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D. H. Lawrence |
Arguably the first famous writer from
truly working class origins, David Herbert Lawrence was born in
Nottinghamshire, England, in 1885. He was the son of a former
school teacher and a
coalminer and his mother a genteel woman who
sought education and refinement for her son. Lawrence was
brought up in the small mining community of Eastwood at a time when modern
industry began transforming the East Midlands countryside. His
famous novel Lady Chatterley’s Lover became the centre of a
famous indecency trial, marking an important transition in public
views on
censorship. |
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Lawrence's favorite topics of
myth, freedom, the erotic expression, and the torments of family
relationships occupied him throughout his life. |
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Women In Love |
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Mujeres Enamoradas |
Ursula and Gudrun Brangwen sat one morning
in the window-bay of their father's house in Beldover, working and talking.
Ursula was stitching a piece of brightly-coloured embroidery, and Gudrun
was drawing upon a board which she held on her knee. They were mostly
silent, talking as their thoughts
strayed through
their minds. |
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Ursula y Gudrun Brangwen estaban sentadas
una mañana en el mirador de la casa de su padre en Beldover, trabajando y
charlando. Ursula daba puntadas a un bordado de vivos colores y Gudrun
dibujaba sobre un tablero que sostenía en las rodillas. Permanecían
silenciosas la mayor parte del tiempo, y sólo hablaban llevadas por el
errar de sus pensamientos a través de sus mentes. |
'Ursula,' said Gudrun, 'don't
you really want to get married?' Ursula laid her embroidery in her lap and
looked up.
Her face was calm and considerate. |
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"Ursula", dijo Gudrun, "de verdad no
quieres casarte?" Ursula dejó su labor en el regazo y levantó la mirada.
Su rostro era tranquilo y afable. |
'I don't know,' she replied.
'It depends how you mean.' |
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"No lo se", contestó. "Depende de qué
quieras decir." |
Gudrun was slightly
taken aback.
She watched her sister for some moments. |
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Gudrun estaba
ligeramente descon-certada. Miró a su hermana durante unos instantes. |
'Well,' she said,
ironically, 'it usually means one thing! But don't you think,
anyhow,
you'd be -' she darkened slightly - 'in a better position than you are in
now.' |
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"Bueno", dijo
irónicamente, "por lo general se quiere decir una cosa! Pero, no crees, de
todos modos, que estarías" -se entristeció levemente- "en mejor situación
que ahora?" |
A shadow
came over
Ursula's face. |
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Una sombra cubrió el
rostro de Ursula. |
'I might,' she said. 'But
I'm not sure.' |
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"Podría ser", dijo.
"Pero no estoy segura." |
Again Gudrun paused,
slightly irritated. She wanted to be
quite
definite. |
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De nuevo Gudrun se
detuvo, ligeramente irritada. Quería ser totalmente precisa.
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'You don't think one needs
the experience of having been married?' she asked. |
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"¿No crees que se
necesita la experiencia de haber estado casada?", preguntó. |
'Do you think
it need be
an experience?' replied Ursula. |
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"¿Crees que es necesario
que sea una experiencia?", contestó Ursula. |
'Bound
to be, in some way or other,' said Gudrun, coolly. 'Possibly
undesirable, but bound to be an experience
of some sort.' |
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"Por fuerza ha de serlo,
de uno u otro modo", dijo Gudrun con frialdad. "Posiblemente no deseable,
pero por fuerza ha de ser una experiencia de algún tipo." |
'Not really,' said Ursula.
'More likely to be
the end of experience.' |
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"No realmente", dijo
Ursula. "Es más probable que sea el final de una experiencia."
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Gudrun sat very still,
to attend to
this. |
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Gudrun siguió sentada,
muy quieta, atendiendo a lo que decía. |
'Of course,' she said, 'there's
that to consider.' |
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"Naturalmente", dijo,
"es algo a consi-derar." |
This brought the conversation to a close.
Gudrun, almost angrily,
took up
her rubber and began
to rub out
part of her drawing. Ursula stitched absorbedly. |
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Esto llevó la conversación a su fin.
Gudrun, casi con enojo, tomó su goma y empezó a borrar parte del dibujo.
Ursula daba puntadas absorta. |
'You wouldn't consider a good offer?' asked
Gudrun. |
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"¿No considerarías una buena oferta?",
preguntó Gudrun. |
'I think I've rejected several,' said
Ursula. |
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"Creo que ya he rechazado varias", dijo
Ursula. |
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GLOSSARY |
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PHRASAL VERBS & ADVERBIAL
PARTICLES
strayed through: moved about without any destination (vagaban
por)
looked up: raised her eyes
(levantó la vista)
taken aback: greatly surprised, shocked (desconcertada)
came over: covered all (cubrió, inundó)
to attend to: to pay attention to (para prestar
atención a)
took up: lifted her rubber to go on working (levantó,
tomó)
to rub out: to erase (a borrar) |
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IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS &
GENERAL GLOSSARY
arguably: probably (probablemente)
coalminer: pitman, somene who works in a coal mine (minero)
sought: searched (buscó, buscaba)
to seek/sought/sought/seeking: search (buscar)
brought up: educated (educado)
censorship: deleting parts of publications or
theatrical performances (censura)
anyhow: (colloquial) anyway (de todas
maneras)
quite definite: absolutely precise, accurate (absolutamente
precisa, exacta)
it need be: it is necessary that it is (es
necesario que sea)
bound to be: it's bound to be, the pronoun has been
omitted as it is usual in everyday conversation (forzosamente
lo será)
of some sort: of some kind or type (de algún tipo)
more likely to be: it's more likely to be, the
pronoun has been omitted as it is usual in everyday
conversation (es más probable que sea) |
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READING
AND LISTENING
ACTIVITY |
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LISTEN TO SISTERS GUDRUN (GLENDA
JACKSON) AND URSULA BRANGWEN (JENNIE LINDEN) TALKING ABOUT
MARRIAGE IN THIS SCENE FROM THE FILM "WOMEN IN LOVE". |
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GUDRUN: |
Ursula, don't you really want to get married? |
URSULA: |
I don't know. It depends how you mean. |
GUDRUN: |
Well, it usually means one thing! But don't you think,
anyhow, you'd be ... in a better position
than you are in now. |
URSULA: |
I might. But I'm not sure. |
GUDRUN: |
You don't think one needs the experience of
having been married? |
URSULA: |
Do you think it need be an experience? |
GUDRUN: |
Bound to be, in some way or other. Possibly
undesirable, but
bound to be an experience of some sort. |
URSULA: |
Not really.
More likely to be the end of experience. |
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MAS "CUENTOS
CORTOS INGLESES"
FORO
INICIO |
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