How does The Portrait of a Lady and one other text represent the concept “Only Connect: Perspectives on Self and Other."Consider how each text...

You have asked a big question, and I am only going to be
able to give a few suggestions for you to think about rather than giving you a complete
answer. Firstly, however, for the other novel, the famous phrase "only connect" is
actually taken from E. M. Forster in writing about his novel, Howards
End, and so you might want to think about using that as your other novel to
compare and contrast with The Portrait of a
Lady.

The major theme of Howards
End is connection and how we connect with others and within ourselves. As the
novel shows it is actually incredibly difficult to connect with others, and even harder
at times to sustain those connections. By examining two opposing families, the Schlegels
(represeting imagination and idealism) and the Wilcoxes (representing commercialism,
practicality and pragmatism) we are presented with two alternative ways of approaching
forming connections. For the Schlegels, as is shown by their friendship with Leonard
Bast, the personal relationship is infinitely more important than the public
relationship, and they support the individual vs. the institution. Obviously, for the
Wilcoxes, the opposite is true as social niceties and formalities and business ethics
are the most important guide in our relationships.

Clearly
the marriage of Margaret Schlegel and Henry Wilcox repersents, on her part at least, an
understanding of the Wilcox mentality. What challenges their connection is Henry's
inability to associate Helen's pregnancy and sexual transgression with his own affair
with Mrs. Bast. However, at the end, he is able to reassess his own past actions, and
the connection is maintained as Henry lives with his wife and Helen and her illegitimate
child in Howards End.

As far as The Portrait of a
Lady goes, clearly we see Isabel Archer's idealism and naivety preventing her
from forming connections. It is her desire to experience life and to live it fully that
cause her to turn down a marriage proposal from Lord Warburton. It is her mistaken
belief that Gilbert Osmond will help her to achieve her dreams that cause her to marry
him. Yet she is a character who internally at least never seems to be able to connect
with reality and with the true nature of things. She always seems to allow her idealism
to keep others at a distance. However, it is when tragedy strikes, and she receives news
of the imminent death of her cousin, Ralph Touchett, that she is able to connect between
her feelings and emotions and others. She defies her husband, even though this is going
to bring her problems on her return, and goes to England to see Ralph die. Arguably, her
final meeting with her beloved cousin and his urgings for her to be happy and then her
confrontation with Caspar Goodwood and her subsequent refusal of his offer allows her
once again to connect between her inner and outer life. Her decision to return to her
husband, although hotly debated by critics, could be seen as her final decision to live
the life that she promised to lead, fulfilling her responsibilities to both Pansy and
Gilbert, rather than constantly dreaming after another life.