The Manifestation Of D. H. Lawrence's Critical Views On Literature In His Own Novels

While Lawrence's literary creations have received much interest for intensive research and study, and there have been quite a lot of achievements in the academic field, the study on his literary views and criticism falls far behind, either in quantity or in diversity of perspectives. In his literary life, Lawrence has conducted serious and substantial critical practices in form of prefaces, reviews, correspondence, and miscellaneous essays that reflect his critical views on literature. While his views reveal his own perceptions on the creation of literary works, ranging from the theory of the novel to the relation of art to morality, they are also applicable to his own works.Among the piles of insightful commentaries by Lawrence, this paper picks up four of the most significant views, and tries to explore how these views are illustrated throughout the major fictional works of his own. First, the relationship between man and woman is the basic concern of Lawrence's novels, and The Rainbow and Women in Love, if considered together, which trace the love and marriages taking place in the three generations of the Brangwens, are actually Lawrence's unremitting explorations of the ideal relation mode between the two sexes. Secondly, in Lawrence's views, there are three essential qualities of novel—"quick","interrelated", and"honorable". Women in Love, which represents the highest maturity and skills in techniques, can serve as a typical illustration of the three qualities. Thirdly, although persecuted by censorship and accused of pornography most of his life, Lawrence has his own perceptions of the morality of novel. And last but not least, Lawrence puts a premium on art over science. And among all the various forms of arts, he regards novel as the most privileged one, in that he believes this genre is significant in helping people restore the integrity and ensuring the true aliveness of man. By these studies of how Lawrence's major novels manifesting his own literary views, one gets a better understanding of his works and a more complete knowledge of his literary achievements.