A Feministic Study Of D.H. Lawrence's Lady Chatterley's Lover

David Herbert Lawrence (1885—1930) has been ranked one of the most important writers in British literature yet the most controversial one, in the twentieth century. He devoted all his life to explore the theme of harmonious human relation in literary works and expressed his strong protest over the degradation and alienation of human society caused by the Industrial Revolution.Lady Chatterley's Lover, his last full-length novel earned him great fame and strong criticism at the same time. After its first private publication in 1928, it shocked the world for Lawrence's daring description of sexuality; the British government banned it from public circulation. With the lifting of ban by the government, the novel reclaimed its status as a classic of British literature and Lawrence studies were revived. The writings of Lawrence are probed from distinctive angles and the focuses are diverse. Yet no fair and common agreement has been reached concerning his attitude towards women. Up to now less systematic study in this respect has been done.Based on feminist theories, and by way of textual analysis, this thesis presents a deep exploration of Lawrence's feminist concern embodied in LCL and makes a comparison of the two female images (Connie and Bertha), by introducing a term-New Woman, and finally centers on the progressive significance and limitations of his concepts of woman.The thesis consists of six chapters:Chapter one, the introduction part presents a brief overview of Lawrence and Lady Chatterley's Lover, including the literature reviews of the study, his life and career and synopsis of the thesis.In Chapter two, the author elaborates the theoretical framework of this thesis to indicate the significance and methodology of the study.Chapter three discusses the oppression of patriarchy and phallus worship and their presentation upon Connie in the novel and shakes off Connie's tenderness as a cloak of passivity and submissiveness.By bringing out the term of New Woman, Chapter four targets at Bertha Coutts' plight and reclaims her role as a spokesperson of New Woman.Chapter Five focuses on Lawrence's feminist orientations in real life and the progressive significance and limitations of his feminist ideas. Chapter Six draws a conclusion.