Sons and Lovers as an Autobiographical Novel

She could feel Paul being drawn away by this girl. And she did not care for Miriam. "She is one of those who will want to suck a man's soul out till he has none of his own left," she said to herself; "and he

To begin, Penelope’s voice creates a naïve appearance for herself. In chapter six, she speaks of her marriage. “That’s the way things were done: Where there was a wedding, there were arrangements…”Instantly, she sounds unappreciative, and unsatisfied. Penelope tells us about her marriage arrangements and wedding with no enthusiasm at all. She hardly sounds satisfied with the act of even being married.

Freud’s psychoanalytic theory plays a major role in literature, and it is usually described as psychoanalytic literary criticism. Moreover, the psychoanalytic theory incorporates two contradictory critical theories. The first theory focuses on the text itself without having influences of additional sources. From the view of first psychoanalytic theory, the reader can understand the text by analyzing the characters, dreams, conflicts, symbols, and the unconscious desires of the characters. Furthermore, the second theory argues that in the literary work, the dreams, desires, and emotions presented in the work are usually related to author’s own personal experience and the life. For instance, in order to understand the literary work of an

The psychoanalytic lens is one of many ways to observe a work of literature. By

why, she would hang on him, As if increase of appetite had grown By what it fed on: and yet, within a month-- 145 Let me not think on 't-Frailty, thy name is woman!-- A little month, or ere those shoes were old With which she followed my poor father 's body, Like Niobe, all tears:--why she, even she,-- O God! a beast that wants discourse of reason 150 Would have mourned longer,--married with my uncle, My father 's brother, but no more like my father Than I to Hercules: within a month;

While Paul may be the novel’s Hero, he would obviously not exist if he was not born. His mother, Mary Dempster is the Maiden. The Maiden archetype represents purity and childlike innocence (Cherry). When Paul was still an infant, Mary breast-fed him. Her neighbors, along with Dunny’s mother remarked that “she lacked the solemnity they expected of a nursing mother” (Davies, 21). Mary had exposed herself even in the presence of Amasa, her husband. In Deptford’s eyes, her actions were shameless and frowned upon but to Mary, the act of breastfeeding Paul was simply maternal. She was viewed as unfit to be a reverend’s wife. Mary’s role as the Maiden supports the theme of appearance versus reality. One could say that societal norms are the appearance while Mary’s maternal instincts are the reality.

It all began with a loud Thud! as Derek Pinzon dropped to the floor, gripping the carpet was his only hope, his only instinct at the time. Then his mother saw the horrific scene acting with a sense of heroism, she saved his life by calling 911. As foam began to roll out of his mouth, his eyes flipping backwards, and his body trembling and shaking, it was obvious he was having a seizure.

The oppression her husband, John, has on her causes her to suffer from a mental illness. His oppression towards her is he tries to keep her in the house. She states, “I wish he would let me go and make a visit to Cousin Henry and Julia. But he said I wasn’t able to go, nor

From a young age, Paul and his siblings have a mutual understanding with their mother that she does not love them. The narrator states, “Nevertheless, when her children were present, she always felt the centre of her heart go hard… Only she herself, and her children themselves, knew [the mother’s adoration of her children] was not so” (1). While this proves difficult for the children to bear, it proves the most difficult for Paul. When Paul is young, he becomes curious as to why his family does not keep a car of their own. According to his mother, it is “Because we’re the poor members of the family” (2), which is “…because [Paul’s] father has no luck” (3). Paul then informs his mother that he is lucky, hoping to impress her, but she does not believe him. According to Freudian psychology, Paul’s response is appropriate. The narrator explains, “This angered [Paul] somewhere, and made him

Reporter: Hi Mr Hughes, so I’ve learnt that recently one of your poems , “Mother To Son is published”. Congratulations, but besides from the blissful joy of happiness, can you share with us your feelings right now? Are we happy? Proud?

Life's Construction, Detour Ahead: An Explication of "Mother to Son" by Langston Hughes Life, like beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Much like beauty, life requires constant maintenance; construction. According to some life is a "beautiful wondrous adventure". Unfortunately for oppressed people life is an utterly cruel joke.

The image presented her is quite sensual which was not openly discussed by the Puritans. Finally, she moves to the religious aspect and says that she cannot repay his love in any possible way. She can only pray that “heaven reward thee manifold” (Bradstreet 206), that he will receive his reward in heaven. She further says that they should love each other so much that even after they die their love should live

Freud’s theories have launched what is now known as the psychoanalytic approach to literature. Freud was interested in writers, especially those who depended largely on symbols. Such writers tend to tinge their ideas and figures with mystery or ambiguity that only make sense once interpreted, just as the analyst tries to figure out the dreams and bizarre actions that the unconscious mind of a neurotic releases out of repression. A work of literature is thus treated as a fantasy or a dream that Freudian analysis comes to explain the nature of the mind that produced it. The purpose of a work of art is what psychoanalysis has found to be the purpose of the dream: the secret gratification of an infantile and forbidden wish that has been repressed into the unconscious (Wright 765).

Character development within novels with complex plot structures proves to be a difficult task necessitating the author to add their own inner thoughts and experiences to weave a more realistic story. The historical background of a writer helps glean on information about that person’s unconscious and subconscious processes that become apparent within an author’s literature. As the author develops their thoughts throughout a novel attempting to paint a clearer picture of their purpose, their own persona becomes a part of the literature. Psychoanalytic theory attempts to further this claim by taking information from one’s childhood, inner taboo thoughts and hidden motivations, and synthesizing them for a better picture of the author’s

I met her two years ago and we did not have much to say at that time. Little did I know that she would later steal my heart and become an intimate part of my life. As the saying goes "there is someone for anyone at any time in this life" and I was about to find out that this saying was so true. I have had a wall built around me and my defense was as a stronghold to protect myself from all the relationships that have come and gone over the years. I thought that I was meant to be alone in this old life and happiness was forever gone from me. This wonderful woman I am speaking of is Mary Doe, and the joy she has given me has revived my hope and faith that I may have finally found love and peace within. She has made me feel like I am a child