‘…half watching, half musing’
‘Her eyes were keen and observant, but her
inner mind took no notice of what she saw.’
Lawrence paints the reader of picture of the second paragraph with his use of language. This paragraph is built up around the semantic field of light. Lawrence controls the reader throughout the novella but this paragraph particularly is very didactic. Verbs are used both literally and metaphorically in this paragraph to create images for the reader; also Lawrence uses repetition to again create images of the setting for the reader.
‘…were a darkish, brownish green in the
full light.’
‘…pine trees shone in the air.’
‘…stalks all agleam, was full of light.’
‘…thinking’
The third paragraph begins with a pronoun bout only one noun is used for ‘Fox’; this is effective as it immediately introduces the reader to the Fox. This paragraph is fast moving therefore Lawrence makes use of short and simple sentences to add speed, make the paragraph dramatic and to make the novella progress. Additionally, similar to the second paragraph Lawrence creates pictures in the readers’ minds with the use of adjectives and verbs.
‘She lowered her eyes, and suddenly saw
the fox.’
‘They met her eyes. And he knew her.
She was spell-bound.’
The meeting of March and the fox symbolises the meeting of masculinity and femininity. The fox, who is seen as the male dominates March, the women, the reader can identify that the fox is not ‘daunted’ by March because of the way Lawrence describes the fox and what he does.
‘…he looked into her eyes and her soul
failed her.’
Lawrence emphasizes the act of March and the fox seeing each other with the use of repetition of the eyes, looking and seeing. The paragraph is a pause of body movements, and only facial movements are recognised by the reader. Lawrence’s choice of lexis gives the impression that March is ‘spell-bound’ and is still in trance.
‘She lowered her eyes.’
‘…saw the fox.’
‘…looking up at her.’
‘…his eyes were looking up.’
‘They met her eyes.’
‘…looked into her eyes.’
By opening the fourth paragraph with ‘she struggled, confusedly she came to herself…’ Lawrence confirms the reader’s thoughts of March still being in her trance.
Further more in this paragraph the Lawrence controls the reader into the notion of the fox being a male. Lawrence describes him vividly as being cocky and confident as the fox leaves March. Lawrence describes the fox with a simile in this paragraph, it is used to put across how smooth the fox is. Also Lawrence attaches an air of sexual characteristics to the fox, again suggesting he is male. Lawrence finishes this paragraph and this section of his novella with a soft and slowly paced line, signifying that the excitement is over.
‘…saw him making off’
‘…slow leaps…slow impudent jumps.’
‘Then he glanced over his shoulder and
ran smoothly away.’
‘She saw his brush held smooth like a feather.’
‘…she saw his white buttocks twinkle.’
D.H Lawrence effectively creates impressions to his readers through the language he applies in ‘The Fox’. He successfully makes use of these techniques distinctly in the four paragraphs of March meeting the fox.
