"The Mother" short story by William somerset Maugham.

                                       The Mother 


William Somerset Maugham was born in 1874 and died in 1965
is one of the best known writers of the present day. He was not only a novelist, but also one of the most successful dramatists and short-story writer. The short-story “Louise” was published in 1936. This story is about the woman who used to get everything what she wants using her “weak heart”. The gist of the problem raised by the author in this story is relationship between people. 

“Maugham's homosexuality was well known but excited little comment in the tolerant literary world of London.” So wrote Drew Middleton, veteran New York Times writer, in a prominent sidebar to the paper's obituary of Maugham.

"The Mother" tells the story of a woman in Spain, who moved in Barcelona in a new neighborhood. Quickly, a rumor about her became famous, her Neighbors told that she was in jail because she is the murderer of her ex-boyfriend and they call her "La Cachirra" (I don't now what its mean). The narrator describe her like a monster: She is very ugly, her hair are old and dirty, she is very frightening etc.. All her neighbors avoid her.
Later her Neighbors discovered that she had a son "Antonio", and he came to visit her mother every Saturday in her new neighborhood. Neighbors are shocking because her son didn't look alike his mother "La Cachirra", because he is very handsome and beautiful: he is the total opposite of his mother. Then, he met "Pilar" and her daughter "Rosalia". They are the principal enemies of La Cachirra. He falls on the charm of this one and an attraction settles down between both.

 This story is a drama, and we notice that the destiny of La Cachirra always ends up in prison, because she tried to save the life of his son to bad people . She sacrificed her new life, in this district in Barcelona, to take away Antonio from Rosalia. She tried to make justice herself but her way wasn't good. Antonio was the lonely things she had, and now after he betrayed her, she felt alone, hurt and returned to criminality because she had not any reasons to stay in the district and everybody hate her.