Given that his 'weak chest' obliged him to spend many weeks of each winter in bed, the phoenix was an appropriate personal symbol for Lawrence,
but it can also be associated with the remarkable ups and downs of his critical reputation.
Clear signs of the current revival are evident in recent books by Alison Macleod, Frances Wilson and Lara Feigel,
but it is not one which seems likely to clear away all the misconceptions that gathered round his name in the past
(or avoid the risk of developing some new ones). In twenty-six short chapters of between two to three thousand words each,
arranged alphabetically, this book does not shy away from revealing how strange and sometimes offensive the ideas and beliefs
that accompanied Lawrence's exceptional gifts could be. The subjects range from the familiar 'class', 'humour' or 'religion'
to more recondite but no less significant topics such as 'anthropomorphic lust',
'Blutsbrüdershaft' and 'victories over shame'.
Taken together, these chapters or entries are studies for a comprehensive portrait of Lawrence which are likely to intrigue,
annoy and perhaps also surprise both those who know him only as the author of
Lady Chatterley's Lover and others more widely read.
Purchase from :
Cambridge Scholars Publishing
