The Stronger Sex

The Fictional Women of Lawrence Durrell

James R. Nichols

The Stronger Sex, a study of the women in the fiction of Lawrence Durrell, argues that Lawrence Durrell envisioned a new woman, self-confident, free of male domination, and able to serve, direct, and protect her dependent man. Durrell's modern twentieth- /twenty-first-century woman is the center of what Durrell envisions as the new "couple"-woman dependent upon man for completion and man dependent upon the centrality of woman for the essential wisdom and direction and meaning in his life. Far from being a mere follower of D. H. Lawrence, as many have claimed, Durrell came to insist that man must first cede to woman both the personal and social power and freedom which he has throughout history denied her. Only in this way, suggests Durrell, can modern man both find himself and save himself and so discover and fulfill his own being.

Thus, all of Durrell's women are the saviors of the lost men who must come to them for human completion. From the women of the early works, such as Panic Spring, The Pied Piper of Lovers, The Black Book, and The Dark Labyrinth, to the Justines, Melissas and Cleas of the Alexandria Quartet, the Benedictas and Iolanthes of The Revolt of Aphrodite, the Constances and Livias of The Avignon Quintet, and Cunegonde of Caesar's Vast Ghost-all of Durrell's lost and ever inadequate men must ultimately find themselves and the meaning of their lives in the women who complete them. Then, paradoxically, and only then, can these same men provide the security, direction, and protection for which their women so desperately search. Thus, in the "couple" both man and woman are completed in their mutual dependence and final self-discovery.

The study refers often to the works of previous biographers of Lawrence Durrell: Ian MacNiven, Richard Pine, and Gordon Bowker.

University Press Copublishing Division / Fairleigh Dickinson University Press

Pages: 168 • Trim: 6½ x 9½

978-1-61147-066-6 • Hardback • April 2011 • $105.00 • (£81.00)

Subjects: Literary Criticism / Feminist, Literary Criticism / European / English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh

The Stronger Sex

The Fictional Women of Lawrence Durrell

Hardback

Summary

The Stronger Sex, a study of the women in the fiction of Lawrence Durrell, argues that Lawrence Durrell envisioned a new woman, self-confident, free of male domination, and able to serve, direct, and protect her dependent man. Durrell's modern twentieth- /twenty-first-century woman is the center of what Durrell envisions as the new "couple"-woman dependent upon man for completion and man dependent upon the centrality of woman for the essential wisdom and direction and meaning in his life. Far from being a mere follower of D. H. Lawrence, as many have claimed, Durrell came to insist that man must first cede to woman both the personal and social power and freedom which he has throughout history denied her. Only in this way, suggests Durrell, can modern man both find himself and save himself and so discover and fulfill his own being.

Thus, all of Durrell's women are the saviors of the lost men who must come to them for human completion. From the women of the early works, such as Panic Spring, The Pied Piper of Lovers, The Black Book, and The Dark Labyrinth, to the Justines, Melissas and Cleas of the Alexandria Quartet, the Benedictas and Iolanthes of The Revolt of Aphrodite, the Constances and Livias of The Avignon Quintet, and Cunegonde of Caesar's Vast Ghost-all of Durrell's lost and ever inadequate men must ultimately find themselves and the meaning of their lives in the women who complete them. Then, paradoxically, and only then, can these same men provide the security, direction, and protection for which their women so desperately search. Thus, in the "couple" both man and woman are completed in their mutual dependence and final self-discovery.

The study refers often to the works of previous biographers of Lawrence Durrell: Ian MacNiven, Richard Pine, and Gordon Bowker.

Details

University Press Copublishing Division / Fairleigh Dickinson University Press

Pages: 168 • Trim: 6½ x 9½

978-1-61147-066-6 • Hardback • April 2011 • $105.00 • (£81.00)

Subjects: Literary Criticism / Feminist, Literary Criticism / European / English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh

Author

James R. Nichols is chair of the board of The Durrell School of Corfu. He has taught English literature at the university level, both in the United States and abroad.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 Introduction: Biography and Fiction
Chapter 2 Chapter 1: Classicism and Durrell's Vision: Durrell's Free Women
Chapter 3 Chapter 2: Dorothy Lamour on the Road: Paganism and the Female Body
Chapter 4 Chapter 3: The Loneliness of Love: Melissa and the Sacrificial Woman
Chapter 5 Chapter 4: Durrell's Failed Women: Justine and Livia
Chapter 6 Chapter 5: My Lady, My Guenevere: Benedicta and the Revolt of Aphrodite
Chapter 7 Chapter 6: Risen Angels in Durrell's Free/Fallen Women: Clea, Constance, and the Fortunate Fall
Chapter 8 Chapter 7: Jocasta, How You've Changed: Lawrence Durrell and the Earth Moth
Chapter 9 Chapter 8: Narcissism and the Female Body: Cunegonde in Caesar's Vast Ghost
Chapter 10 Postscript: Civilization as a Female Construct

Reviews

In this invaluable guide, Nichols writes about Durrell's pervasive focus on women in his novels. Clearly in command of his subject, the author provides numerous insights that clarify the complicated male-female relationships that characterize Durrell's many novels. Durrell and D. H. Lawrence are often paired, and Nichols begins by addressing this connection and the two authors' similar interest in women figures and their salient differences. He counsels readers to avoid interpreting Durrell by way of biography; for example, in real life Durrell was notorious for his troubled, even despotic relationships with women. In his fiction, however, he proffers women as exemplars of male completion. For Durrell, woman is the controlling force in life, ushering in the carnality of experience. Lover, protector, and friend, she is equal to her men in every way and always at the center of a productive relationship. She is the means to man's freedom, but only as he allows her social and intellectual equality. Durrell emerges as a classicist in his pagan tapestry affirming life's goodness. Defined by cautiousness and adroit scholarship, Nichols' study is as brilliant in its conception as it is formidable in its telling. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Lower-division undergraduates and above.
— Choice Reviews

The Stronger Sex

The Fictional Women of Lawrence Durrell

James R. Nichols

The Stronger Sex

The Fictional Women of Lawrence Durrell

ALSO AVAILABLE