E.M. Forster's attitude and feelings about "his wood" are subtly, yet intensely portrayed by using a variety of tones, including those of contemplation and intellect, sentence manipulation, and biblical allusions.
             Forster's tone changes throughout this passage. It is contemplative at times, as well as intellectual. At the end of the first paragraph, Forster's sentence manipulation emits an inquisitive, thoughtful quality. "If you own things, what's there effect on you? What's the effect on me of my wood?" Here his interrogative statements portray a sense of inquiry, which then lead to a scholarly, philosophical tone. It becomes more intellectual when he begins to make biblical allusions and reflections on their relationship to his situation.
             Forster's biblical allusions make a better portrayal of his attitude on owning property. "Property produces men of weight, and it was a man of weight who failed to get into the Kingdom of Heaven." Referring to the verse of Matthew 19:24, he shows the relationship between the rich man and himself. He realizes the effect of having property on men and that it makes the narcissistic and bigheaded. He also uses the gospels' coupling of stoutness and slowness to depict the responsibility it requires to maintain property. He makes mention of all the things necessary to "accept an invitation to dinner or go for a bathe in the Jordan" showing that property may act more as a burden than a luxury. He states that his property "makes me feel heavy", demonstrating his uncertainties and reservations which portray his overall attitude of the circumstances. Because of his references to passages in the Bible, and how it is harder for a "heavy" man to get into heaven, he shows the reader his attitude toward property ownership by stating that his wood makes him feel heavy.
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