The Other Side Of Hedge
The Other Side Of Hedge
In the short story, “The Other side of the Hedge” by E.M. Forster, he depicts a man’s struggle toward an ultimate goal of heaven, with the hedge representing his passage to the afterlife, and the use of water to symbolize his purification; therefore, his brother helps him enter a state of happiness, so he can accept his own death. His journey into the afterlife is difficult due to his unwillingness to give up his need for competition. Moreover, symbolic metaphors, such as the hedge and water, introduce the man to his new life where his self-realization contradicts his new environment. Nevertheless, with the help of his brother, he notices that the road straight ahead has no ending and that all things reach an ultimate end, death. From this he realizes death doesn’t necessarily lead to the end of his life, but the start of a new beginning.
The main character’s desire for competition enables him to continue the journey, without the realization of its outcome. The figure in the story persistently tries to find the end of the road by never giving up. I found it difficult walking for I was always trying to out-distance my companion, and there was no advantage in doing this if the place led nowhere. Is said by the man when he comprehends where the road eventually leads to and understands that the road has no exit. All the man believes is that there is a presence of fate, he must reach, regardless of the circumstances. This inner competition within himself drives him to achieve his goal of happiness, unaware that the trip he is taking leads to death.
E.M. Forster’s symbolic metaphor contradicts the man’s journey into the afterlife. The most significant symbols used throughout the tale are the brown-crackling hedge and the water from the moat. Forster writes, “dusty under foot, with brown cracking hedges on either side as far as the eye could reach.” Represents the transition from life on earth to the afterlife. “Suddenly cold water closed round my head, and I seemed sinking down forever. I had fallen out the hedge into a deep pool.” Describes the character being baptized into a new environment. This cleansing of his body and soul enables him to continue his difficult journey, enabling him to come to terms...