E.M. Forster

 A Room With a View
Maurice
A Passage to India

 
 


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 A Room With a View
E.M. Forster
Vintage Books: 1989
Publisher's Synopsis
This Edwardian social comedy explores love and prim propriety among an eccentric cast of characters assembled in an Italian pensione and in a corner of Surrey, England. A charming young English woman, Lucy Honeychurch, faints into the arms of a fellow Britisher when she witnesses a murder in a Florentine piazza. Attracted to this man, George Emerson--who is entirely unsuitable and whose father just may be a Socialist--Lucy is soon at war with the snobbery of her class and her own conflicting desires. Back in England she is courted by a more acceptable, if stifling, suitor, and soon realizes she must make a startling decision that will decide the course of her future: she is forced to choose between convention and passion. 

The enduring delight of this tale of intrigue is rooted in Forster's colorful characters, including outrageous spinsters, pompous clergymen and outspoken patriots. Written in 1908, A Room With A View is one of E.M. Forster's earliest and most celebrated works.
 
 

My Notes
E.M. Forster is best known for his examinations of the class structure in Victorian and Edwardian England.  A Room  With a View is a superior example of this style.  Since Forster uses vibrant characters to explain and expand his notions of society, I will address the two major figures in A Room With a View.

 Lucy Honeychurch, one of the protagonists of the story, is a character that appears (in one name or another) throughout the Forster novels.  She represents the change that is sweeping through England at the turn of the century.  As Victorians transform into Edwardians, social standing and propriety become less important and personal fulfillment become paramount.  Lucy personifies this idea.  When she meets young George in Florence, she is governed, literally, by her family’s Victorian principals.  As she learns more about George, she begins to shed these principals and is overtaken by passion and love – a theme that is prevalent in Forester’s work.  The plot centers around her choice of which life to lead.  George is the path to free-spiritness, while Cecil, her fiancé is the path to snobbish unhappiness.  Note her attitudes toward Freddy, her younger brother, through the first half of the book.  She tells her staunch aunt that Freddy is aimless and immature.  By the end of the book, she is praising Freddy’s free spirit.

George Emerson, the other protagonist, is a middle-class, slightly off-beat man who travels about Europe with his free-thinking father.  Ironically, George shares the same last name as the famous Transcendentalist, and I do not believe this is by accident.  In the beginning of the novel, George frequently alludes to the question “Why?” but does not elaborate on the meaning or answer he is seeking.  Only later, once he has fallen for Lucy, does this idea develop.  George represents the new England and the new society, where free-thinking and happiness is the goal of everyone.  The character is not as dynamic as Lucy or the other Honeychurches;  nevertheless, George does find the answer to this question and it changes, we presume, his life after the end of the novel.

Among, the other characters, four stand out as major influences in the actions of the protagonists.  Cecil is Lucy’s fiancé, but in reality has no feeling for Lucy except his desire to be in a ‘proper’ marriage.  Lucy confronts Cecil after realizing her feelings about George, and it is this point that is pivotal in her character’s development.  As an interesting point, it should be noted that when Lucy tells Cecil the marriage is off, Cecil moves on with relative ease, but we know he will not change his life despite Lucy’s scathing indictment of his class prejudices.  Perhaps, Forster is saying that the old England will go on, regardless of what some ‘radicals’ do.  As it happens, this seems to have been the case in modern English society.  George’s father is also an important figure.  He is the fuel behind the connections being made throughout the novel.  At each juncture of the plot, it is his actions and wisdom that allows the story to progress. Lucy’s aunt, Charlotte, represents the upper class’ conscience.  It is pivotal to the  story that Charlotte’s role shifts from protecting Lucy to accepting Lucy.  Finally, the character that represents the innocents of the new generation in England is Lucy’s younger brother, Freddy.  Freddy is important to the plot because he demonstrates to everyone involved how ridiculous the class segregation really is.  This is personified in the scene where Freddy, George, and Mr Beeb (the local Anglican priest) are swimming naked in a nearby pond.

Overall, A Room With a View is a classic of English literature, and I know of now other author that has consistently delivered material on this subject as elegantly as has Forster.  I highly recommend this book, as well as Forster’s other novels, Passage to India, Maurice, Where Angels Fear to Tread, The Longest Journey, and Howards End.

Some additional notes:  I usually do not recommend films on this site, but in some cases, the films are so well made, that they should be viewed by readers of the respective books.  This is not to say that the film is a substitute for the book.  In some cases (such as Lost Language of Cranes) the film is so different from the book, that it is actually a completely separate work.  However, with the Forster novels, the films are very close to the author’s original work, and are nearly word for word.  Most of the films based on Forster’s work were created by Merchant & Ivory, and are beautiful representations of his novels.  I would highly recommend fans of the various books, view the films. 

Also, there is some debate regarding the use of ‘protagonists’ when describing the characters of a story.  Some scholars claim that the word ‘protagonist’ means the most central character of a book, and by definition, therefore can only be singular.  The Oxford English Dictionary has, in my mind, settled this matter by including in the definition, quotations using the plural form of the word.  Clearly, a novel can have more than one central character, in which case one may be more central to another, but collectively, the group is far more central than the rest.  In the case of A Room With a View, neither Lucy or George could be eclipsed by the other since the two characters are so tightly bound by the plot that diminishing either would ruin the story and underlying meaning of the work.
 
 

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 Maurice
E.M. Forster
W.W. Norton & Company: 1993
My Notes
Maurice is truly one of my favorite books.  Written between 1913 and 1914, the novel was not published until 1971, the year of E.M. Forster’s death.  Like most of Forster’s work, Maurice centers around the turn of the century change in English attitudes regarding class and society.  This work, however, adds homosexuality into the mix.  Forster was, of course gay, and wanted to express his feelings on this matter in his work.  Most of his work includes subtle references to the ‘unspeakable vice of the Greeks,’ but since it was illegal to be gay, let along practice it, in Victorian and Edwardian England, he did not attempt to publish Maurice.  The manuscript was passed from enlightened Bloomsbury folk throughout the years, being read by Tennessee Williams, Christopher Isherwood, Gore Vidal, Stephen Spender and many others.  Most advised Forster not to publish.  Fortunately, he did, and now we have one of the earliest works of gay fiction from the modern era.

Maurice is an upper-middle class English student at Cambridge.  Not quite fitting in the way he would like, he attempts to make friends and meets a young, handsome member of the aristocracy, also studying at university.  As he learns more about young Clive, Maurice begins to fall in love and Clive seems to be reciprocating the feelings.  Fairly soon, Clive and Maurice are in a passionate, but platonic relationship.

Just when Forster begins hinting that the passion will be consummated, a mutual friend of the two lovers is caught soliciting sex from a young man in London.  The friend, a Lord, is jailed and sentenced to hard labour.  Clive, being a member of the elite aristocracy, does not want to suffer the same fate – not to mention loosing his title, land and money in the process.  He breaks-off his relationship with Maurice, but is careful not to alienate his old friend (perhaps for fear of blackmail.)  As a result, Clive enters into a convenient marriage with a wealthy young woman, and attempts to keep Maurice at a safe distance.

In the meantime, Maurice tries, unsuccessfully, to cure himself of his ‘illness’ by various means, including hypnotherapy.  It is no use.  While staying with Clive and his wife at the country estate, Maurice has a brief, but very passionate affair with the estate’s groundkeeper, Alec Scudder.  Scudder is something of a troublemaker in his own right, but is truly in love with Maurice.  After Maurice attempts to distance himself from the lowly groundskeeper, Alec panics and seeks-out Maurice in London.  This so frightens Maurice, that the relationship stalls, and Alec decides to move to Argentina where riches are promised for anyone willing to make the trip.

Of course, the two romantically reunite before the ship sails, and the reader can infer the future of the couple for themselves.  Reportedly, Forster changed the ending a number of times at the suggestions of friends and colleagues.  One such rumor suggest that Maurice and Alec retire to a remote part of northern England where they live out their days.  I find this difficult to believe since the book is so brutally realistic about the way people react toward each other in relationships.  I find the current ending to be quite suitable.  We know the two have the possibility of a lasting relationship, but more importantly, we know each of the characters has accepted his lot in life, and from there, even if the relationship does not work, each will be able to find happiness.

Some additional notes:  I usually do not recommend films on this site, but in some cases, the films are so well made, that they should be viewed by readers of the respective books.  This is not to say that the film is a substitute for the book.  In some cases (such as Lost Language of Cranes) the film is so different from the book, that it is actually a completely separate work.  However, with the Forster novels, the films are very close to the author’s original work, and are nearly word for word.  Most of the films based on Forster’s work were created by Merchant & Ivory, and are beautiful representations of his novels.  I would highly recommend fans of the various books, view the films.  I would also highly recommend While England Sleeps by David Leavitt.  While the plot and writting style is very different from Maurice, Leavitt does a fine job with the similar subject matter.
 
 

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A Synopsis
My Notes
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 A Passage to India
Gore Vidal
Ballantine Books: 1986
A Synopsis
What really happened in the Marabar caves? This is the mystery at the heart of E.M. Forster's 1924 novel, A Passage to India, the puzzle that sets in motion events highlighting an even larger question: Can an Englishman and an Indian be friends? 
 
"It is impossible here," an Indian character tells his friend, Dr. Aziz, early in the novel. 

"They come out intending to be gentlemen, and are told it will not do.... Why, I remember when Turton came out first. It was in another part of the Province. You fellows will not believe me, but I have driven with Turton in his carriage--Turton! Oh yes, we were once quite intimate. He has shown me his stamp collection. 

"He would expect you to steal it now. Turton! But red-nosed boy will be far worse than Turton! 

"I do not think so. They all become exactly the same, not worse, not better. I give any Englishman two years, be he Turton or Burton. It is only the difference of a letter. And I give any Englishwoman six months. All are exactly alike." 


Written while England was still firmly in control of India, Forster's novel follows the fortunes of three English newcomers to India--Miss Adela Quested, Mrs. Moore, and Cyril Fielding--and the Indian, Dr. Aziz, with whom they cross destinies. The idea of true friendship between the races was a radical one in Forster's time, and he makes it abundantly clear that it was not one that either side welcomed. If Aziz's friend, Hamidullah, believed it impossible, the British representatives of the Raj were equally discouraging. 
 

"Why, the kindest thing one can do to a native is to let him die," said Mrs. Callendar.
"How if he went to heaven?" asked Mrs. Moore, with a gentle but crooked smile.
"He can go where he likes as long as he doesn't come near me. They give me the creeps." 


Despite their countrymen's disapproval, Miss Quested, Mrs. Moore, and Mr. Fielding are all eager to meet Indians, and in Dr. Aziz they find a perfect companion: educated, westernized, and open-minded. Slowly, the friendships ripen, especially between Aziz and Fielding. Having created the possibility of esteem based on trust and mutual affection, Forster then subjects it to the crucible of racial hatred: during a visit to the famed Marabar caves, Miss Quested accuses Dr. Aziz of sexually assaulting her, then later recants during the frenzied trial that follows. Under such circumstances, affection proves to be a very fragile commodity indeed. 

Arguably Forster's greatest novel, A Passage to India limns a troubling portrait of colonialism at its worst, and is remarkable for the complexity of its characters. Here the personal becomes the political and in the breach between Aziz and his English "friends," Forster foreshadows the eventual end of the Raj.

-- Excerpt from the Introduction by P. N. Furbank
 
 

My Notes
Forster spent a great deal of time in India, and while this is considered one of his finer works, it was not mine.  Perhaps because I found the culture and characters less interesting than that from his other works.  Clearly it is a great work and worthy of praise, and I recommend everyone to read it. 

One thing that I did find fascinating about he books, was Forster’s ability to foresee the decline of the British influence in the region.  Published in 1924 (some 24 years before India’s independence) the book displays the stress that was present, even then, between the English and the indigenous population.   Another example of Forster’s remarkable ability to accurately perceive the divides between classes.  Ironically, India has one of the most rigid class structures in the world, and Forster has concentrated his efforts on the outside divisions in that society.

Some additional notes:  I usually do not recommend films on this site, but in some cases, the films are so well made, that they should be viewed by readers of the respective books.  This is not to say that the film is a substitute for the book.  In some cases (such as Lost Language of Cranes) the film is so different from the book, that it is actually a completely separate work.  However, with the Forster novels, the films are very close to the author’s original work, and are nearly word for word.  Most of the films based on Forster’s work were created by Merchant & Ivory, and are beautiful representations of his novels.  I would highly recommend fans of the various books, view the films.
 
 

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