Women in Love
Nottingham, because his work lay chiefly in that town. But often he was in London, or in Oxford. He
wspaper, and evidently waiting for the train. Birkin stood some distance
here seemed to be a dual consciousness running in him. He was thinking vigorously of something he read in the newspaper, and at the same time his eye ran over the surfaces of the life round him, and he mi
enial look flash on to Gerald's face, at seei
rt, where ar
o are you,
es
t over Birkin's f
ogether if you
ally go first?
ld. 'But third'll be all right. There's
he station clock, havin
ading in the pape
oked at h
e scanned the columns down-'and then there's this little-I dunno what you'd call it, essay, almost-appearing with the leaders, and saying there must arise a man
it of newspaper cant,
n meant it, and quite g
Birkin, holding out
ittle table, by the window, in the restaurant car. Birkin glanced
s it,' he said, 'as far
Do you think we really want
ugged his
o stare straight at this life that we've brought upon ourselves, and reject it, absolutely smash up the old idols of ourselves,
tched him
eak up this life, just st
completely, or shrivel inside it, as in a
e in Gerald's eyes, a look of
I suppose you mean, reform the w
n between the brows. He too was
ing better, we shall smash the old. Until then, any sort of proposal, or ma
of Gerald's eyes, and he said, l
think things
letel
e appear
what
e cover the earth with foulness; life is a blotch of labour, like insects scurrying in filth, so that your collier can have a pianoforte in his parlour, and you can h
time to re-adjust him
e without houses-retur
nt to do-and what they are capable of doing. If they were
He was not going to t
all it, is a symbol for something very real, a real
taller on the strength of the pianoforte, and he is satisfied. He lives for the sake of that Brocken spectre, the reflection of himself in the human opinion. You do the same. If you are of high importance to humanity you
I am,' laug
ng myself. "I eat, thou eatest, he eats, we eat, you eat, they eat"-and what then? W
erial things,' said Gerald. W
we're not just cattle that can graze
Birkin. 'What
face went
work, to produce something, in so far as I am a purpos
d all the plush furniture, and pianofortes, and the rabbits are all stewed and eaten, and we're all warm and our bellies are filled and we're
and the mocking humour of the oth
'A good many people are still waiting
must chase the rabbit?' sai
like that,'
red callousness, even strange, glistening malice, in Geral
said, 'I rath
,' said Gerald
nscrutably for
said at last. 'Do you ever consciously detest me-hate me wit
even a little disconcerted. He
s,' he said. 'But I'm not aware of i
e worse,' s
curious eyes. He could
worse, is it?
was a little irritable tension, a sharp knitting of the brows, keen and difficult. Gerald w
d straight and overpowering
e aim and object of your
uld not think what his friend was g
say off-hand,' he replied,
the end-all of life?' Birkin asked,
life?' sa
es
really puz
id Gerald. 'It ha
our life be
myself-and getting experi
s brows like shar
ure single activity-I should call love a single pure
ally loved anybod
no,' repl
lly?' sai
nally-no,'
' said
want to?'
nkling, almost sardonic look i
know,'
t to love,'
u d
t the final
' repeated Gerald. And
llow along the fields, lit up Birkin's face with a tense,
woman,' sa
d as if he were insiste
nothing but a woman, will ev
f it-the love between you
h a queer dangerous smile
feel it that
wherein does life
As far as I can make out, it doesn't centre at all. It
as if he would
nails-nothing there. It seems to me there remains only this perfect uni
isn't the woman, there'
that-seeing t
ld. And he turned to look out of the w
tiful and soldierly his face was, wit
avy odds against
woman, woman only, yes, I do,' said Gerald. 'I don't
hed him alm
orn unbeliev
th his blue, manly, sharp-lighted eyes. Birkin's eyes were at the moment full of anger. But s
much, Gerald,' he sai
ld, uncovering his mouth in a
ot take much notice. He felt that he, himself, Gerald, had harder and more durable truths than any the other man knew. He felt himself older, more knowing. It was the quick-changing warmth and venality and
ng him seriously. And this made him go hard and cold. As the train ran on,
hat is mankind but just one expression of the incomprehensible. And if mankind passes away, it will only mean that this particular expression is completed and done. That which is expressed, and that which is to be expressed, cannot be diminished. There it is, in the shining evening. Let
rrupted him
you staying
n loo
part of the rent of a flat,
ace more or less you
t much. I'm tired of the peo
ind of
here are a few decent people, decent in some respects. They are really very thorough rejecters of the wor
ey?-painters
enly at outs with the conventions, and belongs to nowhere particularly. They are often you
se?' sai
see his cur
another. For all their sho
how good-looking he was. Gerald was attractive, his blood seemed fluid and electric. His blue eyes burned w
ch other-I am in London for t
, or the music hall-you'd better come round to the fla
,' laughed Gerald. 'What
t the Pompadour. It's a bad pl
it?' ask
dilly
shall I come
ns, it migh
n watched the country, and was filled with a sort of ho
the mass of mankind, amou
t coloured end o
and mi
o death. Gerald, who was very subtly alert, wary in
Birkin glanced at him,
t coloured end o
and
ere the somethin
asl
And Birkin, who, for some reason was
ing into London. I feel such a despair, so h
'And does the end of
his shoulders
it hangs imminent and doesn't fall. Bu
sed glad smile
And he watched the o
the carriage was on the alert, waiting to escape. At last they were under the huge arch of t
ent together
irkin, as they sat in a little, swiftly-running
aughed
l death,'