The Selfish Giant Flashcards
by Oscar Wilde — tap or click to flip
Flashcard Review
Flashcards: The Selfish Giant
Where do the children play every afternoon before the Giant returns?
In the Giant's large, lovely garden, which has soft green grass, beautiful flowers, and twelve peach-trees where birds sing sweetly.
Why has the Giant been away from his castle, and for how long?
He has been visiting his friend the Cornish ogre for seven years.
What does the Giant do when he returns and finds the children in his garden?
He yells at them in a gruff voice, chases them away, builds a high wall around the garden, and puts up a "Trespassers Will Be Prosecuted" sign.
What happens to the Giant's garden after he walls out the children?
Spring never comes -- it remains perpetual winter, with Snow, Frost, North Wind, and Hail taking up residence while the rest of the country blooms.
What sound wakes the Giant one morning and signals the return of spring?
A linnet singing outside his window. It has been so long since he heard birdsong that he thinks it is the most beautiful music in the world.
How have the children gotten back into the garden?
They crept in through a little hole in the wall.
Why is one corner of the garden still locked in winter when the children return?
A little boy is standing there who is too small to climb the tree. Without a child in its branches, that corner remains frozen.
What does the Giant do for the little boy who cannot reach the tree branches?
He gently picks the boy up and places him in the tree, which immediately breaks into blossom.
How does the Giant transform his garden after his change of heart?
He takes a great axe and knocks down the wall, declaring it the children's playground forever.
How does the Giant's attitude toward winter change as he grows old?
He no longer hates winter because he understands it is merely spring asleep and the flowers are resting.
Why does the Giant love the little boy more than the other children?
Because the little boy kissed him -- he was the first to show the Giant affection after years of isolation.
How do the other children react when the Giant first comes into the garden after his change of heart?
They are frightened and run away, causing the garden to become winter again -- until they see the Giant is kind to the little boy and come running back.
What does the Giant say about children near the end of his life?
"I have many beautiful flowers, but the children are the most beautiful flowers of all."
What clues reveal that the little boy at the end is a Christ figure?
He has the prints of two nails on his palms and feet, he calls them "the wounds of Love," and he invites the Giant to Paradise.
How does the story portray the relationship between selfishness and isolation from nature?
The Giant's selfish act of walling out the children causes nature itself to withdraw -- spring, summer, and autumn refuse to visit, leaving him in perpetual winter.
What does the Giant's redemption arc suggest about the possibility of change?
That genuine remorse and a single act of kindness -- lifting the small boy into the tree -- can undo years of selfishness and restore what was lost.
How does the ending frame death in the context of the story's Christian allegory?
Death is presented as a reward, not a punishment. The Giant is invited to Paradise by the Christ-child, and he is found covered in white blossoms -- suggesting grace and peace.
What role do children play as a symbolic force throughout the story?
Children represent innocence and selfless joy. Their presence brings spring and life; their absence brings barrenness and cold.
How does Wilde use personification in the portrayal of the seasons and weather?
Snow, Frost, North Wind, and Hail are characters who move in and take up residence. Autumn deliberately withholds fruit, saying the Giant is "too selfish." Even a flower sees the sign and retreats in sorrow.
What does the tree bending its branches down toward the little boy represent?
It mirrors the Giant's own arc -- nature tries to help the child just as the Giant will. The tree's effort and the boy's inability set up the Giant's crucial act of compassion.
How does Wilde use seasonal change as a narrative device rather than just setting?
Seasons respond directly to moral choices. Winter is not weather but a consequence of selfishness; spring returns the instant children are welcomed back.
What is the effect of the story's circular structure?
It opens and closes with children in the garden, framing the Giant's journey from obstacle to guardian. The final image -- his body under blossoms -- echoes the original paradise the children enjoyed.
What does the word "casement" mean in the context of "a delicious perfume came to him through the open casement"?
A casement is a window hinged on its side that opens outward. Here it emphasizes the Giant's sensory re-awakening to the world outside.
What is a "linnet" -- the bird whose song wakes the Giant?
A small European songbird known for its melodious call. Wilde chooses it over a generic "bird" to ground the fairy tale in a specific, real-world detail.
What does "gruff" convey about the Giant's voice when he first confronts the children?
It means rough, harsh, and low-pitched -- suggesting intimidation and hostility rather than genuine authority.
What is the significance of the child saying, "Nay! but these are the wounds of Love"?
It reframes suffering as an expression of love rather than violence. The nail wounds are stigmata -- marks of Christ's sacrifice -- recasting the story's climax as a moment of divine revelation.
What does the child mean when he says, "You let me play once in your garden, to-day you shall come with me to my garden, which is Paradise"?
The Giant's single act of kindness years ago is being repaid with eternal reward. The child equates the garden with Paradise, linking the Giant's generosity to his salvation.
What does the Giant's exclamation "How selfish I have been!" mark in the story's structure?
It is the turning point -- the moment of self-awareness that triggers his transformation from antagonist to protector, leading him to lift the boy and tear down the wall.