On The Binary Oppositions In The Longest Journey

E. M. Forster was a prestigious British novelist, essayist and literary theorist in the 20 th century who enjoyed great fame in not only England but also around the world. His works were introduced to China quite early for their intricate grace and beauty. Most of his novels were written to mock the spiritual paralysis of the upper class in England, with the most complicated and in-depth exploration into the human relationships in a bid to discuss the limitation and possibility, as well as fear and hope among interpersonal relationships. Although his works were about the social reality of the country in the early 20 th century, the ideas upheld in them, including freedom, equality and humanity, are still of great significance for the development and progress of the human society.The Longest Journey is the most representative novel of Forster, a semi-autobiography of himself and the first novel of Forster, the plot of which rolls out completely in the background of England.The author of this article tries to explore into the binary oppositions in this novel, and categorizes them into groups. Forster believed that the society is the main contributor to the “undeveloped heart” and that only by bonding can individuals find their true selves and recover their true culture identities. It is necessary to have an in-depth analysis of The Longest Journey, for these binary oppositions,not only holds great significance for the sublimation of the theme of the novel, but also exerts profound influence over the development of the entire human race and the whole world.This paper consists of three parts: the introduction, main body and the conclusion.The first part is the introduction. First, the life and works of E. M. Forster will be laid out. Then the content of the novel The Longest Journey, as well as the current situation and the existing problems of researches on the novel, will be explained, which will then lead to the finding that there is a lack of thorough, systematic research into it by use of the binary oppositions. At last, the author will propose the research perspective, theoretic basis and structural arrangement of this paper.The part of the main body will include three chapters.The first chapter will detail on how Forster constructed binary oppositions between the figures. There will be two aspects involved. The first aspect turns to the middle class in the English society,undeveloped figures including Agnes, Pembroke and Rickie Elliot. The second aspect is to look into the utopian-like ideal persons in Forster’s opinion, i.e. the healthy and sound intellectuals: Ansell and Stephen.The second chapter tries to study how Forster used the binary oppositions to express his views. There will be three aspects involved in this chapter. First, by analyzing the binary opposition of Ideal and Reality, the social influence on human lives will be discussed.Second, the binary opposition of Life and Death will be analyzed. Life and death stand at the opposite side of each other. However, sometimes the physical death may bring about the spiritual rebirth, or a new living state. Finally, the binary opposition of Love and Marriage will be looked into. Forster was endowed with an early epiphany about life. He boldly simplified his life by staying away from marriage his whole life.The third chapter will look at the formation process of the binary oppositions of Forster through three distinctive places: Cambridge, Sawston and Whiltshire. The Longest Journey was marked with distinct characteristics of the times. The England in the memory of Stephen, which was beautiful beyond description and seemingly destined to be inherited, where the air was fresh and where there you would be in the vast wild land once you stepped out of the house, was gone forever. The continuously growing population and an increasing application of science and technology shaped England in a completely new fashion.The last part will be the conclusion. This paper seeks to have in-depth analysis into the interpretation of the binary oppositions in The Longest Journey, which will not only help full understanding of the work itself, but also the deep-seated connotations of works produced by Forster. By examining the way Forster explored the human world, the author hopes to shed some light for people to continue to discover the world and seek solutions to the self-identity plight.