The Fox David Herbert Lawrence

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The FoxDavid Herbert Lawrence

• Textual Analysis

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• Analysis of
• Title
• Historical Context
• Plot, Setting and Characters
• Narrator and narrative techniques
• Main themes
• Womens autonomy
• Relationships
• The message

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THE FOX
Carnivorous animal symbolizing shrewdness,
intelligence, cunning, malice, fraud

• Definite article used to refer to something
  determinate, known.

Reading the title the reader expects the text to
be about the fox or someone who has got qualities
generally referred to the animal.
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CHARACTERS and SETTING
Characters March and Bandford. They are two
women of thirty years old working on a farm.
Bandford is presented as the most delicate and
weak because of her physical appearance, but
March is weaker than she. March is able to work
hard as a man and she will always be the man of
the situation but she is in the air and she is
subdued by Bandford. March and Bandford are the
surnames of the women and they are meaningful
because March refers to the month in which the
nature awakes, and Bandford refers to something
distant (to band) and strong. The surnames
communicate as the women realy are. Henry. He is
the soldier that arrives one day in the farm. He
is presented as the fox by the point of view of
March and as an obstacle by the point of view of
Bandford. The reader is not able to create in his
mind an idea of Henry. He knows a lot of pieces
of information about him, but they are not useful
to understand how he realy is. Setting Where? It
is set in an English coutryside. When? In 1920.
The novel is set during the I World Wars
aftermath.
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THE PLOT

• Bandford and March worked on Bailey Farm facing a
  lot of difficulties. They are a balanced couple
  of friends, even if sometimes their relationship
  seems to be stronger than friendship, able to
  survive with their animals in the I World Wars
  aftermath.
• One day, Henry enters in their life modifying
  their relationship. Henry lived in the farm with
  his grandfather before he went to Canada as
  soldier, and now, that he returned back home, his
  grandfather is dead and the two women live in his
  house.
• Bandford, at the beginning, was realy kind with
  him, but when she realized that Henry was
  interest on March, she feel jealous and she was
  against him.
• Henry is attracted by March and vice versa. He
  realy wanted to marry her and he declared his
  love but she didnt know what to do. Finally she
  accepts to marry him even if she was doubtful
  because she didnt want Bandford to suffer.
• Bandford and Henry proceed to persuade March get
  married or not.
• At the end of the novel Henry, furious, decided
  to eliminate the obstacle that separated him by
  March he killed Bandford cutting a tree. The
  tree, falling down, hit the little and delicate
  Bandford and symbolically killed March. She
  suffers for the pain and sorrow, but fortunately,
  Henry took care of her.

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HISTORICAL CONTEXT

• The novel is set during the aftermath of the I
  World War.
• Great Britain took part in the conflict declaring
  war to Austria in 1914.
• It was lined up with France, Russia and United
  States and, at the end of the war, in 1918, it
  was one of the winners.
• Anyway the war high damaged Great Britain. It
  wasnt the place in which the war was fought but
  it was the main investor. The value of British
  pound fell down. There was inflation and, as a
  direct consequence, people are not able to
  survive. Poverty made difficult men existences in
  addition to illness, death, sorrow, pain,
  destruction, and workless.
• It is estimated that the Spanish Flu killed from
  50 to 100 million people worldwide, and there are
  also other diseases.
• Life conditions of whom was survived at the war
  were precarious.

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NARRATOR and NARRATIVE TECHNIQUES

• The narrator is a third person omniscient
  narrator that adopts the point of view of a
  character.
• The narrative techniques he uses are
• Direct speech ? to charge the text of realism
• Shift of the point of view ? to consider the
  scene by the point of view of a character
• Metaphorical and evocative language ? to create
  equivocal and confusion in the readers mind that
  makes
• 
  
  associations not even right ex. When
  the narrator speaks about the fox
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  and you cant realize if he is speaking
  about the animal, Henry or the
• 
  
  deal fox singing in Marchs mind.
• Juxtaposition of scenes ? to convey the
  simultaneous idea of time through the reader
  possibility to know what
• 
  every character is doing in the
  same time

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MAIN THEMES

• Love and friendship jealousy, loyalty, fidelity,
  sensitivity, submission, conditioning.
• The novel makes the reader think about
  interpersonal relationships. They are at the
  centre of investigation and, as a consequence
  they are one of the main themes.
• Work difficulties, obstacles, patience,
  constancy, care and help, collaboration.
• The Fox perfectly shows the two womens work and
  their care towards the farm.
• War death, destruction, survival, poverty,
  suffering, sorrow, pain, troubles, changes.
• It is a main theme because it is the reason why
  the two women are in the farm and the cause of
  poverty and women troubles.
• Reflection troubles, feelings, dreams and
  sensations, visions, perceptions, ideas
• The narrator usually refers the characters chain
  of thoughts to the reader. The reader is in the
  characters mind and is supposed to apply himself
  to understand their ideas.

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WOMENS AUTONOMY

• March and Bandford are alone in the country and
  they are able to provide everything for
  themselves. Their autonomy is the result of
• The War ? Men are employed as soldiers in the
  conflict, as a consequence women are supposed to
  work. The state needs them in countries, and in
  factories to produce the bare minimum to survive
  and to maintain troops in life.
• Women feel necessary and part of the social
  system a system in which they were nothing, a
  system they have ever wanted to take part of.
• War creates the womens opportunity to become
  part of the society, to feel useful and to
  emancipate themselves.
• Woman emancipation ? It is a feminine movement
  characterizing the first two decades of 20th
  Century. Women from the middle class, being
  frustrated by their social and economical
  situation, wanted to change it. A lot of
  demonstrations and direct actions of such wishes
  spread in England.
• They wanted to be called Suffragettes from the
  word suffrage. They want to vote and to have
  the same place, opportunities and possibility of
  a men.
• For some of such wishes, women are supposed to
  work and to fight even today, but for others they
  succeed. In England, on the 2nd of July 1928,
  every woman is allowed to vote.

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RELATIONSHIPS

• Relationships are at the centre of texts
  investigation.
• They can be analyzed from the direct reported
  speech or considering the characters reactions
  described by the narrator.
• Anyway the reader is invited to consider the
  consequences of love on friendship. March and
  Bandford are friend before Henrys communication
  to desire to marry March.
• March is not autonomous to chose what to do
  because she has to decide who is minded to loose.
  Bandford and Henry fight to kept March, but she
  didnt know what to do.
• This is the demonstration that relationships
  limit the personal autonomy.
• You are not able to decide what you want or what
  is better for you without considering the
  reactions of the one you love.

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THE MESSAGE

• The novel has no definite message. It has got the
  purpose to make the reader reflect on
• The consequences of the war
• The influences of relationships on personal
  autonomy
• The importance of relationships in human life
• The rules in relationships
• man (hunter) woman (prey)
• submit (dominated) submitter
  (dominator).

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• BIANCHIN GIULIA
• Cl. VA
• 15-01-2010