The Selfish Giant

by

Oscar Wilde

Spring, Summer, and Autumn Character Analysis

Spring, Summer, and Autumn are the seasons personified. At the beginning of the story, they bless the Giant’s garden with good weather—until he ousts the children from his garden, at which point they leave, repulsed by the Giant’s selfishness. The seasons’ disfavor shows that the Giant’s selfish ways go against the natural order and thus deserve punishment from above.

Spring, Summer, and Autumn Quotes in The Selfish Giant

The The Selfish Giant quotes below are all either spoken by Spring, Summer, and Autumn or refer to Spring, Summer, and Autumn. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Christian Charity Theme Icon
).
The Selfish Giant Quotes

“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; “I hope there will be a change in the weather.”

Related Characters: The Giant (speaker), Spring, Summer, and Autumn, The Forces of Winter
Related Symbols: The Giant’s Garden
Related Literary Devices:
Page Number: 2
Explanation and Analysis:

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, and the North Wind, and the Hail, and the Frost, and the Snow danced about through the trees.

Related Characters: The Giant, Spring, Summer, and Autumn
Related Symbols: The Giant’s Garden
Related Literary Devices:
Page Number: 2
Explanation and Analysis:

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, but it was so long since he had heard a bird sing in his garden that it seemed to him to be the most beautiful music in the world.

Related Characters: The Giant, Spring, Summer, and Autumn
Page Number: 3
Explanation and Analysis:

“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.

Related Characters: The Giant (speaker), The Children, Spring, Summer, and Autumn
Related Symbols: The Giant’s Garden, The Tree
Related Literary Devices:
Page Number: 3
Explanation and Analysis:
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Spring, Summer, and Autumn Quotes in The Selfish Giant

The The Selfish Giant quotes below are all either spoken by Spring, Summer, and Autumn or refer to Spring, Summer, and Autumn. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Christian Charity Theme Icon
).
The Selfish Giant Quotes

“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; “I hope there will be a change in the weather.”

Related Characters: The Giant (speaker), Spring, Summer, and Autumn, The Forces of Winter
Related Symbols: The Giant’s Garden
Related Literary Devices:
Page Number: 2
Explanation and Analysis:

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, and the North Wind, and the Hail, and the Frost, and the Snow danced about through the trees.

Related Characters: The Giant, Spring, Summer, and Autumn
Related Symbols: The Giant’s Garden
Related Literary Devices:
Page Number: 2
Explanation and Analysis:

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, but it was so long since he had heard a bird sing in his garden that it seemed to him to be the most beautiful music in the world.

Related Characters: The Giant, Spring, Summer, and Autumn
Page Number: 3
Explanation and Analysis:

“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.

Related Characters: The Giant (speaker), The Children, Spring, Summer, and Autumn
Related Symbols: The Giant’s Garden, The Tree
Related Literary Devices:
Page Number: 3
Explanation and Analysis: