aprilparker97's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
ariareads's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
water_and_shade's review against another edition
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
As far as classics go, I found Lady Chatterley's Lover to be quite easy to read. I enjoyed the themes of industrialisation, class divide, wealth disparity, sexism and fidelity throughout. It is SAUCY and I can see why it cause such a stir at its time of publication, also was unaware of, and surprised by, the explicit language which I think added to the theme of class divide. Very interesting reading up about the Lady Chatterley trial and the implications it had for freedom of speech in the UK publishing industry. Very cool to see discussion of women's pleasure in a 100 year old book, clearly DH Lawrence was ahead of his time in this regard. Overall, a classic I enjoyed and can appreciate for it's influence on modern literature - I will be adding Sons and Lovers and Women in Love to my TBR.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
vleighp's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
alliemco's review against another edition
2.0
Horrid book. Only finished it because of my inability to let things go
lucy_qhuay's review against another edition
3.0
Lady Constance/Connie Chatterley, married to Clifford Chatterley, a man who came an invalid from the war, is tired of everything - of society and its class divisions, of how her life seems to be so empty of meaning, since her only purpose his taking care of a husband, who doesn't really need her the way she wants to be needed and of her husband, who seems a stupid, shallow, emotionless man.
She is even tired of herself. The years are passing her by and she feels adrift, rotting away in her house, Wragby Hall, a shell of the woman she longs to be.
And then she meets Oliver Mellors, Wragby's gamekeeper.
A relationship that starts as a simple transaction of sexual favours turns into something else altogether, a love story that defies everything society as pre-established.
With an interesting perspective on several subjects like human nature, marriage, sexuality, women's role in society, loyalty, fidelity and so on, this book sure won't leave anyone indifferent.
I must say it evoked very different feelings in me.
There were parts I did enjoy, like the several thoughts on the topics I just pointed out, but all in all, I thought 'Lady Chatterley's Lover' was a work written by a very cynical author, with extremely cynical characters.
I can't say I appreciated or liked any of the characters. I understood some of the feelings they had, like Connie's desire to feel alive or Mellors's distrust when it came to people, but generally, I thought everything could have been handled differently and all the hypocrisy and falsity could have been avoided.
On the other hand, this books is essentially about an affair between a lady and a working-class man. Hypocrisy, falsity, cynicism and lies are supposed to be present.
Well, this book sure was banned, so it is supposed to created polemic. You'll just have to read it to know what you'll think about it.
pucca182's review against another edition
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
maryannelikescoffee's review against another edition
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War
tomhill's review against another edition
4.0
“It's no good trying to get rid of your own aloneness. You've got to stick to it all your life. Only at times, at times, the gap will be filled in. At times! But you have to wait for the times. Accept your own aloneness and stick to it, all your life. And then accept the times when the gap is filled in, when they come. But they've got to come. You can't force them.”
Again I am a bit unsure of what to make of a D.H. Lawrence novel. As with Women in Love, I feel that most of the characters lack any real depth. Their main trait seems to be that they are unsatisfied, which again, might be quite universal, but also feels a bit uncomplicated. But then there's the pure audacity of Lawrence, and some really beautiful and resonant passages he writes. There's a lot of four letter words used here, and a lot of explicit depictions of sex (very explicit for 1928, less so in 2020), and really thoughtful reflections on the complexity of romantic and sexual relationships and on the gulf between the "lower" class and the diminishing "upper" class. Again, Lawrence seems at least equally concerned with the desires and frustrations of women as he is with those of men. That's refreshing to see in a nearly 100-year old novel. At the same time, Lawrence is preoccupied with the "phallic imagination" and his belief in the importance of the phallus in both men's and women's sexual desire, but also spends a good deal of time on how selfish men can be as sexual partners. He seems to believe both things, although some will no doubt find these ideas opposing ones. It makes for a more interesting read, and while Lawrence may not have the shocking effect he once did, in context he is a bold writer writing a bold, unapologetic work that still has some relevance today. Also, read up on the years-long lawsuit and attempts to censor and/or ban this book in England. Fascinating and important.
Again I am a bit unsure of what to make of a D.H. Lawrence novel. As with Women in Love, I feel that most of the characters lack any real depth. Their main trait seems to be that they are unsatisfied, which again, might be quite universal, but also feels a bit uncomplicated. But then there's the pure audacity of Lawrence, and some really beautiful and resonant passages he writes. There's a lot of four letter words used here, and a lot of explicit depictions of sex (very explicit for 1928, less so in 2020), and really thoughtful reflections on the complexity of romantic and sexual relationships and on the gulf between the "lower" class and the diminishing "upper" class. Again, Lawrence seems at least equally concerned with the desires and frustrations of women as he is with those of men. That's refreshing to see in a nearly 100-year old novel. At the same time, Lawrence is preoccupied with the "phallic imagination" and his belief in the importance of the phallus in both men's and women's sexual desire, but also spends a good deal of time on how selfish men can be as sexual partners. He seems to believe both things, although some will no doubt find these ideas opposing ones. It makes for a more interesting read, and while Lawrence may not have the shocking effect he once did, in context he is a bold writer writing a bold, unapologetic work that still has some relevance today. Also, read up on the years-long lawsuit and attempts to censor and/or ban this book in England. Fascinating and important.