Socio-psychological reading of D.H. Lawrence's Lady Chatterley's Lover

D. H. Lawrence's Lady Chatterley's Lover (1928) depicts the transformation of Lady Chatterley from an aristocratic lady to a classless position through her harmonious relationship with a lower class man. In fact, Lawrence usually focuses on class distinction in his novels and short stories. In Lady Chatterley's Lover, however, he concentrates more on the importance of sexuality as a key of the compatible relationship between Lady Chatterley and Oliver Mellors though they belong to different classes. He also depicts the impact of disturbed psychology, repressed sexuality, and gender inequality in forming the identities of the characters in the problematic social stratification of the early twentieth century. If evaluated from the Marxist perspective, it can be seen that the class conflict and the exploitation of the weak members by the capitalist (landowner) depict the materialistic superstructure of a society in which gender roles and individual identities are being reshaped. As a consequence of this transformation, Lady Chatterley gains her individuality and consciousness by blurring the conventional boundaries of the classes through having an affair with a lower class lover. And if analyzed from the psychological perspective, the corrupting influence of the capitalist civilization that has already distorted the understanding of sexuality leads Lady Chatterley to a neurotic life, from which she saves herself by turning back to nature, by understanding her natural impulses, and by following the rule for pro-creation. Therefore, after Lady Chatterley gains consciousness and maturity, the novel ends with the compatible love relationship between Lady Chatterley and Mellors. Lady Chatterley has overcome all the social barriers in her life, and has come to assert herself as a woman with her unique personality. Keywords: Class distinction, Marxism, Capitalism, Psychology,Neurosis, Sexual Phantasy