Sons and Lovers
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Sons and Lovers is a novel by D.H. Lawrence which tells the story of Paul Morel, a young man and a budding artist.
Both repulsed by and drawn to his mother, Paul is afraid to leave her but wants to go out on his own, and his need to experience love.
This is the most autobiographical of all Lawrence's works as the author himself had a similar relationship with his own mother. The use of this oedipal theme is one of a number of Freudian concepts he used throughout his books. Like many of his works Sons and Lovers was criticised when first published for obscenity and one publisher called it "the dirtiest book he had ever read" but compared to his later works it is quite constrained.
The original 1913 edition was heavily edited by Edward Garnett who removed eighty passages, roughly a tenth of the text. Despite this the novel is dedicated to Garnett. It was not until the 1992 Cambridge University Press edition that the missing text was restored.
The book was adapted into a film in 1960 by T.E.B. Clarke and Gavin Lambert. It was directed by Jack Cardiff. It stars Trevor Howard, Dean Stockwell, Wendy Hiller, Mary Ure, William Lucas and Donald Pleasence.
The film won an Academy Award for Best Cinematography and was nominated for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Trevor Howard), Best Actress in a Supporting Role (Mary Ure), Best Art Direction-Set Decoration, Black-and-White, Best Director, Best Picture and Best Writing, Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium.
Sons and Lovers was made into a television miniseries in 1981. It starred Eileen Atkins, Tom Bell and Lynn Dearth. It was adapted by Trevor Griffiths and directed by Stuart Burge.