Why the Novel Matters? - Summary

     Why the Novel Matters?
             -D.H. Lawrence

About the author:

 Timeline - 1885 - 1930

 Century - 20th century (Modern Age)

 Specializations - Novelist, poet, playwright, critic, short-story writer, Philosopher

 Notable works - Sons and Lovers, Lady Chatterley's Lover, The Rainbow

* D.H. Lawrence and his literary works were mostly underrated and not for praising during his life time.

* Because almost all of his works are with Obscenity.

* During his life time he was pictured as pornographer.

* Most of his works have attained the name and fame only after his death

* Literary critics like E.M. Foster, F.R. Leavis and Aldous Huxley explored the deep ideologies of D.H. Lawrence to the literary world.

    "He is the greatest imaginative novelist of this generation"  - E.M. Foster

   " His works are for Artistic integrity and Moral seriousness"   - F.R. Leavis

Summary of the critical treatise: 

                Why the Novel Matters?
                  - David Herbert Lawrence

Introduction: 

          D.H. Lawrence's " Why the Novel Matters?" is a critical essay which deals with the integrity of the importance of novel and novelist. Lawrence aptly named this essay by an interrogation through which he tried to evoke the interest of the readers for why the novel is actually need for reading and receding. As a novelist, Lawrence considered this as a privilege to defend this particular literary form over other forms.

Text:

     This entire treatise has written in first person narrative which clearly demonstrates all his points are of his personal thoughts. This treatise is his own understanding and experience on the novels.

      As a prolific writer, Lawrence always aware of pointing out his ideas by using perfect analogies. Throughout this entire treatise, he uses certain analogies in order to justify his points. However in certain places he uses different references from different languages. The Languages are of Latin, Sanskrit and French. This was first published posthumously as an article in Phoenix in 1936.

Man - a perfect blend of mind, soul and body:

       D.H. Lawrence begins his essay by clarifying the common belief believed by the people as from the long time. We thought that our body is a medium which carries a soul in it, a mind in it. Lawrence thinks that it is mere the matter of superstition and the believers are completely superstitious. However through this analogy, he extrapolates a point that body is not just medium always carries mind and soul into it and it never become useless at the point of our demise. Body is as important as its associative elements as mind and soul.

        Also, perfect man is a perfect blend of body, mind and soul. All are interconnected with one another. Here body is like a wine bottle, even if years old wine become finish off and it will ready to acquire something new into it. Process of acquiring and experiencing new things will be endless to human body at certain point of his life time. Lawrence strongly dismisses that body as a mere bottle, jug or a tin-can or a vessel of clay as "Sheer nonsense" and "bunk".

           " Men's sana in corpore sano"

        Lawrence pointing out above Latin phrase which means "A healthy man in a healthy body" which is very much supportive to his justification. Moreover, human body is interconnected with its organs and integral parts. If man is alive, his body will alive. If man is no more definitely his organs and integral parts will no longer active.

       The reason behind the discourse done by Lawrence on the superiority of human body because of explaining the confirmation of external outputs done by the man only because of the immense support of his physical body. If his physical body in accordance with the perfect degree of mind and soul will paved to perfect output. Here Lawrence strengthens body is as important as mind and soul.

        For instance, if a man writes something with the help of pen is just because of his physical body. His body is controlled by mind and soul, so the process is by a perfect unification of these three elements. Here man is alive from his toe and at the end of his finger tip. So pen is not alive until the man alive. But by the cooperation of one's mind with his body resulted the perfect outputs. Ultimately, he stresses the point that body when it is alive is seemingly more important than when it is out of use.

Novel is a mirror of our life and novelist is a reflection of our existence:

       This part is completely dwelling deep into the defensing part of the significance of novel by Lawrence. In order to defense the novels and the novelists. He listing out the insignificance of other disciplinarians as well who are not as equal as the novelists. Other disciplinarians including Parsons or saints, Philosophers, and Scientists.

Discourse against Parsons and Sainsts:

        The primary duty of a person is preaching to the reached souls in heaven. So their duty started when man is dead and literally lost his life in the earth. People believed that man who assist God is equally respected as god. But Lawrence condemns the belief that as a man who is alive at present. Lawrence himself and the parson are here not eligible enough for speaking or praising the things beyond them or their life. 

         Usually, a person who is experienced enough in a particular thing is eligible enough to share the facts with others. So both cannot be talking about life aftermath.

         Lawrence personally does not have any belief in things on life aftermath. He thinks that heaven and paradise are unreal. So when man alive explaining or praising these things will considered as person of fictional ideas. Lawrence mentions these ideas as Nirvana which means not full of concreteness. He makes a reference from Christianity an Christian icon named St.Francis of Assissi who devoted his life for the sake of spirituality. He doubts that he might regretted for devoted his body for spirituality and not for the earthly pleasures.

         As a man who is alive at present, he condemns the superstitious state of Parsons and Sainsts. Further, as a novelist, he says novelist is a man who meticulously demonstrates the life into his novel through his characters. His full time duty is all about examining and explaining the practical side of human life and not on fictional sides like paradise. Lawrence says as,

       " If your are a novelist, you know that               paradise is in the palm of your hand...
         Paradise is after life, and I for one am             not keen on anything that is after life"

       Death is only the fictional part of human life. A man can share a fact only if he is experienced in his life until or otherwise it is full of fiction and not concrete.

Importance of novelists over Philosophers:

       Lawrence accused the philosophers and their ideas because they are all talking about infinities and giving importance to thoughts. Mere thoughts will not be helpful for any longer. Here infinities means extremes. They are extremes of human life. Being a guide who is ready to solve others problems and make them reach their life to success is always ready to know their present problems and not irrelevant extremes of their life. Not all the philosophies relate to all. Only talking about present relates with man.

       If it is a novelist, he also deals with things about human life as same as philosopher but he is quite different from philosopher by putting present relevance in his novel. Those present things one way or another by which they can parallel themselves with the situation in the novel.

      Philosophers do make mistakes especially when they are talking about the things which is beyond the life. Self-realizing things before exploring the experience to others always let us reach into other's life and solve readers problems. Novelists are perfect example for such preconceived thoughts.

      For instance, novelist are like chameleons they can portray and shifts themselves, according to the situation they are for their readers.

Importance for being alive:

      By projecting the importance for being alive rather to dead is scattered most of the places in this essay. He makes it clear as follows,

        " Be a living dog than a dead lion"

       Here being alive is more powerful thing ever. Living makes you important and active for liable actions as you want to achieve.

Consideration of novelists over scientists:

       Lawrence concerns the importance of the novelist by accusing the perceptions of scientists. Scientists are the person who are always analytical and they are critical towards analysing man as a different parts and organs. Though man is a compartmentalization of body, a mind, a soul and different glands and enzymes etc but these are for importance only if a man is dead. So the ultimate duty of the scientist begins only when it not active or dead. So Lawrence advocates the significance of the novels and the novelists because they take into consideration when man is alive who is superior to the scientist who concentrates only on individual's parts.

        Comparatively before all sorts of others disciplinarians, novelists stand still but because of their one essay of reality can make the whole man kind alive. Lawrence also defense novels by stating the novel is "One bright book of Life"

        By considering the importance of novel, Lawrence pointing out the holy text Bible as a great novel of all time because it clearly speaks about man's everything starts from his birth and Death. The indeed character including Adam, Eve, Abhram, Isaac, Jacob, Samuel, David, Bath-Sheba, Ruth, Solomon, Job, Isaiah, Jesus, Mark, Judas, Paul, Peter and so on. Moreover God itself is also a character in man alive. Not all the novels are guaranteed to finish in happy ending, sometimes as vice versa. Also certain bad chapters like "The Sermon on the Mount" and "The Ten Commandments" never decides the entire holy text as foul. Every man happens to meet ups and downs in his life so novel also represent many tremblings of human life. So the Bible is a perfect example of true novel including all essence of human life.

Change alone is permanent - Life Law:

         Lawrence states the scripture that 

        " The grass withereth, the flower fadeth,

          But the word of the Lord shall stand                for ever"

         Lawrence explains the above quote that everything surrounds us change for something at someday. For instance, grass itself in the land regenerate just after the rainfall, today's bloomed flowers tend to fade which paved way to tomorrow's upcoming buds. But when it comes to assure someone by words it is also not stand at all and become older and older for sure. Whatever we are enjoying in this day it may trouble us at someday, and whatever we feel stable always tend to change tomorrow. Eventually nothing is permanent expect changes.

Standpoint: 

        Be a novelist D.H. Lawrence defenses novels by begins with throwing light on the significance of human body. They are as important as mind and soul. Body is a key element of man's further life. Other disciplinarians like Philosophers, Parsons and Scientists are giving least importance to the human body. Meanwhile Lawrence condemns these disciplinarians for not giving importance when man alive. As a novelist he respects human and value them in sorts of tremblings in their life. Also changes make everything and everyone shatter but novelist is the one person who values these changes as well. Ultimately novels are the key factor to understand the human life and man should make use of it from the novelists.