The Captain's Doll

by D.H. Lawrence

Down the road strayed the tourists like pilgrims, and at the closed end of the valley they could be seen, quite tiny, climbing the cut- out road that went up like a stairway. Just by their movements you perceived them. But on the valley-bed they went like rolling stones, little as stones. A very elegant mule came stepping by, following a middle-aged woman in tweeds and a tall, high-browed man in knickerbockers. The mule was drawing a very amusing little cart, a chair, rather like a round office-chair upholstered in red velvet, and mounted on two wheels.

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories, Classics, Historical Fiction, British Literature

Paperback

First published January 1, 1923

About the author

David Herbert Richards Lawrence was an English writer of the 20th century, whose prolific and diverse output included novels, short stories, poems, plays, essays, travel books, paintings, translations, literary criticism, and personal letters. His collected works represent an extended reflection upon the dehumanizing effects of modernity and industrialisation. In them, Lawrence confronts issues relating to emotional health and vitality, spontaneity, human sexuality and instinct.

Lawrence's opinions earned him many enemies and he endured official persecution, censorship, and misrepresentation of his creative work throughout the second half of his life, much of which he spent in a voluntary exile he called his "savage pilgrimage." At the time of his death, his public reputation was that of a pornographer who had wasted his considerable talents. E. M. Forster, in an obituary notice, challenged this widely held view, describing him as "the greatest imaginative novelist of our generation." Later, the influential Cambridge critic F. R. Leavis championed both his artistic integrity and his moral seriousness, placing much of Lawrence's fiction within the canonical "great tradition" of the English novel. He is now generally valued as a visionary thinker and a significant representative of modernism in English literature.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D.H._Law...

Reviews

[Chrissie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I suppose one could analyze this novella to pieces. I am not going to do that. I am simply going to tell you what I like, which explains why I give it three stars.

I love Lawrence’s writing. Dialogues are pitch perfect--I love how sometimes people throw just one word back and forth. This is how people really do talk. Descriptions of people, places, landscapes and flowers, plants and trees are stunning. The atmosphere, mood of people and feel of a place are captured. Lawrence’s words create vivid pictures in your head.

Here are two samples:

“The river shouted at the bottom of a gulf. Bristling pine trees stood around. The air was black and cold and forever sunless. ……There was an occasional big, moist, lolling daisy.“

“There, in that river valley, there was no sense of peace. The rush of the waters seemed like weapons and the tourists all seemed like in a frenzy, in a frenzy to be happy or thrilled. It was a feeling that desolated the heart.”

Lawrence draws here, in this novella, love relationships. Love relationships take many forms. What is love for one is not for another. No love relationship flows smoothly. None are friction free. Physical attraction, loyalty, honor and obedience—how much of each is required? None, all, and in what amounts? There is also a difference between wanting to be loved and being able to reciprocate that love in return. In my view, Lawrence knows what he is talking about, and the topic is interesting to me.

More than this, you do not need to know.

Davina Porter, the reader of this audiobook, delivers, as usual, an absolutely wonderful performance. Her reading of Lawrence’s lyrical lines is gorgeous. She switches with ease from Scottish to British to German. Pacing and speed are always perfect. Five stars for the narration.

***************************

*The Lost Girl: Cambridge Lawrence Edition 5 stars
*The Ladybird 5 stars
*The Virgin and the Gipsy 5 stars
*The Rainbow 4 stars
*The Captain's Doll 3 stars
*Love Among the Haystacks 3 stars
*Sons and Lovers 1 star
*Lady Chatterley's Lover 1 star
*Kangaroo TBR
*The Fox TBR
*Women in Love TBR

[Mighty Aphrodite · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jack Grant ha quasi diciotto anni quando arriva in Australia. Una volta sbarcato, l’Inghilterra sembra ormai lontana anni luce per lui e appare ai suoi occhi giovani e disorientati come un incubo da cui provare a risvegliarsi. Il signor George – che un tempo aveva conosciuto sua madre – si è assunto il compito di accoglierlo in Australia, di aprirgli la strada e trovargli una famiglia disposto ad accoglierlo e a insegnargli il lavoro della fattoria.

L’università l’ha cacciato per un scandalo che forse contemplava delle scommesse illegali e qualche incontro di boxe e la sua famiglia – incapace di comprendere le sue bizze e la sua testardaggine a non piegarsi alle convenzioni e alle aspettative della buona società inglese – ha deciso di gettarlo nelle fauci spalancate del mondo selvaggio e apparentemente senza regole dell’Australia solo parzialmente colonizzata e civilizzata.

Jack viene accolto dalla famiglia Ellis, che coltiva e amministra la tenuta di Wandoo, e si ritrova a vivere a stretto contatto con tutti loro: da Tom, il figlio maggiore, a Lennie, Grace e Monica, Harry, Pa’ e Ma’. Per questa famiglia sviluppa sin da subito un affetto profondo, non riuscirebbe ad immaginare la sua vita lontana da loro, da quei legami così stretti e, allo stesso tempo, strani, quasi selvaggi e animaleschi.

A perseguitarlo sono anche i morsi dell’amore, diviso com’è tra gli occhi gialli e seducenti di Monica, che si aggira intorno a lui come una una gatta selvatica, pronta ad affilare gli artigli sulla sua carne ancora tenera e inesperta, e l’anima pesante e familiare di Mary, a cui si sente legato da qualcosa di più del sangue che condividono.

Continua a leggere qui: https://parlaredilibri.wordpress.com/...

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I read the final page, I thought, "How did we get here and why"? So I turned back to the first page and read it again. The relationships between the characters feel odd at first, and the treatment of a doll and a drawing of said doll have fates that seemingly don't fit the outcome. But everything does come together... in a way that's unusual. Lawrence is always just not exactly what I expect.

[David Highton · Rating 4 out of 5]

A novella written in 1921 about the relationship between a married army captain and an impoverished German countess. The last section in the Austrian mountains is written beautifully - the descriptive narrative of the trip to the glacier is brilliant, ruined only by an underlying anti-Semitic tone.

[fc7reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though this is a short story, it is crammed full of wisdom and relevance that holds true nearly 100 years after publication. I know the conventional wisdom asserts that the novel explores the dehumanizing effects of war. I understand the story was written in the aftermath of WWI and the main character is a captain. And yet, what stands out to me are the relationship themes. The main characters could be a middle-management supervisor and a member of waitstaff, or a flight attendant and a gas station clerk and the story would still work. Relationship concepts such as attraction, fidelity, respect, loss, self-worth, and compromise are timeless and not bound to class, status, or culture. Can a person delude themselves into contentment? How well does one person really ever know another person? Do we need love? Passion? Or is it enough to find companionship? It really is startling that Lawrence was able to cram so much into such a small package.

[Kristine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me by a book-lover who enjoys reading just about everything. The story was interesting. I have never read anything by D.H. Lawrence before, so the style took some getting used to. The story was short, yet it said a lot about people at the time the story took place. It was a very interesting premise for a very odd type of love story and I am glad I took the time to read it!

[Galowa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Who are we? How do our past and present experiences inform our future choices/ decisions? How do we answer these questions for ourselves and how do we communicate these questions and our answers to others? Do we have any right (or any obligation) to ask such questions (or answer them) for others' lives as well as our own?

Navigating life absent any universally recognized "rules of the road;" in other words, "making it up as we go." What a fabulously great, improbable, feel-good story... Thank you, DHR Lawrence!

[Rita · Rating 3 out of 5]

My pocketbook copy of this long short story is together with 6 other shorter short stories, possibly all written before 1922. 'The Captain's Doll' is set in Germany right after WW I.

I recently finished reading Claire Tomlin's excellent biography of Katherine Mansfield, and she tells a whole lot about Mansfield's friendship with Lawrence and his [second] wife. Tomlin also quotes insightful passages written by Lawrence about Mansfield and her writing. And she compares the writing of the two of them. So this background made it interesting for me to read Lawrence now.

Lawrence does indeed show us in great detail how a man and a woman relate to each other, not only in the title story but also in the others, esp 'The White Stocking' and 'The Blind Man'. I find all of his characters rather weird people, but I am convinced they are very real to Lawrence, and that Lawrence is grappling with the strong, irrational impulses that humans do have. He does not want to "pretty them up".

Lawrence describes in amazing detail the drive and walk up to the glacier in the Alps; he really makes it come to life. I can only think it must have been a deep and precious experience to Lawrence himself, otherwise why bother to write about the scenery in such detail.

[Peter Edelman · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are many disturbing things about Lawrence, but damn if he isn't a great writer. He's a guilty pleasure. Loved the Rainbow and Sons and Lovers. Forget silly Lady Chatterly and the absurd Plumed Serpent. He died in 1930 before such impulses played out in fascist politics and culture. However, I'm drawn to it.

[Yifat]

First DH I have managed to swallow - pretty good, pretty, pretty, good.

[Zerin Hasan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel shitty :/

[Alexander M Nandan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A look into pressing pause on life through a perspective of not doing so.

[Reid Burroughs · Rating 2 out of 5]

Usually a fan of Lawrence but hated this story Lawrence is a writer with a lot of irony but these characters are just plain ornery. Neither is likable though they do nothing horrible but complain a lot and talk crap. The Captain talks like way too much about his inner life and the female protagonist just argues with him constantly about nothing. It might make a nice summertime read as parts of the story take place on an Austrian glacier. Lawrence doesn’t really wrap the story up he just ends the story abruptly he probably got tired of the whole thing himself.

[Wayne Jordaan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Deep tale about relationships, patriarchy, marriage and love.

[Emily ⋆˙⟡♡ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this so much lol !

[Saša Pavlaković · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book was not interesting because it lacks any meaningful action. It is killing with the descriptions not connected to the main theme. The end one could expected.

[pelin · Rating 2 out of 5]

????

[A.L. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this, but I feel like it could do with studying, not just reading. Hard to get past the utter selfish self-entitled childishness of the captain.

[Rachel H · Rating 2 out of 5]

maybe a 2.5 - 3 idk

[Megan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not something I would typically read but it was a quick one to get out of my reading slump. I wasn’t really a fan of the writing at times. Overall it was an alright read.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

And finally, I am at the final D. H. Lawrence novella, the last one in the book anyway. It is titled The Captain's Doll, and was written in 1921 and first published by Martin Secker in March 1923 in a volume with The Ladybird and The Fox. It was the basis of the 1983 TV film of the same name with Jeremy Irons as the Captain. Of all those people out there who knew there was a movie made in 1983 called The Captain's Doll, I am not one of you, and to all of you who knew there was a short novella by the same name I also am not one of you. Until now that is.

The story tells us of a German aristocrat, Countess Johanna 'Hannele' zu Rassentlow as she dates a Scottish officer. I am really glad we call her Hannele after this so I don't have to type out all the Countess Rassentlow stuff every time I mention her. The Scottish officer happens to be Captain Alexander Hepburn, and he also happens to be married. Hannele gets to meet this wife of his when this wife travels to Germany suspicious of foul play, she's heard a rumor that is actually true for once . And I've just told you most of the story. Hannele happens to make her living making things like scarves, or embroidered cushions, or get ready...dolls. She is quite famous for her dolls, as Lawrence points out, she is famous for her dolls so they don't starve. They is Hannele and her partner in doll making, Mitchka, the doll won't starve. Then Hannele meets the Captain, and falls in love with the captain, and makes a doll of the captain:

It was a perfect portrait of an officer of a Scottish regiment, slender, delicately made, with a slight, elegant stoop of the shoulders and close-fitting tartan trousers. The face was beautifully modelled, and a wonderful portrait, dark-skinned, with a little, close-cut, dark moustache, and wide-open dark eyes, and that air of aloofness and perfect diffidence which marks an officer and a gentleman.



I have never once considered making a doll of my husband. The entire thing is just weird. It looks so much like him that the furious wife recognizes it when she barges into the apartment one day. She is there because she wants her husband and she wants that doll. She manages to get one of them. I would have given her both, that way maybe the story would have been even shorter than it already was and I wouldn't have to go through the rest of it with these strange people. Lucky for me, since this was a short story I am certain to forget the entire thing, especially that incredibly strange ending. Thankfully I have no more long short stories of Lawrence's to work my way through. I hope not anyway.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Scottish officer, Captain Alexander Hepburn's involvement in the war has convinced him that human life is of very little value. German aristocrat, Countess Johanna zu Rassenflow, "Hannele," is captivated by Hepburn nonetheless, and as they journey together toward their ambiguous conclusion, the dehumanizing effects of war are made clear.

[Candida · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a strange story. It's about a doll maker who falls in love for a married man. She makes a doll that looks exactly like him. She is fairly sure that he doesn't love her and she really can't figure him out. He is always kind to her and shows her romantic attention.
The ending to this book was so unappealing I was very disappointed.

[Sofìa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entretenido.

[Tinquerbelle]

Lawrence, D.H.
Four Short Novels

In compilation only.