The Razor's Edge” W. Somerset Maugham summary

The Razor’s Edge by W. Somerset Maugham is about a character named Larry Darrel. Larry, a sympathetic and bright young man, is on a spiritual journey, as well as a physical one. The story takes place in the United States, after World War I, and Larry refuses to march to the beat of others’ drums. He passes up the chance to get married to a rich girl from Chicago named Isabel, in order to travel to Paris to begin his spiritual quest: Larry seeks answers about God, man, and the meaning of life. Though he planned on going to Paris, he also ends up traveling to Germany, Spain, and finally India in order to get the answers to his questions. While Larry is away, Isabel marries another man. Like her, he’s rich, but they don’t have a loving marriage, and when the stock market crashes, his fortunes go with it. Isabel and Larry happen upon one another again in Paris. They’ve both changed. Larry has discovered inner peace, whereas Isabel became a money-hungry socialite. She manages to remain wealthy despite her husband’s financial woes and moves back to the United States where she continues her shallow existence. Readers will recognize the author, W. (William) Somerset Maugham, who inserts himself into the novel to move the narrative along. William’s friend, Elliott, is an elitist. They also connect with Suzanne Rovier, the French artist, as well as Sophie, who is an addict. These four characters move in and out of the story to drive the plot.

The Razor’s Edge begins with Maugham’s uncertainty. The vagueness of his story’s ending, as well as its length, trouble him, but he presses on all the same. He meets Larry and Isabel early in the novel at the home of Louisa Bradley. Louisa, a wealthy widow, is redecorating her home. Everyone has an opinion on the house, but Larry’s opinion is unique in that he’s convinced only Louisa’s opinion matters. Larry’s different style of thinking began after another pilot was killed during World War I. He doesn’t like to talk about it, but this incident drives him to seek philosophical answers and also prompts the two-year separation to which he and Isabel agree. Once in France, Elliott wants Larry to join him with the crème de la crème of society, but Larry refuses, preferring to bury his nose in books. As the two-year separation between Larry and Isabel wears on and draws to a close, Isabel arrives with her mother in Paris. They’re seeking an answer too—whether or not Larry still plans to wed Isabel. Part of that decision would involve joining the social elite back in America. Larry refuses, instead inviting Isabel to travel around Europe with him. Even though she claims to love Larry, she’d rather be wealthy in America than poor in Europe, so she goes back home. For the next decade, Larry travels throughout Europe and India. Studying with a Yogi in India, Larry finally finds the answers he’s been seeking for twelve years. He returns to Paris, his curiosity sated. There, he sees Isabel, Maugham, and Elliott. Isabel’s husband, Gray Maturin, is actually a former friend of Larry’s. They were once close. Maturin is the son of a Chicago stock broker. When the stock market crash of 1929 hits, both Gray and Isabel move in with Elliott until they can get back on their feet. Larry returns to his old group of friends, but now he’s even more different from them, and they’re surprised. Larry is convinced he doesn’t need money, and that he can heal people. He manages to cure Maturin’s headaches with meditation. Meanwhile, Sophie MacDonald, an old friend from Chicago, arrives in Paris. Both her husband and child died in a car accident. By the time Sophie reaches Paris, she’s addicted to drugs and behaves in a promiscuous fashion. Larry asks her to be his wife because he wants to save her from her current lot in life, but this makes Isabel angry. Isabel decides to lure Sophie into drinking in order to break up the engagement, and as a result, Sophie dies—she’s murdered in Toulouse. During this time, Elliott passes away as well, though he dies of natural causes. Maugham steps in to comment on Elliott’s life and passing, calling his existence a wasted life because Elliott spent his efforts to surround himself with material goods and shallow people. After Elliott’s death and burial, Maugham visits Isabel, intending to ask her about Sophie. Initially, Isabel claims she had nothing to do with Sophie’s demise, but ultimately comes clean about her role. Not only that—Isabel tells Maugham that given the opportunity, she’d repeat her actions. She’s still in love with Larry and cites this as her motivation. After Sophie’s funeral, Maugham bids farewell to Larry. Larry, who has been receiving a monthly payment for his service during World War I, tells Maugham that he plans on giving that up and devoting himself to preaching in the United States, in hopes that he will help others find inner peace. Maugham doesn’t end up seeing Larry or Isabel again, but he imagines how their lives played out, with Isabel and Maturin regaining their fortune in the oil industry, and Larry living a financially poor but spiritually rich and happy life in America.