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Howards End (Barnes & Noble Classics)
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Author: E.M. Forster
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Our Price: $6.95
You Save: $ ( % )
Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Barnes & Noble Classics
Author: E.M. Forster
Publisher: Barnes & Noble Classics
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Howards End (Barnes & Noble Classics) Description
Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.912
EAN: 9781593080228
ISBN: 1593080220
Label: Barnes & Noble Classics
Manufacturer: Barnes & Noble Classics
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 368
Publication Date: 2003-06-01
Publisher: Barnes & Noble Classics
Studio: Barnes & Noble Classics
Dewey Decimal Number: 823.912
EAN: 9781593080228
ISBN: 1593080220
Label: Barnes & Noble Classics
Manufacturer: Barnes & Noble Classics
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 368
Publication Date: 2003-06-01
Publisher: Barnes & Noble Classics
Studio: Barnes & Noble Classics
Editorial Review of Howards End (Barnes & Noble Classics)
Howards End, by E. M. Forster, is part of the Barnes & Noble Classics series, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of Barnes & Noble Classics:
New introductions commissioned from today's top writers and scholars Biographies of the authors Chronologies of contemporary historical, biographical, and cultural events Footnotes and endnotes Selective discussions of imitations, parodies, poems, books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and films inspired by the work Comments by other famous authors Study questions to challenge the reader's viewpoints and expectations Bibliographies for further reading Indices & Glossaries, when appropriateAll editions are beautifully designed and are printed to superior specifications; some include illustrations of historical interest. Barnes & Noble Classics pulls together a constellation of influences—biographical, historical, and literary—to enrich each reader's understanding of these enduring works.
Considered by many to be E. M. Forster’s greatest novel, Howards End is a beautifully subtle tale of two very different families brought together by an unusual event. The Schlegels are intellectuals, devotees of art and literature. The Wilcoxes are practical and materialistic, leading lives of “telegrams and anger.” When the elder Mrs. Wilcox dies and her family discovers she has left their country home—Howards End—to one of the Schlegel sisters, a crisis between the two families is precipitated that takes years to resolve.
Written in 1910, Howards End is a symbolic exploration of the social, economic, and intellectual forces at work in England in the years preceding World War I, a time when vast social changes were occurring. In the Schlegels and the Wilcoxes, Forster perfectly embodies the competing idealism and materialism of the upper classes, while the conflict over the ownership of Howards End represents the struggle for possession of the country’s future. As critic Lionel Trilling once noted, the novel asks, “Who shall inherit England?”
Forster refuses to take sides in this conflict. Instead he poses one of the book’s central questions: In a changing modern society, what should be the relation between the inner and outer life, between the world of the intellect and the world of business? Can they ever, as Forster urges, “only connect”?
Mary Gordon is a McIntosh Professor of English at Barnard College. Her best-selling novels include Final Payments, The Company of Women, and Spending. She has also published a memoir, a book of novellas, a collection of stories, and two books of essays. Her most recent work is a biography of Joan of Arc.
Written in 1910, Howards End is a symbolic exploration of the social, economic, and intellectual forces at work in England in the years preceding World War I, a time when vast social changes were occurring. In the Schlegels and the Wilcoxes, Forster perfectly embodies the competing idealism and materialism of the upper classes, while the conflict over the ownership of Howards End represents the struggle for possession of the country’s future. As critic Lionel Trilling once noted, the novel asks, “Who shall inherit England?”
Forster refuses to take sides in this conflict. Instead he poses one of the book’s central questions: In a changing modern society, what should be the relation between the inner and outer life, between the world of the intellect and the world of business? Can they ever, as Forster urges, “only connect”?
Mary Gordon is a McIntosh Professor of English at Barnard College. Her best-selling novels include Final Payments, The Company of Women, and Spending. She has also published a memoir, a book of novellas, a collection of stories, and two books of essays. Her most recent work is a biography of Joan of Arc.
Customer Reviews of Howards End (Barnes & Noble Classics)
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: A+ Novel
Review: I'm only 100 pages into it but so far this book is amazing. I have fallen in love with the art of language. E.M. Forster has created a stunning, and though provoking tale. A classic to study and enjoy again and again.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Who Will Inherit England?
Review: Born in 1879 England, E.M. Forster attended King's College at Cambridge; thereafter his family fortune enabled him to live as please. He traveled extensively; dabbled in the celebrated Bloomsbury Group, which included the celebrated Virginia Woolf; and strove to conceal his homosexuality from the general public until his death in 1970. Although he was widely read during his lifetime, a series of films based on his novels prompted a major re-evaluation of his work during the 1980s and 1990s, and he is now considered among the finest English prose stylists of the early 20th Century.
Written in 1910, HOWARDS END is the fifth of six novels Forster wrote, and like most of his work it focuses on issues of social class. In this instance, the action of the novel centers on the house Howards End and the three families who swirl through it. The house itself is owned by Ruth Wilcox, the wife and mother of a highly conventional, conservative family. Upon her death, she wills the house not to her family, which she feels will not appreciate it, but to friend Margaret Schlegel. Ruth's husband destroys her will and conceals the legacy from Margaret--but in an ironic turn of events falls in love with and marries her.
The story itself revolves around Margaret Schlegel and her sister Helen. Half-German, well educated, and more independent in thought and manner than most Englishwomen of their era, the sisters also become friendly with bank clerk Leonard Bast. In their efforts to assist him, however, they become leading figures in a scandal that threatens the Wilcox family as a whole. Throughout the novel ownership of the house, and the lies and hypocrisy used to retain it, becomes a symbol of class struggle as those who have power and status (the Wilcoxes) seek to retain it and those who do not (the Basts) seek to obtain it.
Forster is indeed a great stylist, and although the novel is indeed famous for its themes and symbolism he never places them above story or characterization. He possesses both the gift of straight-forward narrative and delicate touch, and the result is a perfect balance, a pure pleasure to read from start to finish. Although HOWARDS END is not as widely read as A PASSAGE TO INDIA, it certainly deserves to be. Strongly recommended.
GFT, Amazon Reviewer
Still laughing at the negative voter
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: "Only connect....."
Review: "Howards End" commences with that famous, cryptic epigraph - "Only connect." Although this masterpiece delves into a multitude of themes, including class struggle and suffragism, the idea of "connecting" runs throughout brilliantly. Indeed, the characters in this novel display various levels of success in "connecting," both interpersonally and intrapersonally.
The novel primarily concerns the Schlegel sisters - sociable Helen and the more practical Margaret. The sisters live in comfort in London (circa 1900) along with their passive brother, Tibby. As members of the leisure class (they inherited money from their parents), the Schlegels spend much of their time mulling over "big issues." Margaret and Helen, for example, belong to a women's social club which discuss how to help the poor and other humanitarians themes. In other words, they're forward-thinkers but not much on action.
Their world views are challenged when they become entangled with two quite divergent families - the impoverished Basts and the nouveau riche Wilcoxes. The Schlegels initially are attracted to Leonard Bast, an imaginative clerk who seems worthy of far greater things than his lowly job hints. They debate about how best to help Leonard, but their assistance turns into meddling of the worst sort. In contrast, the sisters are rather repulsed by Henry Wilcox, the head of the family and a distant businessman who seemingly has no internal life. The sisters find their beliefs and loyalties to each other tested severely when they become involved with these families.
"Howards End" is among Forster's best work, along with "A Passage to India" and ahead of "A Room with a View" and "Where Angels Fear to Tread." The characters are largely what make this book such a treat, although "Howards End" is buoyed by an astonishingly intricate plot as well. The main mystery concerns who will ultimately inherit Howards End, the Wilcox's somewhat stodgy country home; however, the house is a thinly veiled substitute for Imperial England herself. Indeed, Forster seems to be imploring, "Who will inherit England?" Forster's denouement answers this question most subtly. As is likely to be true for many readers of this book, I viewed the extraordinary movie version of "Howards End" many years and numerous times before picking up this novel. The novel is, not surprisingly, even deeper and more thought-provoking than the movie. "Howards End" is first-rate, exhilarating literature.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: "Connect the prose and the passion...both will be exalted."
Review: In this 1910 story of Edwardian England, Forster illustrates the conflicts between the superior attitudes of the aristocracy and a developing feeling of obligation toward the "lower" classes which World War I will soon bring into sharp relief. Margaret and Helen Schlegel are intellectual and sensitive to the arts, with compassionate hearts for those less fortunate.
When Margaret, at age twenty-nine, is affianced to Henry Wilcox, the much older, widowed husband of a friend, this conflict of attitudes is brought to the fore. Henry, insensitive and believing himself actually entitled to his family's privileges, is cold and reserved, though Margaret believes that "Henry must be forgiven and made better by love."
Helen, her sister, a 21-year-old with an enthusiasm for the life of the imagination, has no sympathy for Henry's failure to pay attention to the people "below him" who are dependent upon his whims. Eventually, a casual remark by Henry leads to the loss of a job for Leonard Bast, a penniless young clerk, but Henry refuses to accept any responsibility whatsoever and refuses his wife's entreaties to give the destitute Leonard a job.
Immensely sympathetic to the economic position of the poor and women, Forster illustrates their financial dependence on others. Margaret, who secures the reader's total sympathy, is charged with educating a close-minded dolt like Henry to be kinder and more empathetic towards the people he considers below him, but she achieves only limited success.
Filled with incisive observations and great wit, the novel follows the narrative pattern of a melodrama, but Forster's sensitivity to both sides--the practical and conservative values of Henry vs. the emotional and idealistic sides of Margaret and Helen--elevates the novel above the tawdry. Henry is a product of his time and his class, but though times are changing, he is too dense to realize it. The Wilcox home at Howard's End is a microcosm, and its conflicts are those of the nation at that time. Thoughtful and entertaining, Howard's End still draws in readers after almost a hundred years. Mary Whipple
Review Summary: A+ Novel
Review: I'm only 100 pages into it but so far this book is amazing. I have fallen in love with the art of language. E.M. Forster has created a stunning, and though provoking tale. A classic to study and enjoy again and again.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Who Will Inherit England?
Review: Born in 1879 England, E.M. Forster attended King's College at Cambridge; thereafter his family fortune enabled him to live as please. He traveled extensively; dabbled in the celebrated Bloomsbury Group, which included the celebrated Virginia Woolf; and strove to conceal his homosexuality from the general public until his death in 1970. Although he was widely read during his lifetime, a series of films based on his novels prompted a major re-evaluation of his work during the 1980s and 1990s, and he is now considered among the finest English prose stylists of the early 20th Century.
Written in 1910, HOWARDS END is the fifth of six novels Forster wrote, and like most of his work it focuses on issues of social class. In this instance, the action of the novel centers on the house Howards End and the three families who swirl through it. The house itself is owned by Ruth Wilcox, the wife and mother of a highly conventional, conservative family. Upon her death, she wills the house not to her family, which she feels will not appreciate it, but to friend Margaret Schlegel. Ruth's husband destroys her will and conceals the legacy from Margaret--but in an ironic turn of events falls in love with and marries her.
The story itself revolves around Margaret Schlegel and her sister Helen. Half-German, well educated, and more independent in thought and manner than most Englishwomen of their era, the sisters also become friendly with bank clerk Leonard Bast. In their efforts to assist him, however, they become leading figures in a scandal that threatens the Wilcox family as a whole. Throughout the novel ownership of the house, and the lies and hypocrisy used to retain it, becomes a symbol of class struggle as those who have power and status (the Wilcoxes) seek to retain it and those who do not (the Basts) seek to obtain it.
Forster is indeed a great stylist, and although the novel is indeed famous for its themes and symbolism he never places them above story or characterization. He possesses both the gift of straight-forward narrative and delicate touch, and the result is a perfect balance, a pure pleasure to read from start to finish. Although HOWARDS END is not as widely read as A PASSAGE TO INDIA, it certainly deserves to be. Strongly recommended.
GFT, Amazon Reviewer
Still laughing at the negative voter
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: "Only connect....."
Review: "Howards End" commences with that famous, cryptic epigraph - "Only connect." Although this masterpiece delves into a multitude of themes, including class struggle and suffragism, the idea of "connecting" runs throughout brilliantly. Indeed, the characters in this novel display various levels of success in "connecting," both interpersonally and intrapersonally.
The novel primarily concerns the Schlegel sisters - sociable Helen and the more practical Margaret. The sisters live in comfort in London (circa 1900) along with their passive brother, Tibby. As members of the leisure class (they inherited money from their parents), the Schlegels spend much of their time mulling over "big issues." Margaret and Helen, for example, belong to a women's social club which discuss how to help the poor and other humanitarians themes. In other words, they're forward-thinkers but not much on action.
Their world views are challenged when they become entangled with two quite divergent families - the impoverished Basts and the nouveau riche Wilcoxes. The Schlegels initially are attracted to Leonard Bast, an imaginative clerk who seems worthy of far greater things than his lowly job hints. They debate about how best to help Leonard, but their assistance turns into meddling of the worst sort. In contrast, the sisters are rather repulsed by Henry Wilcox, the head of the family and a distant businessman who seemingly has no internal life. The sisters find their beliefs and loyalties to each other tested severely when they become involved with these families.
"Howards End" is among Forster's best work, along with "A Passage to India" and ahead of "A Room with a View" and "Where Angels Fear to Tread." The characters are largely what make this book such a treat, although "Howards End" is buoyed by an astonishingly intricate plot as well. The main mystery concerns who will ultimately inherit Howards End, the Wilcox's somewhat stodgy country home; however, the house is a thinly veiled substitute for Imperial England herself. Indeed, Forster seems to be imploring, "Who will inherit England?" Forster's denouement answers this question most subtly. As is likely to be true for many readers of this book, I viewed the extraordinary movie version of "Howards End" many years and numerous times before picking up this novel. The novel is, not surprisingly, even deeper and more thought-provoking than the movie. "Howards End" is first-rate, exhilarating literature.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: "Connect the prose and the passion...both will be exalted."
Review: In this 1910 story of Edwardian England, Forster illustrates the conflicts between the superior attitudes of the aristocracy and a developing feeling of obligation toward the "lower" classes which World War I will soon bring into sharp relief. Margaret and Helen Schlegel are intellectual and sensitive to the arts, with compassionate hearts for those less fortunate.
When Margaret, at age twenty-nine, is affianced to Henry Wilcox, the much older, widowed husband of a friend, this conflict of attitudes is brought to the fore. Henry, insensitive and believing himself actually entitled to his family's privileges, is cold and reserved, though Margaret believes that "Henry must be forgiven and made better by love."
Helen, her sister, a 21-year-old with an enthusiasm for the life of the imagination, has no sympathy for Henry's failure to pay attention to the people "below him" who are dependent upon his whims. Eventually, a casual remark by Henry leads to the loss of a job for Leonard Bast, a penniless young clerk, but Henry refuses to accept any responsibility whatsoever and refuses his wife's entreaties to give the destitute Leonard a job.
Immensely sympathetic to the economic position of the poor and women, Forster illustrates their financial dependence on others. Margaret, who secures the reader's total sympathy, is charged with educating a close-minded dolt like Henry to be kinder and more empathetic towards the people he considers below him, but she achieves only limited success.
Filled with incisive observations and great wit, the novel follows the narrative pattern of a melodrama, but Forster's sensitivity to both sides--the practical and conservative values of Henry vs. the emotional and idealistic sides of Margaret and Helen--elevates the novel above the tawdry. Henry is a product of his time and his class, but though times are changing, he is too dense to realize it. The Wilcox home at Howard's End is a microcosm, and its conflicts are those of the nation at that time. Thoughtful and entertaining, Howard's End still draws in readers after almost a hundred years. Mary Whipple