Comparison Essay: The Shades of Spring & Things by D.H Lawrence. An analysis on how D.H Lawrence portrays the theme of freedom his two stories.

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IB English                                                                                 James Heim

Essay                                                                                     December 2003

DYP English Comparison Essay:  The Shades of Spring &

Things by D.H Lawrence

An analysis on how D.H Lawrence portrays the theme of freedom his two stories

        In the two narratives, The Shades of Spring and Things by D.H Lawrence, the theme of freedom is portrayed through the text.  In both stories, Lawrence attempts to express his own views of freedom and tries to explain to the reader why it is important that people have freedom, in whatever context, today.  Each short story reveals a theme of freedom, although the style in which D.H Lawrence represents that freedom varies between each narrative.  The two stories have two totally different plots, character personalities, and ideas.  Along with this both stories describe many different themes.  However, Lawrence seems to have brought up the theme of freedom in both of these stories, most probably to emphasise the importance of the ability and to try to get the reader to appreciate the fact that he or she should be thankful that they have freedom today.

        In the Shades of Spring, freedom is depicted through descriptions involving the environment and the nature surrounding it.  The best examples of this is when the main character, D.H Lawrence describes the surrounding environment in every new scene that arises, as the story progresses.  In one of the opening scenes of the story Lawrence describes the landscape, which can be seen from Syson’s position; Syson who is the main character of the story.  When Syson arrives enters this new scenic landscape, Lawrence begins describing the surrounding in terms of the flowers, the streams, the “pools of bluebells” and the “ice-water blue lakes”.  “Ah, isn’t it lovely,” Syson exclaims in the text when he sees this area for the first time.  In Lawrence’s detailed description about how Syson has never seen the country side looking so beautiful before, Lawrence forebodes the fact that Syson is reflecting on his life, and is trying to say that it was his freedom that allows him to see these beauty of nature’s setting. Not only does Lawrence express this theme in his descriptions, but it is also apparent that the theme is described in the dialogue of Syson.  Again with Syson’s dialogue, Syson tries to express how free he is in the way in which he talks about the environment.  In addition to this, Syson’s perception of the environment also portrays this same idea.  An example of this is when Syson is talking to Hilda, and Hilda replies to one of Syson’s questions saying, “I am like a plant…I can only grow in my own soil”.  Lawrence explains to the reader that Syson was trying to show that Hilda didn’t have the freedom he had, and that is why their relationship couldn’t start again, as Syson had wanted it to be.  The theme of freedom can be seen expressed in the dialogue, descriptions, and character perceptions in The Shades of Spring.

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        In Lawrence’s other short story, Things, freedom can be seen through the life of the family in the storyline.  The theme is expressed through the way in which Lawrence describes the way the family live.  Like it says in the story, “the family living free is the answer to a beautiful life.”    In the opening paragraph of the story, Lawrence emphasises that no matter what else was going on with the family, they were free, and that is all that matters.  This is clear when Lawrence states, “still – they were free. Free!”  He also says later that, “to ...

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