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A review by forgottensecret
Aspects of the Novel by E.M. Forster
2.0
'His reputation in his day – that is easy to understand. There are important historical reasons for it, which we should discuss if our scheme was chronological. But when we fish him out of the river of time, and set him to write in that circular room with the other novelists, he presents a less impressive figure.'
E.M. Forster, the author of 'A Passage to India' and 'A Room with a View', adapts his 1927 Clark Lectures at Trinity College, Cambridge to offer an analysis of fiction. We learn that no English novelist surpasses Tolstoy and that characters can be 'round' or 'flat'. We also learn, most interestingly, to view the great writers within the same room rather than on different temporal junctures of a chronology.
Outside of that last insight, the standout takeaway from this book is how lucky we are to have much better books concerning the ins and outs of fiction. I would recommend this only for the most dedicated of E.M. Forster fans and redirect those interested in fiction writing to look elsewhere.
E.M. Forster, the author of 'A Passage to India' and 'A Room with a View', adapts his 1927 Clark Lectures at Trinity College, Cambridge to offer an analysis of fiction. We learn that no English novelist surpasses Tolstoy and that characters can be 'round' or 'flat'. We also learn, most interestingly, to view the great writers within the same room rather than on different temporal junctures of a chronology.
Outside of that last insight, the standout takeaway from this book is how lucky we are to have much better books concerning the ins and outs of fiction. I would recommend this only for the most dedicated of E.M. Forster fans and redirect those interested in fiction writing to look elsewhere.