ARWAV Context
E.M Forster –
He travelled throughout Europe and spent some time in India, inspiring his
novels A Passage to India and ARWAV.
Forster was a member of the Bloomsbury Group in London.
He attended Cambridge in 1897, and was a member of the Cambridge
Apostles, an exclusive intellectual society.
ARWAV encapsulates the conflict between the old and new in the start of the 20 th
century, as the nation moved gradually from the strict, repressive norms of Victorian
society toward the modernity of the new century.
Literary period –
Social context – the blur in the class divide that was developing as the
younger generation flourished is echoed in George and Lucy’s romance.
o ‘The intruder was ill-bred’ - Charlotte
o ‘The Honeychurches were a worthy family, but he began to realise that
Lucy was of another clay; and perhaps… he ought to introduce her into
more congenial circles’ - Cecil
Historical context – the social turmoil at the time is present in Lucy’s journey in
the novel, and the rise of women’s suffrage influences Lucy’s empowered
character.
o ‘Through the curtains- curtains which smote one in the face, and
seemed heavy with more than cloth’
o ‘There was a haze of disapproval in the air’
Cultural context – Forster’s place in the Bloomsbury Group reinforces the
rebellious and defiant nature of the novel. The Group believed in rejecting the
unnecessary conventions, restraints, and double standards of their parents’
generations. They also had liberal ideas about relationships and sex, which
speaks to Forster’s homosexuality. The rise of the popular novel also
contributes to the success of ARWAV, as people sought ‘entertainments’
rather than classic literature.
o ‘I think you are repeating what you have heard older people say.’ – Mr
Emerson
o ‘Life, so far as she troubled to conceive it, was a circle of rich, pleasant
people, with identical interests and identical foes. In this circle, one
thought, married, and died. Outside it were poverty and vulgarity for
ever trying to enter, just as the London fog tries to enter the pinewoods
pouring through the gaps in the northern hills. But, in Italy, where
anyone who chooses may warm himself in equality, as in the sun, this
conception of life vanished. Her senses expanded; she felt that there
was no one whom she might not get to like, that social barriers were
irremovable, doubtless, but not particularly high’
The novel has impacted modern audiences too-
E.M Forster –
He travelled throughout Europe and spent some time in India, inspiring his
novels A Passage to India and ARWAV.
Forster was a member of the Bloomsbury Group in London.
He attended Cambridge in 1897, and was a member of the Cambridge
Apostles, an exclusive intellectual society.
ARWAV encapsulates the conflict between the old and new in the start of the 20 th
century, as the nation moved gradually from the strict, repressive norms of Victorian
society toward the modernity of the new century.
Literary period –
Social context – the blur in the class divide that was developing as the
younger generation flourished is echoed in George and Lucy’s romance.
o ‘The intruder was ill-bred’ - Charlotte
o ‘The Honeychurches were a worthy family, but he began to realise that
Lucy was of another clay; and perhaps… he ought to introduce her into
more congenial circles’ - Cecil
Historical context – the social turmoil at the time is present in Lucy’s journey in
the novel, and the rise of women’s suffrage influences Lucy’s empowered
character.
o ‘Through the curtains- curtains which smote one in the face, and
seemed heavy with more than cloth’
o ‘There was a haze of disapproval in the air’
Cultural context – Forster’s place in the Bloomsbury Group reinforces the
rebellious and defiant nature of the novel. The Group believed in rejecting the
unnecessary conventions, restraints, and double standards of their parents’
generations. They also had liberal ideas about relationships and sex, which
speaks to Forster’s homosexuality. The rise of the popular novel also
contributes to the success of ARWAV, as people sought ‘entertainments’
rather than classic literature.
o ‘I think you are repeating what you have heard older people say.’ – Mr
Emerson
o ‘Life, so far as she troubled to conceive it, was a circle of rich, pleasant
people, with identical interests and identical foes. In this circle, one
thought, married, and died. Outside it were poverty and vulgarity for
ever trying to enter, just as the London fog tries to enter the pinewoods
pouring through the gaps in the northern hills. But, in Italy, where
anyone who chooses may warm himself in equality, as in the sun, this
conception of life vanished. Her senses expanded; she felt that there
was no one whom she might not get to like, that social barriers were
irremovable, doubtless, but not particularly high’
The novel has impacted modern audiences too-
