Type a new keyword(s) and press Enter to search

E. M. Forster Biography

 

            
             The life and times of an author has always had a profound impact on the literary works that they produce. Edward Morgan Forster was no exception to this trend. He was born to an upper middle class family on January 1, 1879 in London, England. His father, Edward Morgan Llewellyn Forster, died in 1880 of consumption leaving his mother, Alice Clara Whichelo, to raise him. His mother had help raising Edward from his paternal great-aunt Marianne Thornton. Alice was very liberal and irresponsible which led to a large amount of domestic tension during his childhood years. Although his mother is thought to be irresponsible she gave him an awareness of injustice.
             There were many periods of distinct individual experiences during Forster's life that had a noticeable influence on his literary output. This is noticeable in that he has written an account on almost every important phase of his life.
             The happiest time of Forster's childhood was the time from 1883-1893, which he spent at Rooksnest. He writes about his experiences from this house in Howards End (1910). Howards End dealt with an alliance between the Schlegel sisters and Ruth Wilcox. A quote from Howards End encapsulates the basic plot: " 'I felt for a moment that the whole Wilcox family was a fraud, just a wall of newspapers and motor-cars and golf-clubs, and that if it fell I should find nothing behind it but panic and emptiness.' " This quote is and example of his resentfulness toward the rigidity of the English social system.
             In 1893 he and his mother moved to Tonbridge where Forster attended Tonbridge School for his first taste of public school. Unfortunately his first taste of public school gave birth to a lasting distaste for the values of public school. In 1897 he moved to Cambridge where he attended King's College. Here he found friends and an atmosphere of free thought and intellectual discussion. This setting of free thought was his first exposure to Mediterranean culture, which was in stark contrast to standard English rigidity.


Essays Related to E. M. Forster Biography