# The Model Millionaire explained — Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime and Other Stories

> Chapter companion for Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime and Other Stories by Oscar Wilde.

## What happens

Hughie Erskine, a charming but impoverished young man, visits his friend Alan Trevor's studio and, out of pity, gives a sovereign to an old beggar model. He later learns that the beggar is actually Baron Hausberg, a wealthy millionaire. Impressed by Hughie's generosity, the Baron later sends him a wedding gift of £10,000, enabling Hughie to marry his beloved Laura Merton.

## Themes in this chapter

### Social Class and Wealth

The story contrasts poverty and wealth, highlighting how Hughie's lack of money prevents his marriage, while the Baron's wealth enables a happy ending.

### Appearance vs. Reality

The beggar model appears poor but is actually a millionaire; Hughie's act of charity is based on a mistaken perception.

### Irony and Absurdity

The irony that a millionaire poses as a beggar and is rewarded by a poor man's charity, leading to a wedding gift that solves Hughie's problems.

## Character check-ins

### Hughie Erskine

The protagonist, a handsome but poor young man who gives a sovereign to a beggar model out of pity.

### Alan Trevor

A painter and Hughie's friend, who reveals that the beggar model is actually the wealthy Baron Hausberg.

### Baron Hausberg

A millionaire who poses as a beggar for a painting and later rewards Hughie's kindness with a £10,000 cheque.

### Laura Merton

Hughie's beloved, the daughter of a retired Colonel; she scolds Hughie for his extravagance but loves him.

### Mr. Merton

Laura's father, a retired Colonel who insists Hughie must have £10,000 before marrying Laura.

## Key lines

> Unless one is wealthy there is no use in being a charming fellow. Romance is the privilege of the rich, not the profession of the unemployed.

Being charming is pointless without wealth; love is a luxury only the rich can afford.

_Opening lines establishing the story's theme of wealth and romance._

> What you call rags I call romance. What seems poverty to you is picturesqueness to me.

You see rags as poverty, but I see them as artistic beauty.

_Alan Trevor explains the artist's perspective on the beggar's appearance._

> Millionaire models are rare enough; but, by Jove, model millionaires are rarer still!

Rich people who pose as models are uncommon, but a millionaire who is a role model is even rarer.

_Closing line by Alan Trevor, praising Baron Hausberg's generosity._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/lord_arthur_savile_s_crime_and_other_stories_se/chapters/the-model-millionaire
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/lord_arthur_savile_s_crime_and_other_stories_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/lord_arthur_savile_s_crime_and_other_stories_se/chapters