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Unit 21: D.H. Lawrence — Sons and Lovers

be offended, penning a large number of satirical poems, published under the title of “Pansies” Notes
and “Nettles”, as well as a tract on Pornography and Obscenity.
The return to Italy allowed Lawrence to renew old friendships; during these years he was
particularly close to Aldous Huxley, who was to edit the first collection of Lawrence’s letters
after his death, along with a memoir. With artist Earl Brewster, Lawrence visited a number of
local archaeological sites in April 1927. The resulting essays describing these visits to old
tombs were written up and collected together as Sketches of Etruscan Places, a book that
contrasts the lively past with Benito Mussolini’s fascism. Lawrence continued to produce
fiction, including short stories and The Escaped Cock (also published as The Man Who Died),
an unorthodox reworking of the story of Jesus Christ’s Resurrection. During these final years
Lawrence renewed a serious interest in oil painting. Official harassment persisted and an
exhibition of some of these pictures at the Warren Gallery in London was raided by the police
in mid 1929 and a number of works were confiscated. Nine of the Lawrence oils have been on
permanent display in the La Fonda Hotel in Taos since shortly after Frieda’s death. They hang
in a small gallery just off the main lobby and are available for viewing.

Death

Lawrence continued to write despite his failing health. In his last months he wrote numerous
poems, reviews and essays, as well as a robust defence of his last novel against those who
sought to suppress it. His last significant work was a reflection on the Book of Revelation,
Apocalypse. After being discharged from a sanatorium, he died at the Villa Robermond in
Vence, France from complications of tuberculosis. Frieda Weekly commissioned an elaborate
headstone for his grave bearing a mosaic of his adopted emblem of the phoenix. [12] After
Lawrence’s death, Frieda married Angelo Ravagli. She returned to live on the ranch in Taos
and later her third husband brought Lawrence’s ashes to rest there in a small chapel set amid
the mountains of New Mexico.

Notes The headstone has recently been donated to D.H. Lawrence Heritage and is now
on display in the D.H. Lawrence Birthplace Museum in his home town of Eastwood,
Nottinghamshire.

21.2 D.H. Lawrence—Sons and Lovers: Introduction to the Text

21.2.1 Written Works

Novels
Lawrence is perhaps best known for his novels Sons and Lovers, The Rainbow, Women in
Love and Lady Chatterley’s Lover. Within these Lawrence explores the possibilities for life
and living within an industrial setting. In particular Lawrence is concerned with the nature
of relationships that can be had within such settings. Though often classed as a realist, Lawrence’s
use of his characters can be better understood with reference to his philosophy. His use of
sexual activity, though shocking at the time, has its roots in this highly personal way of
thinking and being. It is worth noting that Lawrence was very interested in human touch
behaviour and that his interest in physical intimacy has its roots in a desire to restore our
emphasis on the body, and re-balance it with what he perceived to be western civilisation’s

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