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This thesis focuses on the conflicts and the
compromises when people belonging to the English middle class overcome
prejudices against different cultures and conventions of sexuality and
gender.
In
Forster’s six novels, cultural clashes, rebellions from conventions cause
confusions, struggles and finally escalate to conflicts. These strong
emotions and reactions, which are felt in various places of different
countries or in the town and the suburbs, eventually inspire the characters
to develop mentally and physically, and to make sacrifices or compromises for
their future lives. Therefore, this thesis will discuss how Forster’s
characters achieve their development while experiencing psychological conflicts
and achieving practical compromises.
Where Angels Fear to Tread offers two locations – Monteriano in Italy
and Sawston in England – for the characters to
form their realizations and developments. Despite the two settings, the
struggles mainly happen to the English characters while they are in Italy or when
they are motivated by Italian unconventionality. Philip Herriton
overcomes his prejudice of English upper middle class to embrace Gino as his
Italian friend. Miss Abbott realizes her sexuality through her chaperoning
Lilia in Italy, but she
chooses to live a same life in England while suppressing her
desire for Gino and being willing to let traditions restrain her. Although
the results of their developments are different, their success in recognizing
English conventions cannot be denied. Only one is determined to live a new
life in London, but the other will compromise and live on in the same place
in order to nourish the next generation so that her experience will not be in
vain.
The Longest Journey introduces three places–Cambridge, Sawston and Wiltshire–for Rickie Elliot to achieve his
psychological development in the sense of “real life.” The first location
serves as the environment to grow up idealistically; the second gives him the
opportunity to work as a teacher but not to realize his dream of being a
writer; and the third appears to be the predestined place to realize his
impracticality and to fulfil his dream through his
death for his brother. After Rickie experiences the struggles between the
spiritual and the realistic and sees the insincerity of his marriage, he is
finally able to rebel from his origin of being one of the Elliots,
of the English middle class, and to live a real life out of nature and love
in the physical body of his half-brother, Stephen.
A Room with a View draws a circle starting from Italy, to England and
eventually ending back in Italy. Lucy Honeychurch
and George Emerson are from different social statuses of the English middle
class. They get to know each other in Italy, and each is attracted to
the other while being influenced by Italian passion. However, their
realizations of sexuality become ripe only after Lucy triumphs over her
middle class hypocrisy. When she dares to face her nature, it is time for her
to realize the development of admitting love. Accordingly, love conquers the
prejudices against class and sexuality, and makes Lucy’s life whole.
Howards End presents three families – the Schlegels,
the Wilcoxes and the Basts.
They separately belong to the intellectual and the materialistic English
upper middle class, and the lower middle class. However different they are,
they are connected together and at the end only the connection of the three
families completes the harmonious picture in Howards End. Moreover, the novel
shows the power of women to keep their home peaceful and intellectual.
Maurice tells of the struggles of a homosexual
against his self-consciousness and social judgments of English middle class.
Maurice Hall goes through being approached by a homosexual, accepting the
existence of his own homosexuality and realizing his love for a gamekeeper,
Alec Scudder. Although their beliefs in each other and in their love are
against the normal social standards, Maurice and Alec, decide to live together
by compromising on leaving their communities for their love and peace.
A
Passage to India furnishes the stage of India
for discussing the possibility of an individual relationship between an
English man, Mr. Fielding, and an Indian, Doctor Aziz, under the colonial Great Britain.
There are clashes and alienations which occur not only between the British
and Indians but also among British and even among Indians. However, social
prejudice is not easy to surmount, and their beliefs in friendship transcending
cultures cannot be neglected because it is what is in their nature.
Forster
presents hope, love and connection in human beings which are found through
his characters’ overcoming prejudices. He cares for the truth, believes in
tolerance, pities the oppressed and is able to drive his ideas home because
he believes in freedom of speech.
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