THE HERO (1901) by W. Somerset Maugham is a complex psychological exploration of the stifling of deepest personal urges and the resulting disillusionment. James Parsons returns home after military service in South Africa and finds his worldview changed. His family's affections are oppressive, his betrothed, Mary, now seems repulsive, and life has become a hollow burden. A powerful, bittersweet, and ironic work by a true master of the human psyche.