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D.H. Lawrence


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D.H. Lawrence (1885-1930), English novelist, storywriter, critic, poet and painter, one of the greatest figures in 20th-century English literature. "Snake" and "How Beastly the Bourgeoisie is" are probably his most anthologized poems.

David Herbert Lawrence was born on September 11, 1885, in Eastwood, Nottinghamshire, central England. He was the fourth child of a struggling coal miner who was a heavy drinker. His mother was a former schoolteacher, greatly superior in education to her husband. Lawrence's childhood was dominated by poverty and friction between his parents. He was educated at Nottingham High School, to which he had won a scholarship. He worked as a clerk in a surgical appliance factory and then for four years as a pupil-teacher. After studies at Nottingham University, Lawrence matriculated at 22 and briefly pursued a teaching career. Lawrence's mother died in 1910; he helped her die by giving her an overdose of sleeping medicine.

In 1909, a number of Lawrence's poems were published by Ford Max Ford in the English Review. The appearance of his first novel, The White Peacock(1911), launched Lawrence into a writing career. In 1912 he met Frieda von Richthofen, the professor Ernest Weekly's wife and fell in love with her. Frieda left her husband and three children, and they eloped to Bavaria. Lawrence's novel Sons and Lovers appeared in 1913 and was based on his childhood . In 1914 Lawrence married Frieda von Richthofen, and traveled with her in several countries. Lawrence's fourth novel, The Rainbow (1915), was about two sisters growing up in the north of England. Lawrence started to write The Lost Girl in Italy. He dropped the novel for some years and rewrote the story in an old Sicilian farmhouse near Taormina in 1920.

During the First World War Lawrence and his wife were unable to obtain passports and were targets of constant harassment from the authorities. They were accused of spying for the Germans and officially expelled from Cornwall in 1917. The Lawrences were not permitted to emigrate until 1919, when their years of wandering began.


Lawrence's best known work is Lady Chatterly's Lover, first published privately in Florence in 1928. It tells of the love affair between a wealthy, married woman, and a man who works on her husband's estate. The book was banned for a time in both UK and the US as pornographic. Lawrence's other novels from the 1920s include Women In Love (1920), a sequel to The Rainbow.

Aaron's Rod (1922) shows the influence of Nietzsche, and in Kangaroo (1923) Lawrence expressed his own idea of a 'superman'. The Plumed Serpent (1926) was a vivid evocation of Mexico and its ancient Aztec religion. The Man Who Died (1929), is a bold story of Christ's Resurrection. Lawrence's non-fiction works include Movements In European History(1921), Psychoanalysis And The Unconscious (1922) and Studies In Classic American Literature (1923).

D.H. Lawrence died in Vence, France on March 2, 1930. He also gained posthumous renown for his expressionistic paintings completed in the 1920s.

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Recent Forum Posts on D.H. Lawrence

Help me figure out this quote by DH Lawrence!

Hey guys, I'm new to this place but I'm hoping someone is willing to take a few moments to think about something that's been troubling me for some time now. I'm into quotations and reading up on old litterature and what not and I happend to stumble upon this quote by DH Lawrence: "There's always the hyena of morality at the garden gate, and the real wolf at the end of the street." Now I can't really figure out the symbolism or meaning.. I take it "garden gate" is literally the porch to someone's home.. but that's really as far as I've got it. An hyena is (from wiki): "Many cultures, including those in Africa, have historically viewed the hyena negatively, associating them with gluttony, uncleanliness and cowardice." And of course it's a scavenger.. not very intellectual but very "program", so to speak. Now it's an "hyena of morality"... Lawrence lived a long time ago and morality at the time was probably synonymous with religious dogma meaning "morality" would follow you around like an hyena, not necessarily dangerous but definitely annoying and a nuisance.. Anyway the point is I'm stuck and I would very much like if someone could help me out? :)

Posted By spite519 at Tue 15 Dec 2009, 1:46 PM in Lawrence, D.H. || 37 Replies

The Elephant is slow to mate Meaning?

The elephant, the huge old beast, is slow to mate; he finds a female, they show no haste they wait for the sympathy in their vast shy hearts slowly, slowly to rouse as they loiter along the river-beds and drink and browse and dash in panic through the brake of forest with the herd, and sleep in massive silence, and wake together, without a word. So slowly the great hot elephant hearts grow full of desire, and the great beasts mate in secret at last, hiding their fire. Oldest they are and the wisest of beasts so they know at last how to wait for the loneliest of feasts for the full repast. They do not snatch, they do not tear; their massive blood moves as the moon-tides, near, more near till they touch in flood. i was assign to write a 350 word analysis/meaning of this poems by D.H Lawrence but im not that good with poetry so i need some help ;[

Posted By skyyeatplane at Sat 12 Dec 2009, 5:02 PM in Lawrence, D.H. || 0 Replies

violence in D.H.Lawrence's poetry

hi i am a new member. i have found this site by accident as i was searching for some information about violence in D.H.Lawrence's poems. In fact i need to write an essay about his reworkings and intertexuality. I found people who know a lot about him and his work. I was wondering if somebody could give me some useful advice. I am not sure if what i do is against the rules of this forum. if so i am sorry since i have never been to this site i am not accustomed to the rules. Besides english is not my first language thus i fear to have misundertood some points about the forum.

Posted By mishy at Fri 20 Nov 2009, 3:58 PM in Lawrence, D.H. || 1 Reply

Etruscan Places

I live not too far from the Etruscan towns Lawrence immortalized in Etruscan Places -- and his readings of those places have influenced by own fiction. I have traveled Sardinia far and wide, with Lawrence's SEa and Sardinia in my pocket and have marveled at how accurate some of his descriptions of the spirit of those places still ring true despite the facade of modernity under which the rough and real ancestral Sardinia is concealed. For the last several years, I have also been teaching a literary travel writing course to American undergrads on a studyabroad program based in the Etruscan area -- and on my required reading list I have put, of course, Lawrence's Italian poems and Etruscan places. I never cease to be devastated by my students' reaction to the latter. They simply hate the book, and find it boring, bombastic, patronizing. And of course, well, we all know Lawrence's little faults, but love him anyway. I'd be interested in hearing anyone's suggestions for teaching this book, or experiences in teaching it -- or even their follow up of his journeys in Italy

Posted By LLItaly at Tue 13 Oct 2009, 6:12 AM in Lawrence, D.H. || 6 Replies

D. H. Lawrence, Ship of Death

With the somewhat success of The Man With the Blue Guitar thread, I thought it may be a good idea to start a thread on this great poem by D. H. Lawrence, The Ship of Death - available here: http://www.poetryconnection.net/poets/D.H._Lawrence/15630 I Now it is autumn and the falling fruit and the long journey towards oblivion. The apples falling like great drops of dew to bruise themselves an exit from themselves. And it is time to go, to bid farewell to one's own self, and find an exit from the fallen self. ................................ V Build then the ship of death, for you must take the longest journey, to oblivion. And die the death, the long and painful death that lies between the old self and the new. Already our bodies are fallen, bruised, badly bruised, already our souls are oozing through the exit of the cruel bruise. Already the dark and endless ocean of the end is washing in through the breaches of our wounds, Already the flood is upon us. Oh build your ship of death, your little ark and furnish it with food, with little cakes, and wine for the dark flight down oblivion. Any takers - what do you make of it? Seems a strange sort of poem to me, loaded with a dark sort of irony - I'll post more on it later with some other observations if other people feel like responding.

Posted By JBI at Thu 23 Jul 2009, 11:45 PM in Lawrence, D.H. || 100 Replies

The Ladybird - D.H Lawrence

I'm having some trouble understanding the importance and what the ladybird and the thimble represent in the story. I have an idea about the thimble but i'm quite lost as what to think about the ladybird. Help would be much appreciated.

Posted By limajean at Wed 24 Jun 2009, 9:39 PM in Lawrence, D.H. || 2 Replies

'People' ?

Hello All. I am searching for a D.H.Lawrence poem that may be entitled 'People'. It contains the lines ' I like people' '...as long as I can see their aloneness alive inside of them' '...have the illusion that there is space enough within the world'. Please help me, it would be much appreciated. Many thanks.

Posted By Lyrabel at Wed 27 May 2009, 9:04 AM in Lawrence, D.H. || 0 Replies

Dh's children question

Ive been doing some reasearch on Dh and havent found any info about whether he had any children...? Anyone have any ideas? Seems the answer is "no" though as far as I can tell...

Posted By sivvy at Sat 10 Jan 2009, 8:00 AM in Lawrence, D.H. || 6 Replies

d.h.lawrence on town planning and suburbs

Hi This is my first post so please do let me know if I'm doing something wrong... Town planner Thomas Sharp in his book Town Planning (1940) cites D.H.Lawrence: "a great scrabble of ugly pettiness over the face of the land" " don't know how to build a city, how to think of one, how to live in one" "they are all suburban, pseudo-cottagy and not one of them knows how to be truly utban" However, Sharp does not give the reference. Would you know the source of these quotations? Are you aware of any work by Lawrence in which he may criticise town planning or suburbs? Thank you so much in advance I promise to read more D.H. Lawrence in the future... lorenza

Posted By lorenza at Wed 12 Nov 2008, 11:04 AM in Lawrence, D.H. || 2 Replies

Is it necessary to read 'The Rainbow' before 'Women in love'?

Is it necessary to read 'The Rainbow' before 'Women in love'? I accidentally bought 'Women in love'. Later I came to know that it is a sequel to Rainbow. Please clarify..shall I start reading the book...wouldn't there be any plot confusions?

Posted By Sorceress at Sat 11 Oct 2008, 11:01 PM in Lawrence, D.H. || 4 Replies

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