A Pitiable Mr Morel?

[Anonymous]

I completely agree. In fact, I felt that pity for Mr. Morel very early in the novel, directly after Paul's birth. At one point, he goes into the room to sit by Mrs. Morel's bed and he aches to kiss her or share a few tender words or moments with her. My heart broke when I read that. I believe he had a truely terrible temper and manner at times, but his want of reconciliation is certainly evident and the fact that Mrs. Morel's coldness smited any confidence he had in apologizing or forming a bond with her again hurts me for the man. Despite his faults, I admire him for how hardworking he was. I can barely imagine it. Actually, I found him to be very selfless on many levels. While he denied Mrs. Morel money on a few occasions, she denied him his children, the warmth of his home (which he provided for), and any connection with her for the rest of their lives. I am not prejudice to either gender, I may even be considered a mild feminist, but I felt this woman, Mrs. Morel, was quite unjust to her husband.

[Unregistered]

Did anyone feel any pity for Mr Morel towards the end of the novel, especially when Mrs Morel was dying from cancer? I remember the part where Paul's father enters the little room with tea for his wife, he is mostly ignored and then banished from existence when Paul enters. His temper, his actions and his hostility as a husband were inarguably horrible, but somehow, at moments like this, and even when William died, i felt a small amount of sadness for this man, day after day working in the dark of the coal mines, and coming home to a family, that most expectantly, are estranged from him, cetainly due to his own doing. Is not his character just as pitiable as the mother who sucks the life from her beloved children, and the young man who is incapable of truly loving a woman other than his mother? Sons and Lovers is a wonderful book, but the deep scars of the characters, intertwined in a sad circle of dependency, can be depressing at the best of times.