Lawrence’s Angst: The Transformative Journey from Sardinia to “The Ship of Death”

Abstract

Though D.H. Lawrence proudly declared in his 1908 letter to Blanche Jennings that his knowledge of the sea far exceeds that of experienced sailors, he affirmed that he never touched the water when in a boat and that his bathing was restricted to the shore. Apparently, this relationship is defined by surface and depth, and oscillates between the two moods of awe and anxiety. The former is reflected in his poetry, while the latter is pervasive in his prose writings. From a Heideggerean perspective, and with particular focus on Sea and Sardinia where his shifting moods conspicuously drive the narrative, we argue here that Lawrence’s occasionally aggressive reactions stem from a deep-seated anxiety that is heightened by his proximity to the sea. As Dasein, his moods and lived experiences eventually lead to his reconciliation with the existential inevitability of death. The reading which is proposed here juxtaposes Sea and Sardinia with one early and two later poems, “The Sea,” “Mana of the Sea,” and “The Ship of Death,” in order to trace the vicissitudes of his emotional states. Basically, the aim of this study is to draw attention to the transformative power of Lawrence’s angst by analyzing how the shift in attitude towards the sea reflects his acceptance or coming to terms with death.