Women In Love

   
Women In Love
by D.H. Lawrence
read: 2013
Modern Library #49, Guardian 1000 Novels

Women In Love is a sequel to The Rainbow, I guess. Strictly speaking, it picks up where The Rainbow left off, following the adventures of Ursula Brangwen in her quest to find love and meaning. It's quite a bit different in scope, though; while The Rainbow spans three generations, Women In Love all takes place in a year or two.

The first part of this book reminded me of the HBO show Girls, where the characters - all successful, employed, intelligent, attractive people - nevertheless find ways to make themselves unhappy. The later part of the story took a darker turn though.

Of the four major characters, we probably get inside Gerald's head the least, but I didn't appreciate his importance until the end. Gerald has the most interesting history - he killed his brother accidentally as a child, though the novel never directly addresses his feelings around that incident. His decision not to accept Rupert's love is really the moral turning point of the story and the most heartbreaking missed opportunity, and eventually results in his death. But during the tale he feels like the least-important of the four major characters. Perhaps there were subtle things I missed along the way, but I don't especially feel inclined to go back and read it.