By Syaza Aqillah binti Safie
This novel is engaging and truly ahead of its time. It was published in 1920 and it’s actually a sequel to The Rainbow, another work by Lawrence published earlier in 1915. The Rainbow centres around the Brangwen family and focuses on the struggle of the family in the society whereas Women in Love focuses only the two sisters from the family, Ursula and Gudrun.
In the novel, the two sisters met Rupert Birkin and Gerald Crich. Ursula was interested in Birkin while Gudrun was attracted to Gerald. Birkin was actually in another relationship with Hermione but her persistent need to be dominated by Birkin made Birkin left Hermione and pursued his relationship with Ursula. Ursula and Birkin respect each other and see the other as equal, thus, their relationship grew throughout the story.
The relationship between Gudrun and Gerald on the other hand, was a disaster from the start. Gerald had always wanted to dominate over everything and this had caused Gudrun to always be in a defensive mode as she refused to be dominated. Despite being attracted to Gerald, Gudrun could not be vulnerable with Gerald as a lover. Their relationship then went downhill and resulted in destruction.
The main thing I would like to say about the novel is how Lawrence shares his ideas about man and woman relationship. By seeing how the relationship between Ursula and Birkin blossoms, we can see how Lawrence portrays his ideas through their relationship and contrast it with the relationship between Gerald and Gudrun. Firstly, I noticed how Lawrence highlights that in a relationship, each individual stays as his or her own individual.
The lovers are not halves of a whole but their very own self. Birkin respects Ursula’s thoughts and ideas about herself as a woman in the society. They only have playful banters with each other about their opinions and views of life. Another idea that I noticed, love should not exist in mental and possessive forms. Gudrun and Gerald both fight for dominance in the relationship and resulted in the doom of their relationship whereas Ursula and Birkin respect each other as equal and their relationship flourished.
I think these ideas about relationship is very relevant even to this day. Even though these ideas seem obvious and a must-do in a relationship, people still tend to forget about it.
I would say it is really a good book to read. I like how the sisters are portrayed as powerful women and refuse to conform to the stereotype set by the society at that time, and how Lawrence contrasts the two relationships. Although it does contradict some of the Islamic beliefs (well, it is a western book), I would like the readers to appreciate the message of respecting the partner for who they are.
Many people misunderstood and thought that the relationship in Islam, man dominates over woman, when actually, in Islam, man is the protector of woman. Man and woman both must respect each other in the relationship.
For those who like to read sophisticated romance story and are unfazed by some ‘explicit actions’ in the novel, I do suggest you to add this book in your reading list. Women in Love by DH Lawrence is a page-turner as it focuses on the philosophical aspects in a relationship through great display of characters and dynamics.***
(The views expressed in the article are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of IIUMToday.)