The Voice of “One” (1a)

One may as well begin with Helen’s Letters to her Sister.

Line 1, Chapter 1

What a way to start a masterwork. The very first word of the very first line shows you a human being is telling this story.

One of the things I love about Howards End is the narrator’s chummy personality. He has a point of view, opinions, and a voice. He is a real person, rather than an all-knowing god. There’s a loose directness in his tone: “We’re all pals here, and I’m not going to hold anything back. Oh my friend, this is a long, complicated story, but I can’t wait for you to hear it.” I image EM F leaning forward in his chair, a little overwhelmed with deciding where to begin.

Have you ever seen “The Third Man?” It has that wonderful, casual, quirky opening narration where director Carol Reed tells us in his own voice about Vienna after the war. A few seconds in, he becomes excited and a little overwhelmed about the story he wants to tell. He stutters as he introduces our main characters, Harry Lime and Holly Martins.

“Oh, I was gonna tell you, wait, I was gonna tell you about Holly Martins, an American. Came all the way here to visit a friend of his. The name was Lime, Harry Lime.”

Carol Reed’s opening narration of “The Third Man”

Then he dives into the story. The opening of Howards End reminds me of that.

I’ve always imagined EM F beginning Howards End with the same kind of buzzy excitement:

After thinking about it, Forster finally concludes, “The letters will do as well as anything else,” and, having chosen his entry point, he leans back in his chair, focuses on a spot high up on the ceiling, and dives in.

“One may as well begin with Helen’s letters to her sister.