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Position:Home>Philosophy> Can someone explain this quote by D.H Lawrence?Question: Can someone explain this quote by D!.H Lawrence!? Lawrence writes to Ernest Collings (Jan 1913):
'I conceive a man's body as a kind of flame forever upright and yet flowing: and the intellect is just the light that is shed into the things around us!. And I am not so much concerned with things around: - which is really mind; - but with the mystery of the flame forever flowing…!. and being itself!.'Www@QuestionHome@Com Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: I am a puzzled by his repeated use of the word "forever": for a human being's body is evidently not "forever" flowing!. However, I think it means he focuses on the body rather than on the mind or intellect (which is only a function of the body)!. As for the "forever": could he have meant it in Blake's sense of eternity in the following lines!? "To see a World in a Grain of Sand And Heaven in a Wild Flower, Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand And Eternity in an hour!." [Blake, Auguries of Innocence, opening!.] As you will see, Blake also focuses on physical things (grains of sand, a wild flower, the palm of your hand)!. And the image of fire is also very Blakean!. P!.S!.: Compare the following: "Energy is the only life and is from the Body, and Reason is the bound or outward circumference of Energy!." [Blake, The Marriage of Heaven and Hell!.] I suggest that you read the whole work!.Www@QuestionHome@Com He is trying to illustrate the relation between the body and mind and soul!. The body is the tangible bit, that can influence the material world just as a flame can!. The light is the soul or awareness, which makes it possible to see things!. He says the things themselves are reflected in the mind and therefore are mental!. For him the wonder lies in the relation between the flame and the light!. The flame is the essence of his material body, that he sees as always being in movement!.Www@QuestionHome@Com Yes, it is a bunch of words that make no sense at all!. It almost sounds like an attempt on the part of someone mentally challenged to say something of value, but which falls far short!.Www@QuestionHome@Com he was just saying that he was curious about the human soul and it's ability to last forever!. who cares about him being gay or anything like that it does not take anything away from who he was!.Www@QuestionHome@Com D!.H!. Lawrence was a well know Gay!.!.!. now!.!.!. read the sentence again and it's pretty clear what he meant!.Www@QuestionHome@Com |