Lucy Honeychurch learns that the rules of society can and sometimes should-be broken. She learns that she doesn't have to love a man just because everybody else tells her he's right for her. She finally follows her own instincts to find happiness. Forster's famous novel explores the dilemma of a woman who is forced to make a decision between marrying a wealthy man she will never love and a man who is slightly impoverished with whom she knows she can be happy.