Artistic Weakness: A Thematic Analysis of D. H. Lawrence’s St Mawr

Abstract. D. H. Lawrence’s St Mawr (1925) is known as a modernist example of an open-ended and inconclusive work of art. The novella is abound with ideological dualities such as nature vs. civilization; man vs. woman, and body vs. spirit that stem from and make the core of the writer’s personal, philosophical and political beliefs. This article argues that the open-endedness of the novella is more a sign of Lawrence’s artistic weakness at handling an overload of symbols and ideas rather than a modernist element enriching the novella with different layers of meaning open to different interpretations. It is argued that, approaching the end, the reader feels that he is entrapped within a complex web of ideas for which Lawrence’s attempt to reach a resolution proves futile. Lawrence’s artistic weakness shows itself in his uncertainty regarding a resolution for the complicated dualities and mysterious symbols he introduces in his novella. St Mawr, accordingly, seems an unfinished work overloaded with philosophical ideas rather than a multi-layered text created by the visionary power of the imagination.

Keywords:

Lawrence, St Mawr, Resolution Uncertainty, Artistic weakness,

PDF

___

Becket, F. (2002). The Complete Critical Guide to D. H. Lawrence. London: Routledge.
Bell, M. (1992). D. H Lawrence: Language and Being. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Campbell, W. J. (2000). The Book of Great Books: A Guide to 100 World Classics. New York: MetroBooks.
Freeman, M. (1955). D. H. Lawrence: A Basic Study of His Ideas. New York: Grosset and Dunlap.
Gidley, M. (1974). Antipodes: D. H. Lawrence’s St Mawr. Ariel, 5(1), 25-41.
Goodheart, E. (1963). D. H. Lawrence: Artist and Rebel. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Kaye, P. (1999). Dostoevsky and English Modernism 1900-1930. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Kermode, F. (1973). d. h. lawrence. New York: The Viking Press.
Lawrence, D. H. (1914). Study of Thomas Hardy and Other Essays. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books.
Lawrence, D. H. (1977). Studies in Classical American Literature. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books.
Lawrence, D. H. (2001). The Rainbow. With introduction and notes by Lionel Kelly. London: Wordsworth Classics.
Lawrence, D. H. (1975). St Mawr and The Virgin and the Gipsy. Introduction by Richard Aldington. Middlesex: Penguin Books.
Leavis, F. R. (1979). D. H. Lawrence: Novelist. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
Moore, H. T. (Ed.). (1962). The Collected Letters of D. H. Lawrence. London: Heinmann.
Pritchard, R. E. (1971). D. H. Lawrence: Body of Darkness. London: Hutchinson University Library.
Sanders, S. (1973). D. H. Lawrence: The World of the Five Major Novels. New York: The Viking Press.
Schwarz, D. R. (2005). Reading the Modern British and Irish Novel 1890-1930. Malden: Blackwell Publishing.
Wilson, C. (1976). The Strength to Dream: Literature and the Imagination. London: Abacus.