Women in Love as a polyphonic novel
Author(s)
Advisor
Date
1991Publisher
Bilkent University
Language
English
Type
ThesisItem Usage Stats
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Abstract
Lawrence’s critics have tended to analyse his novel Women in
Love by explaining what the novel "means", and treating the author as
an omniscient presence, who organises the plot and the
characterisation. This type of approach cjm appear dogmatic; and fails
to demonstrate the unique qualities of this novel. The purpose of
this thesis is to show how Women in Love dispenses with the convention
of the omniscient narrator; for this purpose, I shall use the theories
of lamguage and novel advanced by the Russian formalist Mikhail
Bakhtin. In Problems of Dostoevsky’s Poetics and The Dialogic
Imagination Bakhtin outlines the characteristics of what he calls a
"polyphonic" novel in which the protagonists reveal information
pertaining to their history, personality, environment, etc. through
dialogue, without the intervention of the author. This foregrounding
of dialogue is what renders the novel polyphonic; as in everyday
language the words of a character are directed to the words of another
character. Although Bakhtin does not deal directly with Women in Love,
his theories form an ideal basis for demonstrating its polyphonic
qualities. This thesis will Concentrate on the plot, setting and
characterisation in relation to Lawrence’s narrative technique, eind
will show how the absence of authorial intervention forces the reader
to take an active part in the process of interpreting the novel.
Consequently, this thesis will also focus on the dialogic aspects of
Women in Love, with specific reference to the language and speechpatterns
of the characters.
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