Snake by DH Lawrence
In Snake, Lawrence tells of a confrontation with a snake he had at his water trough. This poem is actually based on an incident that occurred to him and obviously reflects his feelings and emotions.
Lawrence was honored by the snakes presence, but was also afraid. “If you were not afraid, you would kill him”, he said to himself. He simply waits for the snake to finish drinking its water, and then throws a log at it to scare it away. After doing so he immediately regrets doing it because he missed a chance with one of the “lords of life.” Throughout the poem Lawrence illustrates his point about strife and the clash of opposites. Education and social conventions make
Lawrence think that the poisonous snake must be killed, and that a brave man should undertake the task. For a brief moment Lawrence lacked the faith of his own intuition and missed his chance with one of the lords of life. (Internet, 3) He compares the snake to domesticated farm animals and to a human by referring to the snake as “someone” and describing “him” as amusing. Lawrence compares the snake to a god, a king, and a lord of life. It almost seems as he feels the snake is above him. The snake is the first one on the scene, and the first to leave. Lawrence wonders why “petty” mankind always tries to rob the dignity from all Godly creatures
(Masterplots, 1930).
Some religious themes could be drawn from the poem as well.
There was a snake in the Garden of Eden. Lawrence is drawn by the snake, just as Eve was in the Bible. He is in complete awe of it, and can not decide to turn away from it or get a chance to understand it.
Lawrence’s act of scaring it away could illustrate an attempt to draw closer to God. His inner feelings are fear of the snake “And truly I was afraid, I was most afraid, But even so, honoured still more.” His
Garden was both honored and violated by the snake (Masterplots,
1931). This poem, along with others, convey his inner feelings and conflicts. He is confused on how he should feel about the snake. He is torn between what he thinks society would have him do, and what would be morally right. He has been taught that a snake is something
The effect the reader perceives in the passage of Rattler is attained from the usage of the author¡¯s imagery. The author describes the pre-action of the battle between the man and the snake as a ¡°furious signal, quite sportingly warning [the man] that [he] had made an unprovoked attack, attempted to take [the snake¡¯s] life... ¡± The warning signal is portrayed in order to reveal the significance of both the man¡¯s and the snake¡¯s value of life. The author sets an image of how one of their lives must end in order to keep the world in peace. In addition, the author describes how ¡°there was blood in [snake¡¯s] mouth and poison dripping from his fangs; it was all a nasty sight, pitiful now that it was done.¡± This bloody image of snake¡¯s impending death shows the significance of the man¡¯s acceptance toward the snake. In a sense, the reader can interpret the man¡¯s sympathy toward the snake because of the possibility that he should have let him go instead of killing him.
of MAD and became interested in it although I only understood a few of the
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Kimbrough, David L. Taking up Serpents: Snake Handlers of Eastern Kentucky. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina, 1995. Print.
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Ménez, Andre’. The Subtle Beast: Snakes, from Myth to Medicine. New York, New York: CRC Press, 2003.
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