A Study of Images in Lady Chatterley’s Lover

韩冰莹

D.H. Lawrence was one of the greatest novelists in 20th century English literature， valued as an outstanding representative of modernism. His works mainly focus on the relationship between men and women. By exploring the relationship between men and women， he expresses appreciation for love and castigates industrialization which distorts human nature. Lady Chatterleys Lover concerns the love affair between lady Chatterley and Mellors. In the book， there are many symbols worthy of being paid attention to. By means of studying on some symbols， this paper intends to interpret the image of Clifford， Mellors， and Constance. It is hoped to make people reflect the problems of modern life.

After the First World War， Britain lost its prominent place in the world. The boom brought by The Industrial Revolution was degrading. Under this kind of background， literary works unavoidably reflect the influence of industrialization on humanity. Clifford suffered from the trauma of the war and spiritual illusion. He is not only a victim of industrialization but also a symbol of industrialization. On the one hand， as described in the book， Clifford became “a creature， with a hard， efficient shell of exterior and a pulpy interior， one of the amazing crabs and lobsters of the modern， industrial and financial word， invertebrates of the crustacean order”.（106） In the novel， he has to move with a wheeled chair. The “wheeled chair” is a product of industrialization and can be regarded as symbol of industrialization. His body is stranded on the wheeled chair and a sort of bath-chair with a motor attachment in the mean time his mind is distorted by the industrialization. On the other hand， as a symbol of industrialization， he constrains the nature of Constance. Physically， he is impotent and cannot meet lady Chatterleys sexual desire. Psychologically， he is boring and indifferent and cannot be close to lady Chatterleys heart. He was pushing Constance farther and farther.

Lady Chatterley is the protagonist of this novel. The whole novel tells the change of her roles from a victim to a rebel to a savior. （Xu 35） Constance was grown up in a free and natural atmosphere. From their opinions， we can find out the importance of talk in the relationship between men and women. Here “talk” becomes a symbol of equality because its a two-way process. Nevertheless， in the marriage of Clifford and Constance， in most cases， Clifford always talks but lady Chatterley just listens to his words and hides her real thoughts. There is no real communication between them. “It was words， just so many words. The only reality was nothingness.

In the wood， there are many wild daffodils outside the Mellors house. And the author mentioned it many times. For example， “Wild daffodils！...The spring came back.” （81） In the legends of daffodils， there is one that Muhammad ever said that if you have two pieces of bread， sell one to buy daffodils because bread is the food for body while daffodils are the food for spirit. The daffodils signify spiritual pursuit. Constances affection for daffodils in the woods stands for her pursuit of freedom. In addition， the floral language of daffodils is “respect”. If Constance wants to obtain freedom of herself， she needs to have an equal relationship with Mellors. Mellors brings Constance sexual satisfaction and warmth. Meanwhile， Constance soothes his trauma. They care for each other. And their physical freedom and psychological freedom are combined in harmony.

At the end of the novel， in order to stay together in future they departed temporarily. D.H. Laurence left us an open ending so that we can imagine and complete it by ourselves. In the novel， he tried to present us the industrializations influence on humanity and expressed strong will to get rid of it. Besides， he reflected on the relationship between men and women. Even at present， his works enlighten us   a lot.

References：

David Herbert Larence， Lady Chatterleys Lover， Yilin Press.

徐雪元：《查特萊夫人的情人》女性多重角色解读。