Anatomy Of "Undeveloped Hearts" In E.M.Forster’s Howards End And The Longest Journey

Edward Morgan Foster is a famous British novelist in the 20th century,who has left with the world well-known masterpieces.Among his six novels,only Howards End and The Longest Journey are set exclusively in Britain,focus on British culture,and directly address social issues in Britain.Although scholars at home and abroad have done a lot of research on the two novels,most of them focus on themes such as ecology and homosexuality and his view of "only connect";and few have paid attention to the connotations of the "undeveloped heart" contained in the novels and Foster’s thoughts about it."Undeveloped heart" is Forster’s diagnosis of many Englishmen in his time.To a great extent,he attempts to provide a cure for the "patients" through the above-mentioned novels,in view of which,this thesis is to take the two Condition-of-England novels as the subjects of its study.It will discuss the connotations and symptoms of "undeveloped hearts" exhibited in the novels,analyze the social causes of the "illness",and further reveal Forster’s cures for the British people.There are five chapters in this thesis.The first chapter is Introduction,which briefly introduces Foster and his two Condition-of-England novels Howards End and The Longest Journey,summarizes the studies of Foster and his works at home and abroad,and explains the research focus and structure of the thesis.Chapter Two starts from Foster’s own diagnosis of the "undeveloped heart",and sorts out the "undeveloped" individuals in the novels and their specific symptoms.The "undeveloped heart" is not an intellectual defect,but emotional and spiritual malnutrition,which is mainly manifested in lack of feelings,spiritual emptiness,lifelessness,inability to appreciate beauty and loss of individuality.Chapter Three focuses on the causes of the "undeveloped heart".It argues that the materialistic and money-oriented middle class culture and values,the public school education that destroys humanity,and the deterioration of the environment caused by industrialization and urbanization are the main reasons why the "undeveloped heart" is rooted in the 20th century Britain.Although it is a chronical malaise,Foster believes that not all undeveloped individuals are hopeless.Chapter Four,with the help of Matthew Arnold’s thought on "the pursuit of perfection",focuses on the prescriptions that Foster has for the "undeveloped heart" of the British people.It can be found that Forster advocates learning the best culture in the world—in his eyes,the energetic Greek culture,romantic German culture,and excellent British traditions,for he believes in their power to help people resist the erosion of their minds by the corrupted middle-class culture and achieve the perfection of their heart.Moreover,people with "well-developed hearts" can help those with "undeveloped hearts" to achieve salvation through introspection,and self-sacrifice.Finally,Forster calls for educational reforms,protection of natural environment and a simple life to eradicate the malaise of the British nation.Chapter Five summarizes the previous analysis and points out that the individuals with "undeveloped hearts" in the novel are the epitome of the entire British nation in the Edwardian period.With vivid depiction of the undeveloped individuals and detailed record of how some individuals with "undeveloped hearts" are cured,Forster expresses his profound thoughts on the diseased middle-class culture and advocates the idea of free and comprehensive development of humans,which is still valuable and applicable to the contemporary people.