NEB Class 11 1st Story The Selfish Giant Oscar Wilde

 1^st Story

The Selfish Giant

              By Oscar Wilde

The Selfish Giant by Oscar Wilde is a story about a giant who doesn’t let children play in his beautiful garden. Because of his selfishness, the garden stays cold and lifeless. One day, he sees children playing again and feels happy. He realizes his mistake, breaks the wall, and lets them in. After that, the garden becomes full of life. In the end, a special little boy takes the giant to paradise when he dies. Moral: Sharing and kindness bring true happiness.

About the Writer

Oscar Wilde (1854–1900) was a famous Irish writer and poet. He was known for his clever words, funny plays, and moral stories. His best-known books are The Picture of Dorian Gray and The Importance of Being Earnest."The Selfish Giant" is from his storybook The Happy Prince and Other Tales (1888). He wrote these stories for his children, but they teach deep lessons for everyone.

Setting

• Place: The story happens in the giant’s beautiful garden, full of flowers, trees, and birds.
• Time: It feels like a fairy tale world, where seasons change—spring, summer, and winter.

Plot

The giant has a lovely garden, and children love to play there when he is away. When he returns, he becomes angry and selfish, and builds a high wall to keep them out. Because the children are gone, the garden stays in winter forever—cold and lifeless. One day, the children come back, and spring also returns. The giant sees a little boy trying to climb a tree. He helps him and feels love in his heart. He tears down the wall and lets the children play happily in the garden. Many years later, the giant sees the same little boy with wounds on his hands and feet (like Jesus). The boy takes the giant to Paradise, and the giant dies peacefully.

Main Characters 

1. The Giant: He is a big, strong man who owns a beautiful garden. At first, he is selfish and does not allow children to play in his garden. He builds a wall to keep them out. Because of his selfishness, Winter stays in his garden all the time. Later, he sees a small boy trying to enter and his heart melts. He breaks the wall, lets the children play, and becomes kind and loving. In the end, the Giant dies peacefully and is taken to Paradise by the little boy (who is like an angel).

2. The Children:  They love playing in the Giant's garden. When the Giant kicks them out, they feel sad. Later, when he allows them in, they return and bring joy and Spring with them. One special little boy among them touches the Giant’s heart.

3. The Little Boy (Christ-like figure): A special child who appears last in the story. He is very small and cannot climb the tree. The Giant helps him and grows fond of him. Later, the boy returns with wounds on his hands and feet, symbolizing Jesus Christ. He takes the Giant to Heaven when he dies.

 Differences between Spring and Winter season based on the story

Spring Season (Symbol of Joy and Sharing)

1.      Children are Present: The children return to play in the garden, bringing life and happiness.

2.      Nature Comes Alive: Trees blossom, flowers bloom, birds sing, and the garden becomes beautiful.

3.      Joyful Atmosphere: The garden is filled with warmth, light, and happiness because the Giant becomes kind and shares the garden.

Winter Season (Symbol of Selfishness and Loneliness)

1.      Children are Absent: The Giant does not allow children to enter, so the garden is empty.

2.      Nature Stops Growing: There are no flowers or leaves, and it is always cold and grey.

3.      Sad and Lifeless Mood: The garden remains in Winter, showing that the Giant's selfishness has made the place unhappy.

Summary

The Selfish Giant by Oscar Wilde tells the story of a cold-hearted Giant who owns a beautiful garden. While he is away, children from the village sneak in to play there, filling it with laughter and joy. However, upon his return, the Giant angrily chases the children away and builds a tall wall to keep them out. He places a sign that warns trespassers will be punished. The garden, once vibrant and full of life, falls into perpetual winter, as spring refuses to come. The Giant cannot understand why his garden remains cold and lifeless while the rest of the land blossoms.

One morning, the Giant hears the sound of birds singing and is astonished to see that spring has returned. He discovers that the children have found a way back through a hole in the wall. In one corner of the garden, winter still lingers where a small boy struggles to climb a tree. Moved by compassion, the Giant helps the boy and realizes the beauty of kindness. As a result, the garden blooms once more. The Giant, now transformed, tears down the wall and welcomes the children to play in his garden forever.

The Giant grows old and cherishes his time with the children. However, he never sees the small boy he helped again. One winter morning, the Giant finds the boy standing beneath a tree, with wounds on his hands and feet. The Giant is enraged, asking who hurt the boy, but the child reassures him that these are wounds of love. The boy invites the Giant to his garden, which he explains is Paradise.

Later that day, the children find the Giant dead beneath the tree, covered in white blossoms. His heart is at peace, and his body rests as if in eternal spring. Wilde’s story concludes with the message that love, compassion, and selflessness lead to redemption and spiritual fulfillment.

Alternate summary

"The Selfish Giant" is a short story by Oscar Wilde, first published in 1888 as part of his collection The Happy Prince and Other Tales. Here’s a summary:

The story revolves around a Giant who owns a beautiful garden. Children love playing in the garden, especially when the Giant is away. However, the Giant, being selfish, builds a high wall around his garden to keep the children out, posting a notice that trespassers will be prosecuted.

As a result, Spring stops coming to the garden, and it remains in perpetual Winter. The garden becomes bleak and cold, with no flowers blooming and no birds singing. The Giant does not understand why his garden is so desolate while the rest of the world enjoys the beauty of Spring.

One day, the children find a way back into the garden through a hole in the wall. As they play, the garden starts to bloom again, bringing back the beauty of Spring. The Giant, seeing this, realizes how selfish he has been and his heart melts. He knocks down the wall and welcomes the children back, enjoying their laughter and the return of nature’s beauty to his garden.

However, one small boy, who is different from the others, touches the Giant deeply. This boy, whom the Giant once saw struggling to climb a tree, later reappears with wounds on his hands and feet. The boy reveals that these are the wounds of love and tells the Giant that he has been invited to his garden, which is paradise. The Giant, realizing who the boy really is, is filled with peace.

Years later, the Giant is found dead in the garden, covered in blossoms, signifying that he has gone to paradise with the boy, who is implied to be a Christ-like figure. The story ends with the notion that the Giant's soul has found rest in eternal peace and beauty.

Long Questions

1. Discuss the transformation of the Giant's character throughout the story. What events lead to this change?

In the beginning, the Giant is selfish and does not let children play in his garden. He builds a wall to keep them out. As a result, Winter stays in his garden all the time. One day, he sees a small boy trying to enter. This boy touches the Giant’s heart. He realizes that the children bring joy and beauty to his garden. The Giant breaks the wall and allows the children to play. Slowly, he becomes kind and loving. When the same little boy returns with wounds on his hands and feet, the Giant understands love and forgiveness. His heart changes completely, and he becomes gentle. This change leads him to peace and eternal happiness.

2. Analyze the symbolic significance of the garden in "The Selfish Giant." What does it represent in the story?

The garden in the story is a symbol of the Giant’s heart. When the Giant is selfish, the garden stays in Winter. It becomes cold, dull, and lifeless, just like his heart. But when he allows the children to play, Spring returns, and the garden becomes full of flowers, birds, and happiness. This shows that kindness brings beauty and warmth. The garden also represents change and renewal. As the seasons change, so does the Giant. It also shows how sharing love with others can heal a cold heart. In the end, the garden becomes like paradise when the small boy appears. So, the garden is a picture of the Giant’s emotional and spiritual journey from selfishness to love.

3. What is the significance of the small boy with wounds on his hands and feet in the story? How does his presence influence the Giant?

The small boy with wounds on his hands and feet is very special. He appears at the end of the story and changes the Giant’s heart. His wounds remind the Giant of pain and love. These marks are similar to those of Jesus Christ, which means the boy is a symbol of love, sacrifice, and forgiveness. When the Giant sees him, he feels deeply touched. The boy’s presence makes the Giant realize how important it is to love and care for others. The boy promises to take the Giant to his garden, which means heaven. This moment gives the Giant peace and joy. The boy helps the Giant become a better person and shows the power of kindness and love.

Reference beyond text

a. What is the main theme of the story?

The main theme of this story is selfishness and love. It is the story of transformation of selfish giant into selfless giant. At the beginning of the story, the giant was very selfish and wicked towards the children and he closes the gate of beautiful garden for them. But later he realizes his mistake when the children stop coming to the garden and the garden never experiences the spring season until and unless he allows them to play in his garden. At this point he realizes the meaning of love and sharing. This story is very much relatable to the nature of human beings. We hardly share our belongings to anyone if somebody is needy and we are selfish too. This story teaches us to share love and compassion to get love in return.

b. Does God punish those who are cruel to children and very selfish?

Yes, God punishes those who are cruel to children and very selfish. As in the story, Giant has really been so cruel to the children and selfish and he didn’t let them play on the garden because of which spring never came in his garden. In the absence of children birds also did not sing. Once, a flower bloomed out of the grass but after seeing the notice board, it also went back to sleep. Then came the North Wind and the hailstorm. Due to the giant’s selfishness, autumn’s golden fruits also did not come to his garden. In this way god punishes to those who are cruel to children and very selfish.

When the little child smiled at the Giant, and said to him, "You let me play once in your garden, today you shall come with me to my garden, which is Paradise," shortly afterwards, the happy giant dies. What is the coincidence of this event? Describe it in relation to this fairy story.

The coincidence of this event once, the giant let the little child play in his garden and make him happy and today the same child wants to take him to his garden paradise to make him happy in return, which means the final time of the gaint has come and the little child is a messenger/ fairy who wants him to the heaven because of his noble works.

Short questions & answers

1. The story makes use of personification as one of the main figures of speech. Cite three examples of personification from the story. What is the significance of the seasons personified in the story?

The practice of representing the objects, qualities etc. as the human beings in art and literature is called personification. Three examples of personification from the story are the beautiful little flowers that slips back into the garden after seeing the notice board, the snow and the frost who says that the spring has forgotten this garden.

The story has the significance of the seasons personified. At the beginning, the seasons bless the garden with pleasant weather until the Giant sends the children away from his garden. Because of the Giant’s unkindness to the children, the spring season leaves the garden. The seasons disfavor indicates that the Giant’s selfishness goes against the natural order and thus deserves punishment. Thus the significance of the seasons personification is to show that if someone does bad then he/she will deserve the bad.

2. This story can be read as a fairy story, where the children, the seasons, the tree, the corner of the garden, the snow, the wind and the frost are all used as symbolism. Interpret those symbols.

The story ‘The Selfish Giant’ is a fairy tale. Here, the children symbolize innocence, love, compassion and blessings. Likewise the seasons represent life and death. The tree symbolizes patience and hope. The corner of the garden depicts the paradise. Finally the snow, the wind and the frost symbolize pain, suffering and discomfort.

3. Which figure of speech is used for ‘winter, frost, snow, north wind, hail and little child’? Who is the little child compared to?

The figure of speech used for "Winter, Frost, Snow, North Wind, Hail, and Little Child" is personification. In the story The Selfish Giant, these elements of nature are described as if they have human qualities and actions, such as painting, dancing, and speaking, which is a clear use of personification. This helps to create a vivid and imaginative picture of the changing seasons and the mood of the garden. The Little Child in the story is compared to Jesus Christ. He has wounds on his hands and feet, symbolizing the crucifixion, and he represents love, forgiveness, and spiritual salvation. His presence brings peace to the Giant, and he invites the Giant to his garden, which symbolizes heaven or eternal happiness.