Alienation of William in Sons and Lovers by D.H. Lawrence

徐宏宇

【Abstract】Sons and Lovers is a novel of D.H Lawrence， which records a young mans growth to maturity and his close relationship with his mother. William， the first son of the family， suffers the influence brought by western industrial civilization.

【Key words】Sons and Lovers； alienation； industrial civilization

A main theme in D.H Lawrences works is the modern industrial civilizations influence on human nature. In Sons and Lovers， William was the first son of the Morel family and he died at a young age. His death leads to a closer relationship between Mrs. Morel and Paul.

The word “alienation” has several meanings：the transference of property； a state of insensibility； mental derangement and the act of becoming hostile or estranged. As a literary theme， alienation is regarded as the estrangement of the literary character or persona from something with which he/she has been， should be， or would like to be in conformity and consonance. There are several basic types of alienation based on the entity from which the individual is alienated.

I. Alienation from physical environment

Industrial mass production pollutes natural environment and slays the relationship between human and nature. Human beings lose their independent identity， becoming subordinate of machines. The productions which human make for better life， inversely， control， dominate and oppress human. The more human get， the more human burden， which leads to enslavement by machine. After going to London， William worked hard to enjoy luxurious life， which is a contrast to his life in Bestwood. Labor brought him pain instead of happiness. At the end of his life， William still thought about work. Because of busy work and lack of money， William did not change his collar when he felt uncomfortable. Pitifully he died of that. Owing to heavy work and urban allure， William lost his life and spirit.

II. Alienation from Others

1. Alienation from mother

Mrs. Morel felt desperate about her marriage and life when William was born. Mr. Morel was under the stress of life， which leads to less communication and worse temper. Mrs. Morel could not communicate well with her husband or her neighbors. After feeling hopeless about her marriage， she put all her love and expect on William. Mrs. Morel was jealous of the girls William met. The love between Mrs. Morel and William is more than normal love between son and mother. Mrs. Morel did not want William to keep close relationship with other female， when this happened she felt annoyed and agitated. William was controlled by his mother.endprint

2. Alienation from father

Mr. Morel felt isolated and offended in the family. The unhappy marriage and tired life led him to drink and bully. He began to lose his authority in his childrens heart. His father image collapsed. Mrs. Morels estrangement and contempt to Mr. Morel influence William unconsciously， which led to Williams estrangement to his father. He thought Mr. Morel was rude， impolite and ignorant. The relationship between father and son was cold and distant. William did not get enough love from his father.

3. Alienation from girlfriend

Williams girlfriend is a beautiful but hypocritical and arrogant lady. William thought Gyp was not serious and she couldnt think. He did not have spiritual happiness with Gyp. His love for Gyp was shallow， which was only visual or sexual desire. They did not have enough spiritual communication or common language. William felt puzzled and fretted， but he couldnt leave her. William knew that Gyp was fearfully fond of him， but if he died shed have forgotten him in three months. The relationship between them is not pure， which is kept by money and sexual desire. It is cold， selfish and hypocritical under the living pressure of urban social life.

III. Alienation from Self

William was an energetic boy of curiosity， and when he grew up， he became an ambitious and clever man. When William lived in London， he lost himself under effect of industrial civilization. He found he could have association with men far above his Bestwood friends， so he began to fancy himself as a great gentleman. William launched into life， into London， into a modern urban city， but he was enslaved by modern urban society. He indulged in pursue of higher status and flashy life and forgot his primitive aim. He lost himself in the urban city.

IV. Conclusion

Capitalism and industrialization lead to alienation， which is a significant theme in Sons and Lovers. The novel shows Lawrences hate towards industrial civilization. Lawrence believes that it is the prime evil of industrial revolution that restrains and deforms mans natural instincts. Williams death embodies that the hypocritical industrial civilization makes the human relationship distorted， which leads to aimless and hopeless human life.

References：

[1]杜鳳兰.浅析人的异化在《儿子与情人》中的体现[J].辽宁工学院学报（社会科学版），2005，01：55-56+125.endprint