The Selfish Giant

The story’s protagonist is the titular Giant—a fantastical being appropriate to a fairy tale. He lives in a castle in the country with a beautiful garden where children play when he is away. At first, the Giant is selfish and cold toward the children. He wants to keep his garden for himself and believes that “any one [should] understand that” (58). In banishing the children from his garden, the Giant plays the role of God in the biblical story of Adam and Eve. However, it is the Giant himself who is in the wrong, and he suffers physical consequences similar to those that accompanied humanity’s fall from paradise: Nature turns against him as endless winter settles on his garden.

The Giant, however, is a dynamic character and learns selflessness during the story’s climax. He helps a little boy climb into a tree and begins to love the boy and all the children in his garden, even joining them in their games. Toward the end of the story, the Giant grows old and feeble and can only watch the children as they play. When he finally reunites with the little boy, The Journey of Contrition, Penance, and Redemption is complete, as he learns to recognize the boy’s “wounds of Love” for what they are (67)—a testament to God’s mercy and compassion for humanity.