Personal relations are the important thing for ever and ever, and not this outer life of telegrams and anger.
E. M. ForsterRead
George had turned at the sound of her arrival. For a moment he contemplated her, as one who had fallen out of heaven. He saw radiant joy in her face, he saw the flowers beat against her dress in blue waves. The bushes above them closed. He stepped quickly forward and kissed her. Before she could speak, almost before she could feel, a voice called 'Lucy! Lucy! Lucy!' The silence of life had been broken by Miss Bartlett, who stood brown against the view.
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote captures a moment of intense admiration and budding emotion between two characters, highlighting the beauty of love at first sight.
In this scene, E. M. Forster portrays an enchanting moment of connection between George and Lucy. George's awe and admiration for Lucy's radiant beauty exemplify the profound impact of love, as he perceives her as a celestial being bringing joy into his life. This moment encapsulates the spontaneity and wonder that accompanies newfound affection, further emphasized by the interruption of Miss Bartlett, which abruptly disrupts their intimate encounter and signifies the complexities and challenges that love often faces.
Themes
LoveAdmirationBeautyConnectionEmotion
In practice
Example use cases
During a romantic gathering, one could quote this to describe the magical moment of two people connecting.
More from E. M. Forster
All quotes →A poem is true if it hangs together. Information points to something else. A poem points to nothing but itself.
E. M. ForsterRead
One must be fond of people and trust them if one is not to make a mess of life.
E. M. ForsterRead
Oxford is Oxford: not a mere receptacle for youth, like Cambridge. Perhaps it wants its inmates to love it rather than to love one another.
E. M. ForsterRead
The fact is we can only love what we know personally. And we cannot know much. In public affairs, in the rebuilding of civilization, something less dramatic and emotional is needed, namely tolerance.
E. M. ForsterRead
One person with passion is better than forty people merely interested.
E. M. ForsterRead
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