W. S. Maugham creates the darkest of characters. His antagonists exhibit unflinching cruelty and cold apathy towards human suffering that can send shivers with repulsion from readers. He renders fictional frames to instantiate the caution about our human connections - while humans are capable of sharing and amplifying happiness, they are also the source for perpetrating misery and atrocities on the most unfortunate ones. Oliver Haddo is a perfectly example of such villiany. He is <i>the</i> magician here by the way. He enters the dynamics of a young couple in love and by the magnitude of his egomania festers their relationship. Coupled with this antagonist's obsession to destroy is an exploration of human thirst for knowledge. This very knowledge which lets him control and dominate nature as its master and dictator. Oliver Haddo's indulgence in dark arts and occult as a supernatural element of the story is an example of this allure of the unknown. It's not just innocence curiosity. There is a very conscious and premeditated desire to shed light on the unknown and chain it to the knower's will. His use of "magic" and possession of unfathomable "darkness" lets him command others by fear. At the same time, others also share this allure of the knowledge whose power this antagonist clearly abuses. His enigma attracts people with both fear and adoration. This conflicting double-edge power of knowledge and its magnetic attraction polarizing everyone around him points to some shared darkness in human character. Oliver Haddo himself spells it out and symbolizes as the universal desire to wield power over others, to dominate even nature if needed. And this power will most likely entice characters and drive them to ruin like it does in the story. The natural role of humans as knowledge bearer is contrasted with their corruptibility to abuse knowledge on their own fellow beings. Maugham paints this grim portrait of human psyche and its vulnerability in gothic colors. 

 L'idillio amoroso del dottore Arthur Burdon viene improvvisamente scombussolato dall'incontro con l'eccentrico mago Oliver Haddo, il quale, per vendicarsi di un torto subito, decide di rapirgli la futura moglie Margaret scagliando un presunto incantesimo.
Decisamente una lettura ideale per il periodo di Halloween (non capisco perché non venga pubblicizzato di più in quei giorni); il fulcro del racconto è il conflitto fra la scienza e l'esoterismo, e soprattutto fra la razionalità e l'inspiegabile: ci son cose che rifiutiamo di accettare perché non ne non abbiamo il controllo. La narrazione è travolgente e tiene col fiato sospeso fino alla fine. Peccato per il finale un po' scontato e per la trama piuttosto semplice e lineare.