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Essay / The idea of women's power in "Sons and Lovers"
At the beginning of the 20th century, the idea that women had as much power as men was foreign: men were not only more educated, but were also the main breadwinners of the family. family. Even if individuals do not have the capacity to immediately change the structure of their society, attempts can be made to correct inequalities. In the novel Sons and Lovers by DH Lawrence, women attempt to create their own power by adopting certain views about themselves in relation to men. By creating certain states of mind, the characters of Gertrude Morel, Clara Dawes, and Miriam Leivers mentally elevate themselves to positions of power. These mentalities include adopting attitudes of indifference, appropriation and self-sacrifice towards the men with whom they have relationships. However, the problems they are trying to overcome do not disappear, but become more entrenched. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on 'Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned'?Get the original essayA certain mindset may be the key to success for some, but for the women in Lawrence's novel, changing perception does not involve transforming reality.The thoughts of Gertrude Morel and her husband Walter Morel operate on two different levels: while Gertrude possesses faculties that allow her to appreciate higher forms of thought such as philosophy and religion, Walter is simple-minded, more concerned with physical pleasures like eating and drinking. Such a contrast between their types of thinking leads to conflicts. Walter has a “purely sensual” nature, and she strives to make him moral, religious. She tried to force him to face things. He couldn’t stand it – it drove him crazy” (Lawrence 13). Mr. Morel's inability to accept his wife's moral teaching is demonstrated when he wastes his income on drinks rather than sufficiently providing for his family. Although his unhealthy habit could also be the result of a lack of self-control, a stronger sense of morality could have better curbed his urge to drink. Walter's drinking binges often turn him into a violent man, as on several occasions he physically abuses his wife while drunk. Gertrude is unable to physically change the situation: she cannot control him by suppressing the attacks, and she cannot leave the house, because she needs Walter's income to raise her children. However, what Gertrude is able to change after repeated incidents of abuse is her attitude towards her husband. Concern for one's morality disappears. Previously, “she had worried about him, as if he had moved away from her. From now on, she no longer worried about her love: he was a stranger to her. It made life much more bearable” (14). By considering Walter as a stranger, Gertrude erects a shield of indifference against her husband so that his actions no longer cause her despair. Her husband is nothing more than a human ATM with whom she must continue to live to feed her children. Gertrude's counterattacks to Walter's punches may fail to faze him, but the indifference she expresses disturbs Walter, whose "soul would blindly approach her and find her gone." He felt a kind of emptiness, almost like a void in his soul” (42). Gertrude is capable of inflicting this kind of harm on her husband because she no longer considers him a person worthy of her care. The problem with indifference is that it roots Gertrude in her miserable present. She can make Walter as uncomfortable as she wants with all these mind games, but..