‘There’s no woods left’: the progression of hope in William di Canzio’s <i>Alec</i> (2021) and E.M. Forster’s <i>Maurice</i> (1914/71)

In 2021 author William di Canzio published Alec: A Novel (2021), a literary text that purports to be both a prequel and a sequel to E.M. Forster’s now seminal Maurice (1971). The aim of this essay is to analyse and contrast the connections between both texts as exhibited by their endings, focusing mainly on their representation of hope in connection to queer experiences. Thus, I draw on Sara Ahmed’s theory of queer orientations and Rita Felski’s notion of ‘recognition’ to suggest that these novels are representations of queer hope. I propose to define this term here as a cross-historical and protean concept that avoids clichés often associated with ‘happy endings’ while articulating queer concerns, struggles, and – eventually – offering an orientation to alternative ways of living, emphasising the importance of literature as a surface through which to understand the history and challenges of LGBTQIA+ people through the 20th and 21st centuries.