When Lucy Honeychurch visits Italy with her prim
and proper cousin Charlotte, she is on the verge of an experience
that will throw her neatly ordered life quite off balance.
She is torn between lingering Victorian proprieties, social and sexual,
and the spontaneous promptings of her heart.
In this brilliant piece of social comedy, Forster is concerned with
one of his favourite themes, the undeveloped heart
of the English middle-classes.
The English abroad are observed with a sharp, ironic eye ...
thus there are hidden depths of meaning
in this sunniest and most readable of Forster's novels.
This is our Club's first classic for the year and it certainly was well received. Although a little slow for some of us, overall we commented that it was well written, with great characters and an accurate portrait of the times. We discussed E.M. Forster, as most of us had read some of his other works, namely Passage to India and Howards End, but Mary recommended his biography Maurice which she says throws a little more light on the author and his world.
A Room With a View, we all agreed, did not provide a complex or original story line, but it did give us plenty of fodder for discussion; English society and propriety (one of our favourites), religion, love, life experience. It was all there! We even touched on the meaning of the title and asked, 'Was Lucy, (our heroine), searching for a "life with a view"?
Anne made the very relevant point that we all seem to have perceived the story in much the same way and that nothing in our opinions varied in extremes. We would be the first to say that this is not always a good thing, we like nothing more than a good discussion with differing views.
Then again, the 'classics' are considered as such for good reason, and it could well be this appeal that gives them ... and continues to hold them to this status.
What do other readers think?
2 comments:
It was a very enjoyable book and I would venture to read some more E. M. Forster in the future. I'm not sure though if I would have enjoyed it as much if I wasn't so familiar with the movie. As the movie was basically a carbon copy of the novel it probably doesn't really matter as they both complement each other. As a member of this group I thoroughly enjoy our meetings, and as such this book probably didn't allow for such an in depth discussion as we usually have. Sometimes a wider range of opinions and ideas is good.
Yes Cathy, I agree. We do seem to have a more engaging discussion when our opinions differ more. Seems to me that whenever we read a classic, we tend to agree that the book is, well, a classic!
Never Mind, I think this month's book is going to generate a lively debate ... looking forward to it.
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