I like Ch12 because it explains rather a lot about Clive. But for me, it definitely confirms that Maurice is not right for him even if he falls head over heels in love (which he seems to do, more or less, although I wouldn't have thought him capable of that). As I've just said in a comment to last week's post, I think one of the main problems with Clive's dream of companionship is that it's one that he's arrived alone, which means it's highly likely that no matter who he is with, he'll never be able to quite reach it.
Furthermore, it's a dream of a relationship that can only ever become true in a setting such as Cambridge, and even there there are deans and the like who can and will interfere. And even at Cambridge, people who might be available, so to speak, will not all share the same dreams (Clive recognises that Risley's circle of friends is not right for him, although their existence seems to give him some comfort).
And even the narrator implies that Clive was wrong in trying to approach Maurice intellectually, rather by "trusting the body" (or words to that effect). I had forgotten, though, that at that point Clive is said to have recognised that Maurice is in love with him, which is why he made his move. The trouble was, Maurice hadn't.
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Fundamental unsuitability
Date: 2009-06-20 04:19 pm (UTC)Furthermore, it's a dream of a relationship that can only ever become true in a setting such as Cambridge, and even there there are deans and the like who can and will interfere. And even at Cambridge, people who might be available, so to speak, will not all share the same dreams (Clive recognises that Risley's circle of friends is not right for him, although their existence seems to give him some comfort).
And even the narrator implies that Clive was wrong in trying to approach Maurice intellectually, rather by "trusting the body" (or words to that effect). I had forgotten, though, that at that point Clive is said to have recognised that Maurice is in love with him, which is why he made his move. The trouble was, Maurice hadn't.