TURUN YLIOPISTON JULKAISUJA ANNALES UNIVERSITATIS TURKUENSIS SARJA -SER. B OSA -TOM 179 FROM PERSEPHONE TO PAN: D.H. LAWRENCE'S MYTHOPOEIC VISION OF THE INTEGRATED PERSONALITY WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON THE SHORT FICTION AND OTHER WRITINGS IN THE EARLY NINETEEN TWENTIES by Anja Viinikka TURUN YLIOPISTO TURKU 1988 TURUN YLIOPISTON JULKAISUJA ANNALES UNIVERSITATIS TURKUENSIS SARJA -SER. B OSA -TOM 179 FROM PERSEPHONE TO PAN: D.H. LAWRENCE'S MYTHOPOEIC VISION OF THE INTEGRATED PERSONALITY WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON THE SHORT FICTION AND OTHER WRITINGS IN THE EARLY NINETEEN TWENTIES by Anja Viinikka TURUN YLIOPISTO TURKU 1988 FOREWORD The primary choice of D.H.Lawrence as the subject of the present study stems from an interest in that author dating from my undergraduate years, when Mr. John Terence Hodgson gave a series ofstimulating lectures in the nineteen·sixties. Myinterest in Lawrence was given a further impulse by the experience of tracing his footsteps in England, and particularly in Italy in the eighties. The secondary choice of research material was dictated by the abudance and significance of ancient myths and their various functions, linked with the integrated personality, particularly in Lawrence's short fiction in the early twenties. The present work has been carried out at the University of Turku. I wish to thank in first place Associate Professors Liisa Dahl and Hannu K. Riikonen and Professor Irmeli Niemi alI of whom gave me valuable advice at various stages. I owe a further debt to Professor Inna Koskenniemi who has taken a close interest in this study. I am beholden also to Docent Torsten Pettersson, who read the thesis and made some useful suggestionsi to Dr. John Worthen, who was kind enough to discuss the study at an early stage, and Bridget Pugh, who read the manuscript and gave valuable advice. For revision of the English language I am obliged to Dr. Gerald Doherty and Mr. Antony Landon. For their generous and unfailing support I want to pay special tribute to my family, especially my husband, Yrjö, my mother, Auli Pietilä, and my daughter, Heidi. Financial assistance from the Emil Aaltonen Foundation, the Jenny and Antti Wihuri fund and the Turku University Foundation is hereby gratefully acknowledged. It is finally my pleasant duty to thank the University for including this study in the Annales. 7 FROM PERSEPHONE TO PAN: D.H.LAWRENCE'S MYTHOPOEIC VISION OF THE INTEGRATED PERSONALITY WITH SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON THE SHORT FICTION AND OTHER WRITINGS IN THE EARLY NINETEEN TWENTIES FOREWORD. • • • • • . • • • • • . • • . • • • • • • . • • • • . • • • ~ • . • • • . • • • . • • • • • . • • . 5 CONTENTS •.••••.••..•••••••.••••••..•..••••...•••...•.••.••....•7 INTRODUCTION•••.•••••••.••••••.••••••••••.•.•••••••.•••.•••••.•9 1. Phoenix, the Bird of Eternal Rebirth.••••.•..•••...•..••••..13 2. A Survey of Lawrence criticism.••.••.••••.••••.••••••.......18 NOTES .••.••••••..•••....•.••••.•••••••••..•...••••..•.•..•.....22 MATERIAL AND METHOD.......•••..•••...•.......••.•..•.•.........25 1. The Choice of the Material.•.•••.••..•.•...•.•...••••...•...25 2. Theory and Method..... • . • • . • • . • • . • • . • .••••.29 NOTES •••••••••••••..•.•••..••.••••••.••..••••.•..•...•...••••..41 THE BACKGROUND OF THE LAWRENCEAN MYTHS .....•••.•.••..••...•....44 1. Lawrence's Formative Years and Familiarity with Ancient Classics and Mythic Moderns•..•••....•••••...••......•..••..•••44 2. The Spirit of the Time: The Renascent Interest in Ancient CUlture••••.•.••.••••••••..•....•.....•••...•••••....••.•......50 3. The spirit of Place: The Mythic Past and Present of the Lawrencean Scenery••••••••...••.•.••••.••.•..••.•••••••.•....•.56 NOTES ••••••••••••..•••••••••.••.•...••••••••.••••..•••••••••... 64 THE THREE MYTHIC CYCLES IN LAWRENCE'S SHORT FICTION••••••.•..••70 I SICILIAN FANTASIA: "A MAN CAN ONLY BE HAPPY FOLLOWING HIS OWN INMOST NEED" ••.•..•.•..••.•••.••.••.•.••.••••...•••••......7 0 1. Lawrence's Restoration in Sicily and Fantasia of the Unconscious.••••••••••••.••••••.•••..•.....••.•.•••••.•........70 2. The Ladybird.••..•••.•.•.•.•.•........•••.••••...•••••.•..•.71 a) The Regeneration ef Persephene er Integration ef Psyche••.•.75 b) Isis Unveiled, Osiris Restored and. Dienysus-osiris Unbound.• 96 3. Thematic Analogues to The Ladybird in The Fox and The Captain's 0011 •••••.•••••.•••...••.•••••••••••..•••••.•...•108 NOTES •••••••••••••••.•••••.•••.••...•••....••.•••..••••.••....•117 8 II PANIC VISIONS: "THEY ARE THE RESULT OF EUROPE, AND PERHAPS A BIT DISMAL" •••...••.................•••••..•.......•••...•...122 1. Lawrence's Mythopoeic Reactivation after His Disillusionment with the New World••••••.••..••......••••.•••..122 2. "Jimmy and the Desperate Woman": A Modern Odyssey in the Midlands..•......•••...••.......•.•••..••.•.•...•.....•••.•..•••125 3."The Last Laugh": A Panic story.•••••••••......•••••.•.•••...131 4. "The Border Line": Shades of Hades and Pipings of Pan•.••...139 NOTES •.••..••••.....••......•••.••••.•.•.....••.....•.•.•••.••.152 III THE IMMORTAL PAN: "PAN KEEPS ON BEING REBORN" ..•.•.••..••..159 1.The Spirit of the Rocky Mountains and the CUlmination of Lawrence's Mythopoeic Creative Force•••••••.......•..•.•...••..159 2. The Oversoul of "The Overtone................................160 3. st Mawr. • • • • • • • . • • . • • • • • • • . • . • . • . • . • . 173 a) The Mysterieus Centaur.....•..•.••••••••......••..••.....••.176 b) "You Have te Abanden the Conquest, Befere Pan will Live Again" •..••.•..............................•........••••......•198 NOTES •...••.••••........•••.............•...•........•••..•••..208 SUMMARY •.•••••••.......•...•••.•...•..•.•.....•......••••...••.217 NOTES •••..•••.•••...•.•...•••••••....•.••...•.•......•.••......225 B I B L I 0 G R A P H Y •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 226 A. D. H. LAWRENCE' S WORKS .••...••............•.......•..•••..••..226 B. D.H. LAWRENCE' S LETTERS .................•..........••.....•..229 C. REFERENCES .•.......••...••••......••...•.••.......•••...••..230 THE MYTHS REFERRED TO. • • • • • • • • • • . • • • • • • • . • . 2 3 7 PERSONAL REGISTER ...•...•.•.......•••••••........•...•••....••.240 INTRODUCTION "I honestly think that the great pagan world of which Egypt and Greece were the last living terms, the great pagan world which preceded our own era once, had a vast and perhaps perfect science of its own, a science in terms of life." D.H.Lawrence: Fantasia of the Unconscious, p. 12. "And so it is that these myths now begin to hypnotize us again, our own impulse towards our own scientific way of understanding being almost spent." D.H.Lawrence: Fantasia of the Unconscious, p. 13. What are myths and what are their special properties that have appealed to generations of ordinary people, specialists in various fields, and to the artistic imagination? These questions necessitate a consideration of views and definitions of myth, with special reference to the myth-literature relation. 'Myth' is one of those words which it has become almost impossible to use without apologetic quotation marks." That is how Fergusson begins the article 'Myth' and the Literary II Scruple". And he continues: "Ill-defined for centuries, it is now used in many senses and for many purposes: to mean nonsense or willful obscurantism in some contexts, the deepest wisdom 1 of man in others." One reason for such a statement is that it is nowadays a hackneyed word applicable to almost any more or less mysterious phenomenon. The main reason, however, is that there is a variety of disciplines from anthropology to folklore, the history of religions, linguistics, psychology and to art history and literary criticism, each with its own definition. Thus, as Ruthven remarks, "an inquisitive outsider who drifts promiscuously from one to another is likely to conclude that the various specialists are not really talking about the same thing 2 at allll But the fact that they alI look at myths in the light • of their special occupations makes it possible on the other hand to draw general conclusions, and on the other to see the protean word from the point ofview of literary arto As Kirk states, the etymology of 'myth' or muthos which basically means 'utterance' reveals on the one hand very little, on the other it however IIdiscloses what may turn out to be a • crucial, if apparently banal, factll Kirk emphasizes that "when the Greeks themselves talked about muthoi they most often meant [--] the traditionaI tales of gods and heroesll • Thus, he clarifies this idea: IIAII that is prudent to accept as a basic and general definition is 'traditionaI tale'.1I And to avoid the misunderstanding that alI traditionaI tales are myths, he specifies that they IIhave to possess both exceptional narrative power and clear functional relevance to some important aspect of life beyond mere entertainmentll Consequently, IImyths are on the • one hand good stories, on the other hand bearers of important messages about life in general and 3 life-within-society in particularll • These are the main reasons for their persistent survival and for their special appeal to the artistic imagination seeking for devices to express general beliefs and accepted truths in fictional reality. As to the general character of myths, Douglas who writes on IIThe Meanings of 'Myth' in Modern criticismll emphasizes that they are opposed to facts, IIto the logic of ordinary knowledge, to positivism, the empirical, the finite, to the logos, to the • intelligence and will, and to the consciousnessll This is due to their origin. They are