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Part1MyWoodbyE.M.ForsterAbriefintroductiontoE.M.ForsterE.M.ForsterwasborninLondon,hewasanEnglishnovelist,shortstorywriter,essayist,philosopherandhewasalsoahumanist.•“MyWood”ispartofForster‘sEssay，AbingerHarvestin1936.Inthisessay，Forsterillustratessomeeffectsproducedbypossessingproperty.Inanironictonewithwisdomandhumor,Forsteralsousesmanyallusionsandquotationsinthisessay.•Hecomesupwithfourphilosophicalquestionsandsuggeststhattheprivateownershipmaynotbringaboutthehappinessaswehaveexpected.•Atthebeginningoftheessay,Forsterraisesasignificantquestionthatis“Whatistheeffectofpropertyuponthecharacter?”Intheendoftheessay,Forstertellsushisanswer,hebelievesthatowningfortunemakesapersonbecomeenormouslystout,endlesslyavaricious,pseudo-creativeandintenselyselfish.•Then,wewilltalkabouthowForstergiveushisanswerstepbystepinthisessay.Inthefirstplace,itmakesmefeelheavy.•ForsterbelievesthatpropertyproducesmanofweightanditwasamanofweightwhofailedtogetintotheKingdomofHeaven.•Hegivesusanallusiontoillustratethispoint.Astoutmanintheparablecouldnotpassthroughthecrystallineentrancebuthesawbeneathhimacomparativelyslimcamelpassingthroughtheeyeofaneedle.•Forsterpointsoutwhatisperfectlyobviousbytheallusionthatisifwehavealotofthingswecannotmoveaboutalot.•InForster’sownwords,thatfurniturerequiresdusting,dustersrequireservants,andservantsrequireinsurancestamps.Sothewholetangleofthingsismorecomplexandmakesusthinkmore.•Andthisistheeffectofburdenthatresultsfromproperty.Althoughtheeffectissomewhatseeminglycontradictory,actuallyitisanundeniableeffect,yetseldomrealized.Inthesecondplace,itmakesmefeelitoughttobelarger.•Inthisparagraph,Forsterwrites“TheotherdayIheardatwigsnapinit.Iwasannoyedatfirst,forIthoughtthatsomeonewasblackerrying,anddepreciatingthevalueoftheundergrowth.”•Forsterwantstoexpressthatsomeoneisblackerryinginhiswoodandtheplantsinhiswoodmaybetrodden.Heusesthemockseriousness,especiallytheexpressionof“depreciatingtheundergrowth”,whichoverstatestheauthor’sgingerlinessthatcomesfromhispossession.•Healsousesanallusioninthisparagraph.IntheBible,AhaboccupiedNaboth’svineyardoutofgreedy.Thisstorysuggeststhattheauthorisnotsatisfiedwithhissmallwoodandreflectstheprocessthattheauthorbecomesavariciousafterhehasseenabirdfallsonhisneighbor’sfield.Inthethirdplace,propertymakesitsownerfeelthatheoughttodosomethingtoit.Yetheisn'tsurewhat.•Inthisparagraph,Forsterholdstheviewthatourlifeonearthismaterialandcarnalbynature.Butwehavenotyetlearnedtomanageourmaterialismandcarnalityproperty;theyarestillapartofthedesireforownership.ForsterquotesDante’swords,“Possessionisonewithloss.”•Namely,whenwegainsomething,simultaneouslywelosesomething.Forstertriestomakeusunderstandtheinseparablerelationshipbetweenthepropertyandthedesire.Whilewhatalldesiresforpropertycanbringtohumanisnothingmorethanadream.Andthisbringsustoourfourthandfinalpoint:theblackberries.•Inthelastparagraph,nowForster,asanewlypropertyowner,conveyshisattitudetowardsownership.HeimaginesthathewillbecomeashamelessandselfishpropertyownerjustastheownerwhosewoodnearLymeRegisandDivesinHell.•Whereisthepromisedsweetnessandpleasureinowningproperty?•Forsterexpressesthatouterpropertyrarelybringsinnertreasure.Humanmuststoppursuingoutwardwealthblindly,forindoingso,humanwilleventuallybecomehollowandsurrendertobitternessanddarkness.