Haven’t read any Lawrence for ages; I think that no.223 inclined me to read another novel of thwarted love across the classes.
The sex is a bit of a distraction in this book. The plot involves Connie Chatterley, unhappily married to Lord Chatterley, both because of his war wound and also because he is a bit of a bore, despite his liberal views (both the Chatterley’s are part of the liberal/bohemian upper classes, although Connie takes this far further in her relationship with Mellors).
Chatterley himself has a parallel understated relationship with his working class nurse, although no taboos are visibly broken here. In the end, she tries to leave him but they both have to wait for their divorces.
I would need to read more Lawrence to contextualise it better, there are a lot of ideas etc discussed in this book, but it is not easy to understand Lawrence’s sympathies. Even the sex is so over-written; he might be taking the piss here, but I am not clear.
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