Abstract

D. H. Lawrence is one of 20th century's most prominent and influential writers whose reputation in the literary world has seen many fluctuations. During his lifetime Lawrence was praised for the psychological depth and nuance of his characterisation but was also reviled as a tasteless peddler of junk. He had to face legal persecution and censorship of his works, the most notorious being his last novel Lady Chatterley's Lover (1928). Lawrence's popularity gradually increased in the decades following his death and he was considered to be ahead of his time for his candid treatment of human sexuality. The appeal of Lawrence rapidly ebbed following the scathing critique of the apparent sexist and racist stance underlying his works by the feminist scholar Kate Millett in her seminal work Sexual Politics (1970). This paper is an attempt to reconsider the contentious literary legacy of Lawrence and his relevancy in the 21^st century. 

Keywords: Lawrence, Feminism, Censorship, Sexuality, Misogyny.

David Herbert Lawrence (1885-1930) was an English writer whose productive literary corpus includes essays, short stories, poems, novels, plays, literary criticism, travel books and letters. One of the most controversial and polarising literary figures during the 20^th century, Lawrence's works earned him both admiration and scorn. His frank exploration of primal instincts and desires of his characters made him notorious as a writer of smut with little artistic merit. Lawrence faced both legal and financial troubles owing to the controversial nature of his works and he chose a life of self-imposed exile which had a great impact on his later works. His literary reputation has often fluctuated, with his admirers calling him a misunderstood genius who was far ahead of his time and his detractors taking him to task for the perceived sexism and racism inherent in his works. Critical response to his works has rarely been unbiased or neutral.

"Never trust the artist. Trust the tale. The proper function of a critic is to save the tale from the artist who created it," Lawrence had famously proclaimed in Studies in Classic American Literature. Lawrence's advice to avoid falling into the trap of giving undue importance to the authorial intent came decades before Monroe C. Beardsley and William K. Wimsatt formulated their theory of intentional fallacy. While an author's intention need not always be necessary in order to understand a text, in certain cases it can enhance the reader's ability to appreciate the text on a deeper level.

Therefore, in order to better understand D. H. Lawrence and his views, it is imperative to understand the social milieu in which he spent his formative years. Lawrence was born to working class parents and grew up in the coal mining town of Eastwood, Nottinghamshire. In his childhood he frequently witnessed the conflicts between his parents which would greatly influence much of his fiction, especially his third novel Sons and Lovers. The correspondence of both Lawrence and his sister Ada has established the fact that Morel family closely resembles the Lawrence family. As a means to escape his rather gloomy life, young Lawrence would often venture out to explore the hilly country landscape which instilled in him a lifelong appreciation of the natural surroundings, a frequent setting of his fiction. In a famous essay, "Nottingham and the Mining Countryside," written towards the end of his life, Lawrence recalled his early life and background. In his works he often explored the lives of working class and the impact of industrialisation and modernisation on them. In Eastwood, Lawrence's religious and moral education was shaped by the local Congregational church, which gendered in him a sense of community and also influenced his personality and worldview. Even though he would later become sceptical towards religion, Lawrence often utilised Christian symbols and themes in his writings. Lawrence was also influenced by the scientific and intellectual developments of the times he lived in. There were Darwin's On the Origin of Species, Spencer's theory of social Darwinism and Freud's The Interpretations of Dreams, etc which challenged long-held beliefs and traditions. Furthermore, H. T. Mill's The Enfranchisement of Women and J. S. Mill's Subjection of Women both highlighted and questioned the social and legal subservience of women. Shaw and Ibsen would later popularise these issues in their highly influential plays. Mill also championed the cause of women's suffrage in the English parliament, although it was only enacted several decades later in 1918. By the end of the 19^th century, there were several radical social reforms which tackled these issues and problems. In short, the era was vibrant with a series of revolutionary ideas and events.

Lawrence was born during the final years of the Victorian age—a period which was characterised by contradictions. On the one hand, it experienced great technological advancements and prosperity, and on the other hand it witnessed repressive social customs and rampant inequity between the haves and the have-nots. While various religious movements were still going strong, the aforementioned scientific and intellectual advancements shook the foundation of traditional belief systems. Lawrence has been widely regarded as the literary successor of Thomas Hardy, owing to certain similarities in their worldview and how both defiantly challenged the Victorian prudishness and hypocrisy through their works. He also acknowledged the strong influence Hardy had on him in his Study of Thomas Hardy, where he presents an analysis of Hardy's works and his own views regarding art. At the turn of the century, various utopianist, feminist and fabianist reform movements were starting to gain traction among the populace. Though Lawrence wasn't directly involved in such social and political activities, he was exposed to the ideas of the intellectuals who would organise meetings in Eastwood where they discussed the pertinent issues of the day.

The role various women played in shaping Lawrence's personal philosophy and influencing his writing is highly significant. After his mother, the women who contributed not only towards the emotional and intellectual development of a young Lawrence, but also informed his literary career were Jessie Chambers, Alice Dax and Freida, respectively. Due to frail health, Lawrence was forced to leave schooling at the age of 16; he would later be employed as a teacher in the school at Eastwood. Several of Lawrence's friends and acquaintances here were women who were vocal supporters of various reform groups which sought personal and financial autonomy for them. The character of Ursula Brangwen from The Rainbow and its sequel Women in Love is said to be highly influenced by several of his female friends who valued social and economic independence for themselves. Lawrence befriended Chambers and bonded with her over their shared love for arts and literature. They were in a committed but platonic relationship for several years, during which Chambers also furthered his career when she sent a collection of Lawrence's poems for publication. Lawrence went on to employ characters influenced by her in his writings, most notably Miriam in Sons and Lovers. As his relationship with Chambers ended, Lawrence befriended Alice Dax, an older married woman who was a proponent of women's rights movement. Dax is widely believed to have inspired the character Clara in Sons and Lovers. Lawrence later met Frieda Weekley in 1912, an older German woman who was married to his former college professor. They fell in love and married after her divorce in 1914. This was also a time period which saw the breaking out of the First World War. Lawrence's frank opinions of anti-militarism made him rather unpopular with the establishment. Furthermore, his relationship with Frieda (a German national) caused Lawrence to be looked upon with suspicion for his perceived "unpatriotic" beliefs and German connections. The couple was even kept under military surveillance for a time. Next year, his fourth novel The Rainbow was suppressed on the grounds of obscenity and the authorities ordered its copies to be destroyed. The novel was fully published only after the end of the war and is now considered to be a work of great intellectual depth. After this adverse experience with the authorities, Lawrence and Frieda went on a self-imposed exile which he called his "savage pilgrimage." He only briefly returned twice to his native country and spent the rest of his life travelling across the globe with his wife. The travels of Lawrence around the world also influenced his philosophy which is reflected in his writings from the period. Even though their marriage saw various ups and downs, Frieda steadfastly remained Lawrence's mainstay.

It was during his exile that Lawrence completed Lady Chatterley's Lover, his last major work of fiction. Originally titled Tenderness, its publication only reinforced his reputation as a writer of pornography. Lawrence however, defended himself against such charges in a tract titled Pornography and Obscenity. The novel was controversial for its explicit language (albeit tame by today's permissive standards) and foregrounding of both male and female sexuality, which challenged the social taboos around marital, sexual and class relations. Lawrence continued to write in spite of his rapidly declining health and passed away in 1930, aged 44. In the years following his death, Lawrence was firmly placed among the "lesser" writers by the literary establishment. It was only with the re-assessment of literary critic F. R. Leavis that his reputation witnessed a gradual revival. When Lady Chatterley's Lover was published in its unexpurgated form by the Penguin Books in 1960, the publishers had to face a trial under the Obscene Publications Act of 1959. The trial ignited a debate on the freedom of artistic expression and Lawrence was heralded as a messiah of the sexual libertarianism during the 1960s.

The resurgence of Lawrence's reputation was short-lived, however. American activist and writer Kate Millett in her era-defining work Sexual Politics highlighted and questioned the perceived patriarchal sexism inherent in the works of several writers including Lawrence. This iconoclastic work became the official manifesto of the second-wave feminism. Decades before Millett denounced the sexual politics of Lawrence, it was French philosopher and writer Simone de Beauvoir who had first remarked on the notions of male supremacy inherent in the works of Lawrence and other male writers in her book The Second Sex.

In Sexual Politics, Millett talks about the perpetuation of male hegemony and heteronormativity in society which is reflected in the canonical works of western literature. Millett explores the power dynamics in the relationships between men and women. Men have been able to exercise power over women which is based on social constructs rather than having a natural or biological essence. She defines politics in a broader sense, reflecting a situation where one group holds power over another group. She similarly defines the act of sex not from an individual or personal standpoint; she defines it as being a part of the patriarchal power structure wherein the women are subjugated by men. All the constructs of society are essentially dominated by men which is reflected in the military, the police, science, political parties, etc. which are predominantly occupied by men. Millett delineates her theory of sexual politics and explains how throughout history women have been forced into submission by the patriarchal power structures and their bodies have been commodified and objectified. Millett argues that even with the advent of sexual liberation during the 1960s, the traditional gender roles remained the same. In the final part of the book, Millett discusses the sexually explicit scenes in the works of three writers, namely, Henry Miller, Norman Mailer and D. H. Lawrence. She contrasts them with Jean Genet whom she praises for his challenging of sexual hierarchy and his depiction of homosexual love. Mailer responded to Millett's critique with the article "The Prisoner of Sex," published in Harper's Magazine in which he defended Lawrence, Miller and himself.

Millett's focus is on various works of Lawrence such as Lady Chatterley's Lover, Sons and Lovers, Women in Love, The Fox, Aaron's Rod, The Plumed Serpent, "The Woman Who Rode Away," among others. She calls Lawrence "most talented and fervid of sexual politicians" and highlights the misogyny inherent in his male characters like Mellors who complain about women who want to play an active role instead of remaining passive and silently submitting to their partners during sex. Millett asserts that instead of challenging the Victorian prudishness regarding sexual matters, Lawrence is the pioneer of "phallic consciousness" which he ustilises to impose the "masculine ascendancy" over women. She also highlights the apparent sadistic misogyny inherent in Lawrence's short story "The Woman Who Rode Away" which climaxes with the ritualistic sacrifice of a white woman by the Native American tribe.

While Millett's criticism adversely affected Lawrence's reputation, there have also been certain literary works which have sought to defend Lawrence against the feminist critique of his works. These include Carol Dix's D. H. Lawrence and Women, Peter Balbert's D. H. Lawrence and the Phallic Imagination, and more recently, Frances Wilson's Burning Man: The Ascent of D. H. Lawrence. In her book, Dix examines the social background which informed Lawrence's worldview and argues that his conception of women wasn't of them being inferior or weaker as compared to men but he was a farsighted man who portrayed his women characters as having a strong sense of individuality and willingness to take charge of their own lives. Peter Balbert contends in his book that Lawrence's conception of women and gender dynamics was distorted by the feminist critics who misread and misrepresented his works. He defends Lawrence against what he views as feminists' reductive and myopic interpretation of Lawrence's works. Wilson's Burning Man is modeled on the triptych form of Dante Alighieri's Divina Commedia (Divine Comedy). She focuses on three different periods of Lawrence's life, identifying them as Inferno, Purgatory and Paradise respectively. She also addresses Millett's critique of Lawrence, especially her denouncement of the short story "The Woman Who Rode Away," claiming it to be an allegory which uncovers the demonic soul of modern America.

Millett's critique of the Lawrentian man is based on her interpretation that it is a representation of Lawrence's ideology. While it is tempting to equate Lawrence the writer to his fictional characters, Lawrentian ideology isn't necessarily reflected in his characters. Even though Mellors despises women for their desire to enjoy sex on their own terms, his lover Connie is upfront in her lust for him and is an active participant in their affair. Connie admits to her father that her lover leaves her to be her "own mistress entirely," suggesting that she isn't in a subordinate position in her relationship with him. (276) She is also able to triumphantly emerge from under the constraints that her husband Clifford had forced onto her. While not an overt feminist, Lawrence frequently wrote wilful female protagonists in his fiction. He often portrayed his women characters as being more sensible and instinctive than the men in their lives. These characters often defy societal expectations and are unapologetic about their desires and aspirations. A woman's virginity and domesticity were her most valuable assets in the Victorian England, a notion which Lawrence came to reject. He intimately portrayed women's needs, hopes, emotions and fears in a sympathetic manner in his works. While these characters may not always end up on a happy note, Lawrence refuses to judge them for the choices they make. In his essay "Give Her a Pattern," Lawrence decries the tendency of men to try and fit women into certain fixed patterns. He argues that men have set specific rules and obligations for women which they expect them to faithfully abide. Imposing specific rules or patterns on women tends to reduce them to mere objects. Lawrence calls men fools for expecting women to act and behave in accordance with their rules or patterns. In conclusion he says, "If they want anything from women, let them give women a decent, satisfying idea of womanhood—not these trick patterns of washed-out idiots." (165) Lawrence is the first literary writer to describe the female sexual pleasure in Lady Chatterley's Lover. The imagery he utilised in doing so still continues to dominate the popular literary discourse even today.

Thus, Lawrence's conception of women is not sexist as has been alleged by the feminist critics. On the contrary, Lawrence portrays them as bold, brave and instinctive beings who come toward a better understanding of themselves through their life experiences. Irrespective of how one interprets his ideology, the themes Lawrence often explored in his works like companionship, importance of intimacy, dynamics of relationships between men and women, primitivism, etc have ensured the relevancy of his works almost a century after his death.

References:

1.     Lawrence, D. H. Lady Chatterley's Lover. Introduction by Blake Morrison, Vintage Books, 2011.

2.     Lawrence, D. H. "Give Her a Pattern." Late Essays and Articles, edited by James T. Boulton. Cambridge University Press, New York, 2004, pp. 160-165.

3.     Poplawski, Paul, and John Worthen. D. H. Lawrence: A Reference Companion. Greenwood Press, 1996.

4.     Becket, Fiona. The Complete Critical Guide to D. H. Lawrence. Routledge, 2002.

5.     Millett, Kate. Sexual Politics. Columbia University Press, 2016.

6.     Kirkham, Michael. "D. H. Lawrence and Social Consciousness." Mosaic: An Interdisciplinary Critical Journal, Autumn 1978, Vol. 12, No. 1, LITERATURE AND IDEAS (Autumn 1978), pp. 79-92. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/24777112.