D H Lawrence

The Rainbow Illustrated D H Lawrence

The Rainbow is a novel by British author D. H. Lawrence, first published in 1915. It follows three generations of the Brangwen family living in Nottinghamshire, [2] particularly focusing on the individual's struggle to growth and fulfilment within the confining strictures of English social life. Lawrence's 1920 novel Women in Love is a sequel to The Rainbow. Set against the backdrop of a rapidly industrializing England, the bewildering shift in social structure, the fading away of traditions and the advent of new ways of life, The Rainbow by DH Lawrence depicts how one family's story becomes the story of a society. Originally planned as a novel titled The Sisters, Lawrence finally split the theme into two separate novels after many revisions and rewrites. The Rainbow is the first novel in the Brangwen family saga. Tom Brangwen is a small time farmer in rural Nottinghamshire. He meets Lydia Lensky, an aristocratic Polish refugee and widow who has a daughter, Anna, from her previous marriage. Tom is fascinated by Lydia's "foreignness" and soon proposes marriage. The couple lives a happy and contented life. They have two sons of their own. They live quietly, and the smooth tenor of their lives is interrupted occasionally by Anna's restlessness and haughty ways. When Will, who is Tom's distant relative, comes to visit, Anna falls in love with him. The family is happy and supportive and the two marry in the local church. However, Anna's illusions are soon shattered. Will is also bewildered by the changes he finds in Anna when she becomes a mother. Their daughter Ursula becomes his support and confidant.