A study of E.M.Forster : on the beauty of novel in Howards End and A passage to India
著者(英) Keiichi Okano
journal or
publication title
Core
number 1
page range 45‑82
year 1972‑06‑20
URL http://doi.org/10.14988/pa.2017.0000016357
A STUDY OF E . M. FORSTER
一 一 一Onthe Beauty of Novel in
Howards End and A Passage to lndi・G一 ー
K e i i c h i OKANO
INTRODUCTION …...・H ・・…・・…・・…・・・・・・・・…・・・…...…・・・・ …...000 CHAPTER 1 THE TECHNIQUE OF HIS NOVELS ..…・…・・・000 CHAPTER II THE THEMATIC P ATTERN .・…・…...….000 CHAPTER III THE TECHNICAL P ATTERN …・・・…・・・……...000 CONCLUSION …...…・…・…日・……...・・H ・・…・・・…・・・・・・・・・・・・・・・…000 LIST OF BOOKS REFERRED
INTRODUCTION
This study is an attempt to present the aesthetic aspects of E. M. Forster's novels. The academic realization that the novel c丘nbe aesthetic became critically acceptable with the public乱tion of the three noted books, Percy Lubbock's The Craft of Fiction (1921), E. M. Forster's As戸ctsof the Novel (1927), and Edwin MuirラsThe Structure of the Novel (1928). It may be impossible to define the rules of the novel, but Forster attempts to. He uses pattern and rhythm" for the beauty of the form and the internal order of the nove
. 1
According to his explanation, pattern is an aesthetic aspect of the novel coming mainly from the plot. Beauty is sometimes the shape of the book,
the book as a whole,
and the unity,
but some‑times it is no t. In that case he calls it rhythm. He thinks highly
46 A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER
of rhythm and says that there are two kinds of rhythm
,
easy and di伍cult. The easy rhythm is defined as repetition plus variation. 1t is like the diddidy dum' in Beethoven's Fifth Symlうんony. The dif‑ ficult one is the rhythm of The Fifth Symρ
hony as a whole. Some‑times a little phrase in a book means everything to readers
,
and sometimes it means nothing and is forgotten. This is the function of rhythm in fiction. Music does offer in its final expression a type of beauty which fiction might achieve in its own way. It is an expan司 sion, an important part of rhythm.1n his essay he says that he believes in art for art's sake
,
which means that he respects and believes in internal order of a work of art.A work of art is a self‑contained entity with a life of its own imposed on it by its creator. 1t has internal order. It may have external form. That is how we recognize it. . . .. Order
,
1 suggest,
is something evolved from within,
not something im幽posed from without; it is an internal stability
,
a vital harmony. . .1Forster
,
a sensible author,
pays close attention to the description of the sentences,
to the unity of a work as a whole,
and to the produc‑ tion of atmosphere suitable for the theme of a book. He thinks highly of the form and unity of a work with all the parts of a work under his careful control. His view on art can be seen in the fol 1
ow‑mg sentences:
It Ca work of art] is unique not because it is clever or noble or beautiful or enligtened or original or sincere or idealistic or useful or educational‑it may embody any of those qualitiesー
1. E. M. Forster, Two Chee1's /01' Democracy (A Harvest Book, Harcourt, Brace vVorld, Inc., New York, 1951), p. 89.
A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER 47 but because it is only material object in the universe which may possess internal harmony. . .. The work of art stands up by itself
,
and nothing else does.21n such an attitude
,
he naturally does not persist in realism. So,
un‑natural things such as a casual coincidence or a sudden death
,
and a happy ending which might be criticized for its easiness might well be adopted in his works so long as they don't break the unity of a work as a whole. It is rhythm that he utilizes to keep the unity of a work as a whole. 1t is used so unconcernedly that sensibility is required on the part of readers also. By reading carefully,
read巴rs will be able to get a 'secret understanding' of th巴author.AsもiVilfredStone says
,
Forster's intention is to elevate the novel to the level of art. W e are curious to know how he attempted to make the novel an art. 1n order to get a glimpse of his attempt,
we must rely upon his五venovels besides the short stories and the es‑ says. 1n this study we treat his most successful novel,
A Passage to lndia,
and the second most successful one,
Howards End.His novels have a common dogmatic theme. Among the characters in his novels there are two kinds of people
,
those who are conven‑tional and dull
,
and those who are imaginative,
thoughtful ancl a妊ectionate. He describes how these antithetic characters lead their daily life and encounter each other,
and how the central五gures get to know the true life freeing themselves from the false life. This is the common theme of his novels. He thinks highly of per‑ sonal relationshipsラandthrough their interaction a symbolic moment may come旦tany time. The moment represents an eternal principle,
2. Ibid., p. 92.
48 A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER
and if one accepts the moment, one will be able to be genuine and real and able to understand others. One's mental growth or mutual understanding depends upon whether one accepts it or not.
This is common to all his novels, forming a thematic patt己rn. The thematic pattern consists of several elements such as a setting, char‑ acters
,
a symbolic moment,
birth and death,
bookishness,
and so on. Eachof these elements contributes to the theme not旦sa mere pat‑ tern but also as a rhythmic and expanding element. P品tternand rhythm form a technical pattern, which is used in common in all his novels.From the standpoint of these two patterns
,
the thematic pattern and the technical pattern,
we would like to examine his novels. In Chapter II we'll examine how the thematic pattern is applied to his novels and enriches the theme. In Chapter III we'll examine how the technical pattern is applied and made the best. use of,
and五nal 1
y how these two patt巴rnsare practically unit巴d and unified together in the novels.CHAPTER 1
THE TECHNIQUE O F HIS NOVELS
Let us ask Forster what is the identity of the fine artistic nove
l .
He answers the question by discussing the s巴venaspects of the novel‑story
,
people,
plot,
fantasy,
prophecy,
pattern,
and rhythm‑in As・pects of the Novel. He says that in most lit巴raryworks there are two elements: human individuals
,
and the element vagu巴ly called art."3 It follows that how a man is describ巴d is on巴 of the most 3. E. M. Forster,
Aspects of the Novel (Edward Arnold,
London,
1927),
p. 26.A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER 49 important elements of the novel. Characters in books cannot be the same with people in real life. W e can know the former perfectly, but not the latter
,
and so we五ndhere a compensation for the dim司 ness in real life. A novelラtherefore,
suggests a more understandable and m乱n丘geablehuman individual and gives us the illusion of insight and of .omnipotence. He points out two kinds of cha1'acter‑' a flat ch丘ract白 anda round characte1'.叫 Ofthese two,
he gives the latt号r a higher evalu且tion,for he says, W e must admit that flat people ar色 notin themselves as big achievments as round ones, and that they are best when th色y are comic.内 This division of char旦cters may b色 usefulin reading a novel. But is it applicable to his novelョ? Lionell Trilling answe1's the qu巴stionas fol1ows:The distinction is neither original nor adequ証te and does not properly d巴scribeFo1'ste1"s own best c1'e旦tions. Ansell
,
one of Fo1'ste1"s most successful cha1'act邑rs is neithe1' flat nor 1'ound, but f1'agrant.6It is t1'ue that all the cha1'acte1's in the novels a1'巴 notflat 01' round
,
but we may apply the distinction to the cha1'acte1's of his novels,
fo1'Forste1' thinks fundamentally of the distinction in c1'回tingch註r証cters. It is necessa1'y for comp1'ehending his novels to know what he thinks is an ideal m呂n. According to his essay,7 the people h号 likes
4. Ibid., p. 65. He points out the two advantages of flat characters. One of them is that they can be easily recognized whenever they appear, and the other is that they are easily remembered by the reader aft巴rwards. And he says that the test of a round character is whether it is capable of surprising in a convincing way, and that it has the incalculability of lif巴, aboutit. 5. Ibid., p. 70.
6. Lionell Trilling, E. 1"1. Forster (The Hog旦rthPr巴ss,London, 1967), p. 74. 7. Two Cheers for Democracy, pp. 69‑73
50 A STUDY OF E.乱1.FORSTER
most are those who are sensitive
,
considerate,
plucky,
ascetic,
crea‑ tive,
and imaginative. His ideal man is,
we think,
what he himself is. The careful observation of the ideal man appearing in his novels shows that his sharp sensitiv巴nessand his character are v巴ryin企uen‑ tial in his own attitude of writing. In Abinger Harvest,
he says,
The characters of Tolstoy live continuously.叫 In another essay
,
he asserts,
There se巴m to be two sorts of life in五ction,
life on thepage
,
and life eternal."9 Therefore we can consider that it is his ideal to create the characters that live continuously,
in other words,
thosεwho have not only life on the page,
but also eternal life.The other important element of the novel is the technique of the novel. W e are curious to know how the seven aspects of the novel work for the novel to b色 artistic. He attempts to give the novel aesthetic aspects
,
creating beauty in the novel itself. Then from where do邑she think beauty come? He thinks that it sometimes comes from pattern.Pattern is an aesthetic aspect of the novel.・・Itsprings main‑
ly from the plot
,
accompanies it like a light in the clouds,
and remains visible after it has departed. Beauty is sometimes the shape of the book,
the book as a whol巴フ the unity.lOPattern and rhythm are two of Forster's aspects which e妊ectively construct his novels. He thinks that pattern is the less important of the two. Pattern is the term borrowed from painting and rhythm from music. By pattern
,
Forster means the shape th且tthe plot takes,
8. E. M. Forster
,
Abinger Harvest (Edward Arnold,
London,
1953),
p. 132. 9. Two Cheers f07" Democracy, p. 25010. Asρects
0 1
the Novel, p. 140.A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER 51 such as the hourglass shape. The examples of the shape of pattern he gives are the grand chain
,
the converging lines of the cathedral or diverging lin巴sof the the Catherine wheel,
or the bed of Pro‑ crustes. Patterns,
like plots,
are sometimes beautiful,
but the b巴auty may sometimes demand a high price. About the disadvantage of a rigid pattern,
he writes as follows:It 乱[rigidpattern] shuts the doors on life and leaves the nove‑ list doing exercise
,
generally in the drawing‑room. Beauty has arrived,
but in too tyrannous a guise. . . . the sensation from a pattern is not intens巴enoughto justify the sacri五cesthat made it,
and their v巴rdictis 'beautifully done,
but not worth doing.'l11n order to understand pattern better
,
we must pay att巴ntion to a plot,
for it constructs pattern together with the other elements of the nove. 1
A plot is且 10gical,
intellectual aspect. 1t requires mystery,
but the mystery is solved later on. A plot and a patt己rnare pictorial and likely to give a frame to a nov巴1,
and so he thinks highly of rhythm. 1t is partly because of his fondness for music,
and partly be司 cause of the following factor.Music
,
though it do巴snot employ human beings,
though. it is governed by intricate laws,
nevertheless does 0任巴rin i ts nna1 expression a type of beauty which fiction might achieve in its own way. Expansion. That is the idea th巴novelistmust cling to. Not completion. Not rounding off but opening out.12 Rhythm is musical and so does not spoil voluntariness of a man in the novel unlike a rigid pattern,
but gives to a novel a unity from within it and at the same time a poetic element,
and enab1es a man 11. Ibid., p. 150.12. lbid., p. 155.
52 A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER
and a plot to expand
,
open out. He thinks of rhythm as the tech圃nica1 means to create a more profound novel, a prophetic novel. By creating a prophetic nov巴1,he attempts to elevate the novel to the level of art.
Prophecy, according to Forster's definition, is an accent in the novelist's voice.川3 1t has nothing to do with forete
l 1 i
ng the future or呂nyparticular religious faith.His Cthe novelist's] theme is the universe
,
or som巴thing uni‑ versal but he is not necessarily going to 'say' anything ahout the universe; he proposes to sing,
and the strangeness of song arising in the ha11s of fiction is bound to give Us a shock.14 Prophecy," says Wilfred Stone,is the breakthrough, the seeing of the visible world as the living garment of God,
the miracle of natu圃ra1 supernaturalism.円15 Propheticfiction
, "
Forster continues to say,
seems to have definite characteristics. 1t reaches back. . •. It is spasmodically realistic. And it gives us the sensation of a song or of sound.円16 He tells of the difference between prophecy and fantasy. Prophetic五ctionis unlike fantacy becaus己 itsface is toward unity, whereas fantasy glances about. Its confusion is incidental, whereas fantasy's is fundamenta1 .
"17 Prophecy gives the characters and situa‑ tions of the novel what is more than themselves and expanding in・finity. 1t is like a prophecy giv巴n by a prophet
,
whose speech always 13. Ibid., p. 116.14. Ibid., p. 116.
15. Wilfred Stone, The C.αve and the Mountain (Stanford University Press, Stanford, California, 1966), p. 22.
16. Aspects of the NoveZ, p. 126. 17. Ibid., p. 126.
A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER 53 implies something more than wh旦the says. A prophetic novel has its own world unlike the common world
,
where characters act aiming at something,
or striving their wish to be realized. W e can safely say that Forster's final intention is to cre旦tea prophetic novel. Then how does he attempt to create it? It is rhythm that he thinks of as the technical means to create a novel. There are two sorts of rhythm: the easy and the di伍cultones. The easy one is just like the rhythm diddidy dum' of Beethoven's Fifth Symlうんonyand may be de五ned主srepetition plus variation. For ‑the further explanation we must borrow the term given by E. K. Brown‑' an expanding symbol.' Rhythm can develop and expand when a word, a phrase, and乱n image have their own life,
and sometimes mean everything and sometim巴smean nothing to readers. When rhythm comes from the rel乱tionshipsamong the larger parts of a novel, they are likely to produce the difficult rhythm. It is like the symphony as乱whole achieved mainly by the relation among the three big blocks of sound which the orchestra has been playing. As for its term, we again borrow one from E. K. Brown一an interweaving them.' It comes from the larger parts of a novel
,
that is,
from the gradual transition of such affection,
passion,
love,
revenge,
conflict or something else as are very influ色ntialto a plot. It often has the rising.falling‑ rising rhythm. The link between the two sorts of rhythm is, as E. KBrown says
,
in the implication that beyond what the novelist has been able to set forth there is another area,
only glimpsed,
not surveyed,
a mystery but not a muddle.円1818. E. K. Brown, Rhythm in the Novel (University of Toronto Pre,田 1950入 p.86.
54 A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER
Forster utilizes these two sorts of rhythm, attempting to create a prophetic novel. So we think it useful to apply his thought to his novels
,
and we will attempt to do this in Chapter IIL Jam邑sMc‑Conkey recognizes in nlhere Angels Fear to Tread the elementary stages of a pattern to be more ext巴nsively developed in the later novels.19 羽Te'llstudy his novel from the standpoint of both the the‑ matic and the technical patterns in Chapter II and Chapter III.
CHAPTER
I l
THE THEMA TIC PATTERN 1 The Three Major Patterns
His五venovels20 have the common theme and the three major pat‑ terns which consist of several elements such as characters
,
settings,
moments,
birth and death,
bookishness,
etc. They m乱ke th巴 theme clear,
accurate and substantial. As far as the theme is concerned,
it is concerning the personal relationship,
and the several elements can be divided into three patterns‑characters,
s巴ttings,
and a symbolical or eternal mement,
which form another pattern of characters' move‑ment or change of mind
,
and contribute to the clearness and accuracy of the three patterns with the help of the season. The pattern of the book as a whole is called 'a pattern ',one of the seven aspects of the novel and at the same time they don't end only in forming a pattern,
19. Jam巴sMcConkey, The Novels of E. M. Forster (Cornell Univ. Press, New Y ork, 1957), p. 64.
20. Forter's五venovels are A Room with a Vi目 的TheLongest Journey, ~Vhere
Angels Fear to Tread, Howards End, A Passage to India. For the explana‑ tio立 ofthe patterns we treat all of them so that we can understand the pat司 terns better.
A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER 55 but play a part of rhythm
,
which is characteristic of Forst巴r'snovels. As for the common theme,
Peter Burra points out that Forster's novels are bui 1
t invariably round the clash of opposites.1t CHoward EndJ can be describ巴d as the clash between the business 1ife and the cultured life; between "Wilcoxes" and Schlegels円;between "the outer life of telegrams and anger円 and the life of "personal relations.円 1nA Passage to India
,
• • • the clash seems at first sight to be a purely racial one. . . . the author's interest is in the clash of human beings,
the struggle which any one individual must endur己ifhe is to achieγε 1ll‑timacy with any one other.21
Burra's expl且nationis quite convincing. As in the theme
,
we c泊五ndconcerning each pattern what is common all through th色五ve novels. But here we must keep in mind that it should be avoided to set anything concerned in a pattern
,
for we must not spoil the spontaneity of the novel,
through making the pattern rigid.WAF A Sawston
RV
Windy Corner
LJ Sawston
H E PI
The Marabar Howards End円
しaves B
C Cambridge Germany
D Monteriano Florence Wiltshire
The A' column represents the place of conventional morality and the thought of the residents there
,
whi 1
e the ζD' the place more akin to nature,
and the thought of natural and passionate residents 21. Peter Burra, Introduction of A Passage to lndia in Ev巴ryman's Library(London: J. M. Dent& Sons Ltd, 1961), pp. xx‑xxi.
56 A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER
there. ' B' is what五11sup a gap between two worlds which have di妊erentvaluations or what is formed by the collision of the two worldョ. C'is the place where liberty and inte
1 1 i
gence are valued. 2) CharactersPeople
"Hろ
1F
R V LJ HE PI A Mrs. Eliot Mrs. Wilcox Mrs. Moore B Gino George Stephen Aziz C Emerson Ansell Fielding D Caroline Lucy Rickie Margaret AdelaPhilip Miss Bartlett Helen Quested
Mrs. Harbert
E Herriton
Harriet Cec
i 1
Agnes Wi 1
coxes Heaslop The poeple of A' are those who die suddenly,
but have a great in‑ fluence on living characters after their death. All of them are the women who die but live on in the oth巴rs'mind. B' represents in‑ stinctive,
natural men who have lively life and p旦ssion. The people of' c '
can be grouped as those who love truth and liberty. They may be considered to be 'round characters.' Those of D' are in司 complete,
but not 'flat charact巴rs.' So it is they that can be most greatly influenced by 'a symbo1 i
cal moment.' By acting as they are expected to,
they come to know themselves,
shedding their ideas which come from conventional mora1 i
ty. Fina11y they come to chang in to the character of C 七 Thoseof 'E' are men of under‑developed heart,
what is called a flat character.There are some elements
c 1
0sely connnected with the pattern of ζpeople ' . They are birth,
death,
marriage,
bookishness,
etc. 1 ex蝿plain the element of birth
,
for it has much to do with prophecy.A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER 57 ii Birth
A
B
WAF a baby of Li
1 i
a andGino
R V
a wouldゐe
LJ a baby of Rickie and
Agnes
HE
ch
i 1
d between a baby of a baby of George and Stephen HelenLucy
Pl 22
a would‑be child between Fielding and
Stella The babies in the column 'A' experience the symbolical birth and death. 'B' r・epresents th巴 characterswho were newly born or are expected to be born. So they speak no words in the nove
l .
They are,
however,
expected to play a part of bridging the opposite wor1dラand 80 they may be a prophetic hero. 3) A symbolical or eternal moment
Its term is given in The Longest Journey:
Here and there in life we meet with a person or incident that is symbolica
l .
It's nothing in itself, yet for the moment it stands for some eternal principle. W e accept it,
at whatev巴rcosts,
and we have accepted life. But if we are frightened and reject it, the moment,
so to speak,
passed; the symbol is never o:ffered agam. 23In eoch novel such a moment occurs inevitably. Margaret and Mrs.
Moore accept the moment and eventually they accept life. Margaret gets married successfully and Mrs. Moore is well understood by In司
dians.
By these three patterns
,
another pattern is formed. That is the 22. tVA ,FR V, LJ, HE, PI are the abbreviations of Forster's五vestories. 23. E. M. Forst巴r,The Longestゐrney(Alfred. A. Knopf, New York, 1953),p. 158.
58 A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER
patt己rnof characters' movement and change of mind‑that of the novel as a whole. The author brings to it the effect of the season and contrives the people not to lose their liveliness for the pattern. 1t follows
,
therefore,
that the pattern does not remain only a pattern which forms a frame of the novel,
but sometimes plays旦 part of rhythm. After the novel is read through, the image of the pattern of the novel as a whole is vividly rem色mbered. This is the aesthetic aspect which is given by the pattern. 1t gives r巴adersa sense of flow or a sense of beauty. When it is in harmony with rhythmic devices,
it begins to produce the di伍cult rhythm. W e understand that the beauty comes from a pattern which is not rigid. 1t is just like the rainbow in the sky. The beauty of rainbow comes from the semi‑ circular shape with the seven colours. When the rainbow is in har四
mony with th巴natural background
,
the shape does not disturb the beauty. After the rainbow disappears,
we can b巴 reminded of the beauty. Such is the part of the pattern of the novel as a whole. In the attempt te create a novel,
Forster .ifrst conceives of a pattern,
and next interweaves rhythm into it,
and makes them interwork without fai1 i
ng to give a novel the whole unity, and he makes a novel artistic.2 Howards End
Forster attempts to connect the inner world with the antithetical outer world. The former is the spiritual, liberalistic culture r己pre‑ sented by the Schlegels who think highly of inte
1 1 i
gence and imagi‑ nation. The latter is the city.civilization represented by the successful businessman Mr. Henry Wilcox.The nov
e 1
has the three patterns‑‑settings, characters, symbolical moments. The center of the novel is th巴houseHowards End stand‑A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER 59 ing in the suburbs of London and inhabited by the W
i 1
coxes. How‑ards End is the antithesis of the Marabar Caves in A Passage to lndlムforthe latter keep off people
,
while the former draws people there. 1t has a strange,
mysterious power. The nove1 begins when Margaret reads the letter from her sister Helen visiting Howards End.He1en mistakes the kiss from Pau1
,
the younger son of Mr. Wilcox,
for his true 10ve to her. The kiss is a symbo1 i
cal moment for her. It keeps upsetting her a1most to the end of the nove. l
She hates the Wilcoxes for the shock given by the outer life where personal relations that she thinks supreme are not supreme. In the Wi 1 ‑
coxes' life she can find nothing but 'panic andemptiness.' 1n the actual life the sisters meet with a goblin. At the concert Margaret gets acquainted with Bast,
who comes to take his shabby umbrel 1
a. The sisters who know nothing of the outer world are greatly shocked. Mrs. Wilcox goes shopping with Margaret and then invites her to visit Howards End. The tone of her voice is very vehement. 8he wants Margaret to see her house. This is a symbolica1 moment for Margaret. 8h色discernsthat the moment was solemn when she in‑ vited a friend to share this passion with her."24 80 she accepts the o妊er,
though it is not realized after a1. 1
Mrs. Wilcox dies and leaves her note asking Henry to give How‑
ards End to Margaret. The nove1 tells how her prophecy develops and finally is realized. The Wilcoxes are at a 10ss
,
and afraid that Margaret may take possession of their house. They never know that Mrs. Wi 1
cox has sought a spiritual heir of the house.The novel approaches the climax when Margaret visits the house 24. E. M. Forster, Howards End, (Edward Arnold, London, 1956), p. 90.
60 ' A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER
to let. He proposes to her. She thinks, "Mrs. Wilcox strayed in and out, ever a welcome ghost."25 In spite of the objections, she would like to marrry him and connect the prose with the passion. At How噌 ards End she meets with Miss Avery, who makes a prophetic utter砲 ance: Y ov think that you won't com巴 back to live here
,
Mrs.Wilcox
,
but you will. . .. Y ou are living here and have been for the last t号 泣 minutes, if you ask me."26 Here we cannot but notice Mrs.Wilcox's unseen infiuenc色 Thefirst step of the prophecy mad色by the late Mrs. "¥Vilcox is completed by Margaret's marriage to Henry, and the n =xt step is being carried. Margaret finds at Howards End her sister Helen who has gone away for four years. She is with child. 1t is disclosed that Bast is the father of the would‑be baby.
There in the house the Schlegels find wonderful powers which k
i l 1
what is dreadful and make what is beautiful live. Again Mrs. "¥Vil‑ cox comes to help them. Marg丘rentadmires Mrs. Wilcox as follows: 1 feel that you CHelenJ and 1 and Henry are only fragm号ntsof that woman's mind. She knows everything. She is everything. She is the house, and the tree that leans over it. People have their own deaths as w邑11as their own lives,
and even if there is nothing beyond death, we shall differ in our nothingness. 1 cannot believe th乱t knowledg巴 such as hers will perish with knowledge such as mine. She knew about realities. She knew when people were in love,
though she was not in the roorn.27 These sentences te11 what Mrs. Wilcox is. Margaret has come to know what Mrs. Wi 1
cox is. It means that she is taking a step to・25. Ibid., p. 176. 26. Ibid.吋 p.287. 27. Ibid., p. 331.
A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER 61 ward her. It is through Bast that Mrs. Wilcox takes t11e Iast step to let Margaret inherit Howards End. Bast comes to Howards End to beg the pardon about his immoral deed to Helen. But Charles' mis‑ understanding causes Bast to be beaten to death. Charles is sent巴nc己d to three years' imprisonment and consequently Henry is shocked so much that he can bear no one but his wife. Margaret and Henry settle down in Howards End with Helen. The Wilcoxes decide to leave the house to Margaret. Final1y two propheci色scome tru己;
Mrs. WiJcox's and Miss Av己ry's. And they agree that Howards End is to be inherited by her nephew
,
Helen's son. The child is exp記ctedto have the spirit of Mrs. Wilcox. W e may well have the symbolic hope to him. Tri1ling ass色rtsas fol1ows:
The Euphorian
,
tha classless heir of all the classes in this novel,
plays in the hayfield and suggests a hope. He is not only the symbol of the classless society but
,
as he takes his plεasur色among the busy workers in the hay
,
he is also the symbol of the "Only connect!" which was Margaret's clu巴 to the good life.28The child is expected to grow up to be a man who w
i 1 1
b巴 able to connect the prose with the passion. He is the same prophetic hero with Stephen's daughter in The Longest Ji.ωrney. Margaret's wish is realized after all .
It is,
how巴ver,
through Bast's tragedy,
Charles' imprisonment,旦ndconsequently Henry's despair. She may be a 1'e‑ presentative of the autho1"s voice,
but she wi l 1
have nothing to do with those who live outside her world. The autho1"s fault is to have spoi 1
ed the liveliness of the characters. It is the same fault with 28. E. M. Forster, p. 116.62 A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER
what he criticizes in Aspects of the Novel. W e can put 'Forster' in place of 'J ames.'
So enormous is the sacrifi.ce that many readers cannot get inter回
目 tedin Jρηzes
,
although they can follow what he says... and can appreciate his e妊ects. They cannot grant his premise, which is that most of human life has to disappear before he can do us a novel. (ltalics mineJ29The prophetic novel must respond to the condition of a lively char‑ acter which Forst巴rpoints out. This is the weakness of the nove
1 .
And so the novel is much less prophetic than A Passage to India.W e recognize that every main character is guided to Howards End.
So we can say that the novel has the pattern of the centering lines of the Catherine whee
. 1
The pattern gives us a s巴nseof stream that all run toward the center. This is the beauty that the pattern has. With the help of rhythmic devices,
the stream begins to sound as the difficult rhythm in the hall of if.ction. We'll study Forster's ap‑ plication of rhythm to the novel in Chapter III.3 A Passage to India
The novel is concerned with the conflicts between the ruling race and the ruled races in lndia. It treats the reallife of the individuals
,
not politics. This novel is divided into three parts: Mosque
,
Caves,
and Temple. The setting of the fi.rstpart in Chandrapore, that of the second,
the恥1arabarCaves,
and that of the last,
Mau. The city of Chandrapore is described in the conspicuous contrast between the place where lndians1 i
ve and the civil station where Anglo.lndians live. The former is the mean,
dirty,
muddy place,
while the latter29. .Aspects 01 the novel, pp. 146‑147.
A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER 63 is the tropical garden town. The Marabar Caves stand far from the conflicts between Indians and Anglo‑Indians. In M且u these is no conflict
,
and Hinduism mainly dominates the part,
and so does the celebration of the Hindu festival. In Mau even Aziz is an outsider,
not to speak of Fielding. Neith巴rof them can really get at Hinduism.
W e find in the novel that Mau is too sketchy
,
which represents the vivid contrast between the two different worlds,
Mau and Chandrapore.Clearly the author attempts to take us to another place where there is no conflict betw巴enIndians and Anglo圃Indians.
The characters of the novel are divided into three groups of race
‑Moslems
,
Hindus,
and Anglo‑Indians. The Moslems are Dr. Aziz,
Hamindulla,
Mahamad Ali: the Hindus are Godbole and several others,
who are described as relatively withdrawn from social and political conditions. The Anglo‑Indians range from 0伍cialslike Mr. Turton,
Major Callendar, and Ronny He乱slop to those who are capable of understanding others' mind,
Mrs. Moore and Fielding: from丑at characters to round characters. Mrs. Turton is a representativ巴 of the Anglo‑Indian ruler,
that is,
a flat character. After the incident in the caves,
she regret雪shehasn't been kind to Adela,
but it proves to be only superficial feelings,
not her inmost feelings. Cyril Field,
ing,
Principal of Government College,
a liberal humanist,
represents the conscience of English intelligents. The Moslems' representative is Aziz,
the finest portrait in Forster's novels. Aziz and Godbole try to reach some sense of oneness and seek internationality in their own way. They turn to poetry to ch且ngethe present. and the e任ect,
if only temporary,
may be ilifluential to the future.A symbo1ical moment plays an important part in personal relation‑
64 A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER
ships. In the first part a great symbolical moment occurs between Aziz and Mrs. Moore. Aziz finds her in the mosque and tells her to take 0妊 her shoes. And he gets her prompt answer
,
1 have taken them off. God is here."30 Then and there he becomes calm and friendly to her. She is understood by a Moslem as she can be圃have well when she should. The contact makes for the basis for their unusual friendship
,
which breaks the barriers of suspicion and mistrust立 India. There are two unsuccessful meetings. One is the bridge party which is planned by Turton and hencei l 1
‑fated. The other is the tea party at Fielding's. At the end of the first part,
how‑ever
,
there occurs a beautiful eternal moment in Aziz's house. Asiz shows his wif巴'spictures to Fielding. The scene is the most moving expression of frindship. They are convinced that they ar巴realfriends and brothers. In general,
people seem to enjoy good relationships with one another in this part.In the s己condpart the greatest symbolical moment occurs in the Marabar Caves. When Adela enters the caves with Aziz
,
she meets with the ancient巴vi 1
and fal 1
s ini 1 1
usion that he has raped her. After the expedition,
he is arrested on a warrant. Fielding insists that Aziz should be innocent,
for she is not normal,
frightened by the echo. But it is al 1
in vain. The relationships between the ruled and the ruler are getting worse,
and the city of Chandrapore is fal 1 ‑
ing into a disorder. In that sense,
the moment is indeed the worst contact for Anglo‑Indians,
but it is very significant for Moslems and Hindus,
for they come to be united against the ruler Anglo‑Indians. They can be one for protecting Aziz from the ruler's authority. 30. A Passage to lndia, p. 12.A STUDY OF E. M FORSTER 65 In the third part another successful symbolical moment occurs dur‑ ing the bewildering ceremony of Gokul Ashtami. Two boats collide and upset
,
throwing Aziz,
Fielding,
Stella,
and Ralph Moore together with the sacred tray of Gokul into the muddy waters. Then Aziz's misunderstanding vanishes,
and they can be friends again. In this part the relationships between the ruler and the ruled are getting better again.In this way the novel is made up of the three situ旦tions of the personal relationships. 明Te can recognize that the novel has th芭 pat・
tern good‑bad‑gogd situations
,
of order‑disorder‑order. This is exactly the pattern of and hourglass. It gives us a sense of seeing a pano‑ ramic view with three dimensions. This is the beauty that the the‑ matic pattern gives to the nove1 .
At the end of th巴novel
,
a prophetic utterance is made by Aziz concerning the future of lndia,
in a sense,
that of mankind.India shal1 b色 an乱tion! No foreigners of arty sort! Hindu and Moslem and Sikh and all shall be one! . . . yes w己 shall drive every blasted Englishman into the sea
,
and then... you and 1 shall be friends.31It is a warning to the future of mankind put on all the peoples in the world. The novel tel1s that however sinful a mortal man may be
,
and however vain it may be to try to establish the permanent friendship,
something must be done to overcome the barriers,
and then we shall be able to enjoy the eternal friendship on earth. The suggestion sounds prophetic and gives the novel a prophetic factor. The novel is indeed a fine example of a prophetic nove l.31. Ibid., pp. 281‑282.
66 A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER CHAPTER III
THE TECHNICAL P A TTERN
Forster's technique of the novel depends largely upon pattern and rhythm. First he sets a frame on the novel
,
and he con白lV巴sof the frame as not rigid but fle玄ible,
lest it should stiffen the liveliness of characters and plots. Then he applies rhythm to it. 1n this chapter we'll examine how rhythm is app1 i
ed to his novels.1 Howards End
The beauty of this novel comes largely from the easy rhythm pro‑ duced by hay. Hay appears from the beginning to the eIld. 1t ap‑ pears first in the letter from Helen visiting the W
i 1
coxes. Trail,
trail
,
went her [Mrs. Wi 1
icoxJ long dress over the sopping grass,
and she came back with her hands full of the hay that was cut yester‑ day."32 1t reappears at the luncheon‑party. "Clever tall王alarmedher,
and withered her delicate imaginings; it was the social counterpart of a motor‑car,
all jeaks,
and she was a wisp of hay,
a flgwer.円33 It appears again in the note of Mrs. Wi 1
cox asking her husband to give Margaret Howards End. The author asks himself,A wych‑elm tr巴e, a vine,
a wisp of hay with dew on it‑can passion for such things be transmitted. . .? 円
34 Next,
weeds appear. When Margaret visits Howards End,
she admires the intense green of the weeds. While waiting for Henry,
she stands there clutching a bunch of weeds. Then she is mistaken for Mrs. Wi 1
cox by Miss Avery. E. K. Brown is right in ass巴rtingthat the incident and weeds suggest "Ruth had 32. Howards End, p. 4.33. Ibid., p. 78. 34. lbid., p. 104.
A STUDY OF E.お1.FORSTER 67 shown Margaret that a place can mean more than a person, and that she has more than begun to reach toward Ruth."35 The grass ap剛 pears again. 1n the conversation with Henry, Marg乱ret murmurs, thinking of Mrs. Ruth
, "
stooping ov巴rthe mowing‑machine and play‑ ing with the grass.円36 After. that,
when she goes to dress,
she leaves the long trickle of grass across the hal .l Here she feels she may get some help from Ruth,
for the hay and the grass suggest her own connection with the past. Margaret and Miss Avery walk in the gar‑ den of the house. They talk,
11's a beautiful meadow.円
Yes,
the maidy's well enough,
for those,
that is,
who don't suffer from sn号ez‑ ing."37 Miss Avery says not one Wilcox can stand against a fIeld in June. Characters are divid巴dinto those who get hay‑fever旦nd those who don't. The former are the vVilcoxes. They are strange to the spirit of Mrs. Wilcox. Beer says they are allergic to hay and points out that their allergy reflects a psychicallimitation円 ,
andthat hay‑fever, in fact, seems to correspond to the 'peevishness' of ear‑ lier novels.円38 Surely he has grasped the point. They are not round characters, but rather flat characters. The latter indude Mrs. Wi 1
cox, Margaret,
Helen,
Miss Avery,
and Helen's child who,
at the end of the nov, e 1
is playing with hay in the garden. 1t is wel 1
said that he that gathereth in summer is a wise son: but he that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.円39 Almost at the end of the nov1 , e
the grass r巴appears. 1n the fIeld the Schlegels are talkingラ35. Rhythm in the Novel, p. 48. 36. Howards End, p. 262. 37. Ibid., p. 288.
38. The Achievement of E. J.V1. Forsteηp. 105. 39.τ:he Proverbs, x. 5.
68 A STUDY OF E.乱1.FORSTER
and Helen takes up a bunch of grass which only withers, but w
i 1 1
sweeten next day. As the scything begins,
the Wilcoxes are kept indoors for their allergy to hay. The novel ends when Helen rushes into the gloom,
carrying her baby. "The field's cut!円 Helencries excitedly, The big meadow! We've se己n to the very end, and it'll be such a crop of hay as neveヲr.'40In this way hay and weeds appear frequently and are associated with Mrs. Wilcox. Hay is the nucleus of the novel and reveals the spirit of Mrs. Wilcox, working as rhythm. E. K. Brown makes a convincing explanation of an aesthetic aspect of rhythm as follows:
Only if the symbol is giv巴n a surplus of meaning, can it con‑ tinue to live the length of the novel
,
and to hold a reader's sense of its inexhaustible beauty. . " Rhythm is an order. For all its elusiveness the expanding symbol in its rhythmic evolu‑ tion is a form of order; no matter how far the symbol expands. . the hay in Hoωards End has a constant nucleusY
He is quite right in asserting hay becomes one of the flowing images which suggest a unity of present with past and future.円42 Hay appears in order
,
not in disorder,
and h巴lpsthe author to give the novel a flowing sense. Hay seems to be insignificant at first, but as we read the novel,
it begins to have its own life and a flowing sense begins to be felt from it. Moreover it is interwoven with the other imageries such as the phrase 'panic and emptiness,' the house,
a wych‑elm tree, etc. The phrase is related to the outer wor 1
d rep四国sented by the Wilcoxes, and to the sort of people that can't say '1 ' . 40. Howards End, p. 362.
41. Rhythm in the Novel, pp. 46‑58. 42. lbid., p. 125.
A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER 69 The others are associated with Mrs. Wilcox and her spirit. Mrs.
W
i 1
cox is hay,
the house and the tree. In her life and in her house,
there is no panic and emptiness.'Hay is associated with Mrs. W
i 1
cox's wi 1 l
to look for a successor of her spirit and Margaret's passion to connect the prose with the passion‑the theme of the nove. l As we have studi吋 inthe thematic patt己主n,
Margaret reaches toward Mrs. Wilcox,
accepting symbolical mom邑ntsand :fInally settles down in Howards End. At last she comes to know what Mrs. Wilcox's spirit is. Hay as wel1 as Howards End is the symbol of her spirit. In the process of her being a successor of Mrs.羽Tilcox'sspirit,
we feel as if all are drawn to Howards End by Mrs. Wilcox and hay. W e get the image of the centering lines of the Catherine whee. 1
This is the di缶cultrhythm we catch after reading th己novel. The plot is related with the season. The novel begins in summer. W e know it by Helen's letter saying that there is hay cut in Howards End. When Margaret is approaching toward Mrs. Wi 1
cox,
we :fInd Margaret standing,
clutching a bunch of we巴ds,
not hay. And the garden at the b乱ckis full of flowering cherries and plums. It is not summer,
but spring. Finally the novel ends in summer when there is a crop of hay in Howards End. This is the way Forster attempts to produce a sense of flow in this novel. The two sorts of rhythm are applied to the novel,
giving a unity and a strength.2 A Passage to lndi・α
The novel has the two sorts of rhythm. The beauty of the novel depends largely upon the di缶cultrhythm rather than the easy one. W e examine :fIrst the images which play a part of the easy rhythm.
70 A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER
One of the images is a wasp. It appears first in Mrs. Moore's room.
She finds a wasp on the tip of the peg. Not trying to dispel it
,
she says,
Pretty dear.円 Sheis the sort of woman that can notice even a litt 1
e thing. No other Anglo.lndians would say so,
but would be irritated by it,
for they can't understand that there is no distinction in India. It is true of the second appearance. Two missionaries talk of the invit瓜ion from Heaven. One admits that the mercy of God may well embrace all mammals,
while the other becomes uneasy during the descent to wasps. The third appearance occurs when Godbole is attempting the union with God. He r邑memb巴rs an old lady,
Mrs. Moore,
and at the same time a wasp on the stone. He has successfully impelled them to their own place by his spiritual force. He is imitating God. What is the e妊ect of the re‑ appe且ranceof a wasp?E .
K. Brown asserts that what is achieved is an a伍nity between Godbole and the old lady,
stressing that they have but one important int巴rchange‑aninterchange of spiritual ideas,
and that one interchange is enough.43 In this point we五ndthe author is going ωtell us something important about hum旦nrelation‑ ships. The incident implies their mysterious likeness: how they are attracted by the little thing like a wasp. N巴xt
,
b巴es app巴ar at the shrine of a Mohammedan saint. They attacked Fielding and Ralph. But con :
sequently it makes Aziz willing to welcome them.The most dominant imagery in the novel is the echo
,
and the most dominant echo of all is the one that booms through the Marabar caves. It gives an immediate effect upon Mrs. Moore and Aおla,which w"arns,
like the sudden rage of both Aziz and the bees against the irト43. Ibidリ p.95.
A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER 71 truders
,
against the extension of interracial friendship. The echo has no effect on Aziz and Fielding. It may be owing to th巴irdev色loped br乳ins.On the other hand,乱!Irs.Moore has undeveloped braiIls, but she is intuitively aware of the supernatural by the help of the earth. But the fact is that there are no spirits of the past in the Marabar caves. The echo denies any human value or admits of no distinction,
and she is made to think little of what has enriched her life‑her affec圃 tion to her children or belief in God. So she may well be visited with despair. As for Adela Quested,
she becomes quite uneasy to hear the echo. She suspects that Az1z may have insulted her in the cave. Later when she is ready to re:flect the event seriously,
and re‑ peats to say that she has got no harm,
she begins to hear th日 echo 'boum',
and cries out.Pomper Pomp色r'is the monotonous
,
repetitive sound of the wheels of the train trund1 i
ng ov巴rthe bridge,
and warns against the intru‑ sion into the Marabar cave. 1t deprives Quested of the right sense of distinction. 1t is because she can do nothing with the sound,
though she can understand the shriek of the crack mail train on an‑ other line not far aw乱y. Her inability to understand the sound means that she can do nothing with 1ndia
,
for lndia is full of indis‑ tinct and repetitive things.Fielding is the only Englishman that can keep his senses. He is
,
unlike Quested,
aware of something about personal relationship. The example is shown in the case of Azie's b巴haviour at the tea party. Aziz is impolite to Ronny Heaslop,
but he do巴snot mistake the sen‑ sitive Mohammedan. He only thinks that something has happened to him. He thinks that the original sound may b巴harmless,
but that72 A STUDY OF E. M. FORSTER
the echo is always evi
l .
He can analyze the echo in such a way.Another echo is introduced most emotional1y in the scene of the court. When Mrs. Moore's name is cal1ed
,
'Esmiss Esmoor' begins to be chanted by the native crowd,
as if it is the name of a goddess or the means to salvation. They sing in chorus for the invocation of Mrs. Moore. Finally salvation comes true. Adela Qested fights against the ev1 i
and frees herself from thei 1 1
usion,
preventing Aziz from being found guilty.There is one more echo which serves as the means of salvatio立.
It is the song sung in chorus by the Hindus; 'Radhakrishna Radha町
krishna
,
Radhakrishna Radhakrishna,
Krishnardha Tadhakrishna,
Radhakrishna Radhakrishna.' Aziz sudddenly hears almost certainly the syllables of salvation that sounded during his trial at Chand‑rapore.
'Come Come Come' sounds as an echo . .. Godbole prays asking God to come. "Come Come Come." But it is only his wish. As James McConkey says
,
his worship of Krishna is a token of his sepa‑ ration from ultimate reality.44 His attitude is shown in the expedi‑ tion to the caves. He do色sn't discuss the caves,
and he avoids the trip by praying so long and missing the train. Godbole seems to tell us that interracial friendship cannot be kept on the earth and that it is useless to try to be friends with the other races,
and that good personal relationships can be possible only outside the pheno‑menal world.
Aziz's utterance
,
Then you are an Oriental円 ,
appearsonly twice,
but it gives aesthetic effects to the novel .
It appears五rstat the con・44. 7he Novels 01 E. M. Forster, p. 142.