Essay Q&A 1. A Room with a View is social commentary in which E. M. Forster satirizes Edwardian society. He takes particular delight in satirizing the “Britisher abroad.” Examine the characters in and around the “Little England” of the Pension Bertolini, in particular Miss Lavish, Mr. Eager, the Miss Alans, and Lucy. What attitudes was …
Biography British author Edward Morgan Forster (1879-1970) is best known for his well-crafted, witty, and sensitive novels that provide a thoughtful critique of early twentieth-century British society, in particular its strict social mores, rigid class structure, and imperialist philosophy. Forster was born in London. His father, an architect, died of tuberculosis before Edward was two years …
A Room With a View: Biography: Edward Morgan Forster Read More »
“I have a view, I have a view…This is my son…his name’s George. He has a view too.” (Chapter 1) Lucy and Charlotte are disappointed to find that their rooms in the hotel lack a view of the River Arno. Mr. Emerson and his son have rooms with views, which they would like Lucy and …
Theme Analysis Delicacy and Beauty One of the most important messages of A Room with a View is that people must decide for themselves what is truly beautiful and good, even if society calls it improper. During the Edwardian Era, conservative Victorian social mores had begun to give way to a more liberal, modern way …
Metaphor Analysis Rooms and Views The motif of rooms and views recurs throughout the novel. For Forster, a room stands for civilization and all its confinements; a view stands for nature, freedom, and the open air. A room with a view means a life that is free and open to adventure and possibility, one that …
Character ProfilesThe Miss AlansMiss Catherine and Teresa Alan are elderly spinsters whom Lucy meets at the Pension Bertolini in Florence. Later Lucy invites them to come stay at Cissie Villa, but Cecil intervenes and invites the Emersons there instead. The Miss Alans represent good breeding and propriety, but on the other hand, they have an …
In Chapter 13, Lucy wonders over the extraordinary encounter with George. She had not been prepared at all for being greeted by a half-naked George at the pond, and it has destroyed all her plans for greeting him in a proper way. At tea with a neighbor, Cecil is snobbish to the point of being …
Cecil is bewildered and hurt, and Lucy tries to explain her feelings. As Lucy asserts herself, it seems to Cecil that she has changed from a Leonardo painting to a living woman and become even more real and desirable. He exclaims that he loves her and presses her to tell why she doesn’t love him. …
Chapter 9 begins a few days after the engagement, as Lucy and Cecil are invited to a garden-party in the neighborhood. Cecil’s snobbery becomes evident at the gathering; he is very annoyed at being congratulated, and finds the country society vulgar. They begin talking of Mr. Beebe, and Lucy realizes that Cecil doesn’t like him, …
At the beginning of Chapter 5, Lucy, still shaken up by her encounter with George the day before, decides it is best to avoid him. While out running errands, Charlotte and Lucy see Miss Lavish in the Piazza, at the site of the murder. She asks Lucy to tell her what she witnessed, explaining that …
