On a breezy beach trip, Maurice Hall, an 11-year-old schoolboy, is introduced to the sacred mystery of sex by a teacher who hopes to prepare him for the changes of puberty as a fatherless child.
Years later in 1909, Maurice is at Cambridge, where he befriends the aristocratic Viscount Risley and the rich, handsome Clive Durham. Clive confesses his love, and Maurice is at first horrified, only to realize that he feels the same. The two begin a secret love affair, but at Clive’s insistence, their relationship remains non-sexual to protect their social positions. Their bond endures even after Maurice is expelled from Cambridge and begins a new career as a stockbroker in London.
The pair keep their feelings quiet, but fear intensifies when Risley is arrested and sentenced to six months’ hard labour after soliciting sex from a soldier. Clive, afraid of being exposed as homosexual, breaks off the relationship. After a trip to Greece, Clive—under pressure from his widowed mother—marries a naive, wealthy girl named Anne and settles into a conventional life at his estate, Pendersleigh.
Maurice seeks help from his family physician, Dr. Barry, who dismisses his doubts as "rubbish." He then turns to Dr. Lasker-Jones, who tries to cure his homosexual longings with hypnosis. During visits to Pendersleigh, Maurice draws the attention of Alec Scudder, the under-gamekeeper who plans to emigrate to Argentina. Maurice initially ignores Alec and even treats him with contempt, but Alec persists, spying on Maurice at night. Simcox, the butler, hints at Maurice’s past, suggesting that his nature might be exposed. One night, Alec climbs a ladder and enters Maurice’s bedroom through an open window, kissing him. Maurice, though surprised, does not resist.
After their first night together, Maurice receives a letter from Alec proposing they meet at the Pendersleigh boathouse. He misreads it as blackmail and returns to Lasker-Jones, who warns that England has historically been slow to accept human nature and advises emigrating to a country where homosexuality is not criminalised, like France or Italy. When Maurice fails to appear at the boathouse, Alec travels to London and visits him at his offices, causing surprise among Maurice’s colleagues.
The two eventually meet at the British Museum to talk, and Maurice begins to call Alec by his first name. They spend the night together in a hotel room, and as Alec leaves the next morning he explains that his departure for Argentina is imminent and they will not see each other again. Maurice goes to the port to give Alec a parting gift, only to discover that Alec has missed the sailing. He then returns to Pendersleigh and confesses to Clive his love for Alec. Clive, who had hoped Maurice would marry, is bewildered by this turn of events. The two separate, and Maurice goes to the boathouse looking for Alec, who is waiting. Alec has left his family and abandoned his plans to emigrate to stay with Maurice, telling him, "Now we shan’t never be parted." Meanwhile, Clive briefly reminisces about their time together before the night ends. > Now we shan't never be parted.
