Howards End - Forster, E. M.

. .

Résumé :
The novel follows lives of three families in England at the beginning of the 20th century: the Wilcoxes, rich capitalists with a fortune made in the Colonies; the half German Schlegels, whose cultural pursuits have much in common with the real-life Bloomsbury Group; and the Basts, an impoverished young couple from a lower middle class background. The idealistically motivated, well read, highly intelligent Schlegel sisters seek to help the struggling Basts, wishing at the same time to rid the Wilcoxes of some of their deep-seated social and economic prejudices.

Biographie:
Edward Morgan Forster (January 1, 1879 - June 7, 1970) was a novelist, short story writer and essayist. He was born in London and studied at King's College, Cambridge. In 1911 he went to India with G. Lowes Dickinson, his mentor at King's College. During World War I, Forster was engaged in civilian war work in Alexandria. He returned to London after the war as a journalist. In 1921 he again went to India, to work as secretary to the Maharajah of Dewas State. His novel A Passage to India was published in 1924. It is considered as his magnum opus, and it won the Femina Vie Heureuse and the James Tait Black Memorial prizes in 1925. His other novels are Where Angels Fear to Tread (1905), The Longest Journey (1907), A Room with a View (1908), Howards End (1910).In 1927 Forster delivered the William George Clark lectures at Trinity College, Cambridge. Titled Aspects of the Novel, the lectures were published in book form the same year. Also, in 1927 he became a Fellow of Cambridge.His other writings are - a collection of short stories The Eternal Moment (1928), a collection of reviews Abinger Harvest (1936), two biographies (Goldsworthy Lowes Dickinson in 1934 and Marianne Thornton in 1956), a libretto for Benjamin Britten's opera, Billy Budd (with Eric Crozier), and numerous essays. In 1953 he published The Hill of Devi, an uneven collection of letters and reminiscences of his experiences in India.In 1946, Forster moved to King's College in Cambridge to live there as an honorary fellow. Mr. Forster's numerous awards included membership in the Order of Companions of Honour, a recognition bestowed in 1953 by Queen Elizabeth II. He was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in 20 separate years.