he
saw the children playing in the garden. 'What are you doing here?' he
cried in a very gruff voice, and the children ran away.
'My own garden is my own garden,' said the Giant; 'any one can understand that,
and I will allow nobody to play in it but myself.' So he built a high wall all
round it, and put up a notice: TRESPASSERS WILL BE PROSECUTED. He
was a very selfish Giant. The poor children had now nowhere to play. They tried to play on the road, but
the road was very dusty and full of hard stones, and they did not like it. They
used to wander round the high wall when their lessons were over, and talk about
the beautiful garden inside. 'How happy we were there,' they
said to each other.
Then the Spring came, and all over the country there were little
blossoms and little birds. Only in the garden of the Selfish Giant it was still
Winter. The birds did not care to sing in it as there were no children, and the
trees forgot to blossom. Once a beautiful flower put its head out from the
grass, but when it saw the notice-board it was so sorry for the children that
it slipped back into the ground again, and went off to sleep.
The only people who were pleased were the Snow
and the Frost. 'Spring has forgotten this garden,' they cried, 'so we will live
here all the year round.' The Snow covered up the grass with her great white
cloak, and the Frost painted all the trees silver. Then they invited the North
Wind to stay with them, and he came. He was wrapped in furs, and he roared all
day about the garden. 'This is a delightful spot,' he said, 'we must ask the Hail on a
visit.' So the Hail came.
'I cannot understand why the Spring is so late in coming,' said the Selfish
Giant, as he sat at the window and looked out at his cold white
garden. But the Spring never came, nor the Summer. The Autumn gave golden
fruit to every garden, but to the Giant's garden she gave none. 'He is too
selfish,' she said. So it was always Winter there.
One morning the Giant was lying awake in bed when he heard some lovely music.
It sounded so sweet to his ears that he thought it must be the King's musicians
passing by. It was really only a little linnet singing outside his
window. Then the Hail stopped dancing over his head, and the North Wind
ceased roaring. A delicious perfume came to him through the open
casement.
'I believe the Spring
has come at last,' said the Giant; and looked out. What did he see?
He saw a most wonderful sight. Through a little hole in the wall the
children had crept in. They were sitting in the branches of the trees. And the
trees were so glad to have the children back again that they had covered
themselves with blossoms, and were waving their arms gently above the
children's heads.
The birds were flying
about and twittering with delight, and the flowers were looking up through the
green grass and laughing. It was a lovely scene, only in one corner it was
still Winter. It was the farthest corner of the garden, and in it was standing
a little boy. He could not reach up to the branches of the tree, and he was
wandering all round it, crying bitterly.
And the Giant's heart
melted as he looked out. 'How selfish I have been!' he said; 'now I know why
the Spring would not come here. I will put that poor little boy on the top of
the tree, and then I will knock down the wall, and my garden shall be the
children's playground for ever and ever.' He was really very sorry for what he
had done.
So he went out into the
garden. But when the children saw him they were so frightened that they all ran
away, and the garden became Winter again. Only the little boy did not run, for
his eyes were so full of tears that he died not see the Giant coming. And the
Giant took him gently in his hand, and put him up into the tree. And the tree
broke at once into blossom, and the birds came and sang on it.
The little boy stretched
out his two arms, flung them round the Giant's neck and kissed him. And the
other children, came
running back, and with them came the Spring. 'It is your garden now, little
children,' said the Giant, and he took a great axe and knocked down the wall.
And when the people were gong to market at twelve o'clock they found the Giant
playing with the children in the most beautiful garden they had ever seen.
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