Howards End Lesson Plan

Why do the sisters struggle to connect when they first see each other at Howards End? What finally allows them to find common ground?

When the sisters first meet and Margaret discovers Helen's pregnancy, they cannot find a way back to their old warmth and intimacy. The narrator states, "Something had come between them. Perhaps it was Society, which henceforward would exclude Helen. Perhaps it was a third life, already potent as a spirit." The sisters realize that there is no way they can share life together anymore. Helen has committed herself to England by marrying Henry, and Helen has irrevocably cut herself off from England by conceiving an illegitimate child. There...