Mutually Exclusive: Being Gay and Being a Man in E.M. Forster’s Maurice

Author

Kimber ForemanFollow

Date of Award

Spring 5-6-2022

Document Type

Honors Project

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts

Department

English and Linguistics

Department Chair or Program Director

Richards, Gary

First Advisor

Haffey, Kate

Major or Concentration

English

Abstract

This paper outlines the impacts of English heteronormativity on E.M. Forster’s novel Maurice by exploring applicable cultural context and its reflection within the text. Maurice was published after Forster’s death, and as his only novel with explicit queer characters, is the best suited for parsing Forster’s own understanding of the society he lived in. With a primary focus on the characters of Maurice and Clive, the paper examines the dichotomy that Forster posits heteronormative English society creates between traditional English masculinity and the identities of gay men. This examination ultimately leads to the conclusion that Forster writes the Greenwood-bound fate of his titular character, Maurice, to illustrate the inability of gay men to exist in England.

Recommended Citation

Foreman, Kimber, "Mutually Exclusive: Being Gay and Being a Man in E.M. Forster’s Maurice" (2022). Student Research Submissions. 469.
https://scholar.umw.edu/student_research/469

Rights

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