Studies in Twentieth-Century Literature
2 total works
Based on the Cambridge Edition of Lawrence's letters and works, this is a systematic study of his neglected early novels and short stories. Michael Black considers that these should be taken seriously as a representative part of Lawrence's entire output and demonstrates how they show originality. He places Lawrence in a new light as an artist, especially considering the relationship between his art and thought.
This second volume of Michael Black's commentary on Lawrence's prose-works concentrates on the extraordinary sequence of non-fictional texts written between 1913 and 1917: the 'Foreword' to Sons and Lovers, Study of Thomas Hardy, Twilight in Italy, 'The Crown', 'The Reality of Peace'. In all of them Lawrence was compulsively rewriting what he called 'my philosophy'. This extended commentary makes sense of them, treating them as a succession of experimental writings which support each other, develop non-discursive modes of writing, and are linked by shared metaphors which reveal shared preoccupations.