A Room With A View: Italy And England

As obvious as it sounds, Italy and England are not the same place. They are two separate countries in two separate regions of Europe. For Lucy, the main character in A Room with a View, Italy and England are more than two different geographic locations; they symbolize two different lifestyles and mannerisms. Italy seems to be a place where anything can happen, and she can be free to simply live their lives; Italy is exciting and fun. Contrastly, England is a place where traditions still hold strong, and life is restricted by societal norms. England is cold, boring, and status quo. We see how each character is somehow an embodiment of where they are from. However, Mr. Emerson and George represent Italy despite being from England. Lucy is caught in some middle ground between the two.

When Mr. Emerson spoke to Charlotte and Lucy in Italy, Charlotte was rather surprised and disgusted. This culture shock is evident when the author states,“Generally at a pension people looked them over for a day or two before speaking… She knew that the intruder was ill-bred, even before she glanced at him” (Forster 4).Another example of the conflicting societal natures is exhibited when the Italian carriage driver kisses a woman in front of the characters. A scene ensues in which Mr. Eacker condemns the driver and lets it be known that he finds the situation inappropriate. His distaste for public affection only further shows off England’s rigid cultural expectations. Mr. Emerson steps in and showcases the differences between Italian lifestyle and British lifestyle when he says, “Lovers must on no account be separated” (Forster