Lucy In A Room With A View

A Room with a View follows the experience of Lucy in Florence, Italy and Surrey, England (general location was referred to as Summer Street or Surrey Hills throughout the book). These two places are presented as near polar opposites in the novel. Examining how they differ helps to explain Lucy’s conflict with identity and the meaning of the novel. Surrey, England represented shelter in the novel. Others in the area moved there specifically because it was a refuge for particular ideas and cultures: “were filled by people who came, not from the district, but from London, and who mistook the Honeychurches for the remnants of an indigenous aristocracy.” (Page 76). They were also very intent on preserving the type of community that thrived there: “’That is exactly what I fear, Mr. Vyse. It will attract the wrong type of people.’” (Page 83, with reference to a vacant house). Consequently, they suppressed anything they thought was abnormal. In this environment, until her trip to Florence, Lucy was raised as just another part of the community and was shaped by community values.
For this reason, Florence in the novel represented exposure. The city’s art, architecture, and diverse population (partially as a result of tourists) evoked many different thoughts and emotions in Lucy and others: “she wanted something big, and she believed that it would have come to her on the wind-swept platform of an electric tram.” (Page 31). As a result of this diversity, there was the sensation that anyone could be anything in Florence. There was much tolerance for different behaviors or ideals, which was very different from Surrey. This sensation was necessary for Lucy to begin her search for identity. Instead of feeling that she must follow a crowd - for there was no crowd - Lucy started to look within herself: “’At last,’ thought she, ‘I shall understand myself.’” (Page