The Mothers in Coriolanus and Sons and Lovers - Assignment Example

Mothers in ‘Coriolanus’ and ‘Sons and Lovers’ Coriolanus is a drama written by Shakespeare that depicts Coriolanus as the protagonist of the play while Sons and Lovers is a novel written by D.H. Lawrence that portrays Paul Morel as the protagonist of the novel. The protagonists of both the plays are somewhat governed by their mothers or it can be said that their mothers exercise enough control on them. The mothers in both the literary works are shown as more powerful and influential as compared to their sons as they keep the eligibility to make their sons do what they like. Shakespeare has portrayed Coriolanus as a hero who is in full control of his mother. He does what his mother likes him to do. Even he is unable to give his wife that much respect and regard as he uses to give to his mother. Volumnia, the mother of Coriolanus is depicted as a powerful character by the playwright. She is not an ignorable character as she is shown exercising maximum power over her son. In addition, her son also accepts what she says and relies mostly on her advice. Volumnia herself informs at various locations in the play that Coriolanus acts according to her instructions such as she says in Act I, scene III, “To a Cruel War I sent him” (Line 13, page 71) It is not Coriolanus himself who goes to the war but his mother’s wish and instructions who sent him there. He is a dutiful son of a Roman mother (Bayley 148). He is an obedient son and never says no to her mother. At another point in Act III, Scene II, his mother says to him, “I prithee now, sweet son, as thou hast said My praises made thee first a soldier, so, To have my praise for this, perform a part Thou hast not done before.” (Line 107-110, page 132-133) These lines again indicate that Coriolanus was able to become a soldier, a warrior on the basis of his mother’s backup and supportiveness. He is further asked to perform in order to make his mother glorified. Volumnia exults in the accomplishments of her son and is always willing to win grace on behalf of her son. When her sons comes back after the war, she is overly joyous as her son has fought for the country and she keeps her country above everything in the world. She is a strong woman who is ready to sacrifice even her son for her country. Volumnia is happy after knowing about her son’s wounds because she thinks that it is the wounds of a soldier that convey the message of his brave fight with the enemies. For her, the wounds that her son has received are the rewards to his body in return for his bravery and courage. She even counts the wounds of her son that he gets in a war. This counting of wounds indicates that she becomes happy in her son’s achievements in war and wants him to bring glory not only for himself but for her too. Whatever Coriolanus looks like is because of his mother. The anger, which he has, is because of his mother. His mother says at one point, “Anger’s my meat; I sup upon it.” Like Volumnia, Coriolanus is also very arrogant and angry by nature. Volumnia feels pride in her son’s accomplishments in war and exults on his wounds. Similarly, Coriolanus becomes more and more arrogant with his victories as at one place in the play, he talks with disrepute about the commoners. Coriolanus is dragged into the politics because of his mother. He shows no concern towards politics and is unable to control his anger before the commoners due to which, he receives a severe punishment and that is banishment. Volumnia is herself political by nature but she forced her son to enter politics that can be considered her fault. Unlike Coriolanus’ anger, his mother has control over her anger. She knows where to use it and where not as she says in Act III, Scene II, “Pray be counselled I have a heart as little apt as yours, But yet a brain that leads my use of anger To better vantage” (Line 28-31, page 129-130) Volumnia is good at politics as she is able to control her anger according to her need and also she is able to control her son when he comes to attack Rome. She is fully aware of Coriolanus’ anger and ego but she stills asks him to ask the commoners’ forgiveness when he has misbehaved before them. She teaches her son how to be political before commoners by asking him to ask for their pardon as she says in Act III, Scene II, “I prithee now, my son, Go to them with this bonnet in thy hand; And thus far having stretched it-here be with them- Thy knee bussing the stones-for in such business Action is eloquence, and the eyes of th’ ignorant More learned than the ears-waving thy head, With often thus correcting thy stout heart” (Line 73-79, page 131) Coriolanus in spite of all his anger and stubbornness accepts his mother’s plea and reaches to the commoners for asking their forgiveness. However, he is unable to do so and gets angry instead of asking for forgiveness. His anger further infuriates the commoners due to which, he is banished from Rome. As he is not a person suitable to politics, he is unable to make the tribunes forgive him. He is under full control of his mother but his personality is somewhat different as compared to his mother. His mother has control over her anger but Coriolanus is unable to control his anger. He has some different traits in contrasting to his mother but he is attached to her largely. According to John Bayley (1981), Coriolanus is “entirely the creation of his mother” and due to this fact, “he is also at an unnatural distance from her, the distance at last between Corioli and Rome (151)”. Coriolanus is distanced from his mother on the will of his mother herself. She is more interested in her glorification and respect, which she receives on the basis of her son’s performances as her son himself. When Coriolanus leaves Rome, he is not able to leave his mother’s bondage with him, as it is she who stops him to attack on Rome. She shows her extreme powerfulness and influence on her son, when she asks her son to pass over her dead body in order to attack on his homeland, Rome. In her last speech to her son, Volumnia also accepts her control over her son by claiming in Act V, Scene III, “There’s no man in the world More bound to’s mother” (Line 158-159, page 177) This statement made by Volumnia informs that she feels her son to be bound to her order fully. After Volumnia’s speech, his son moves away from his intention to attack Rome. It is Volumnia who restrains her son to attack on his homeland. She exercises full control over her son, which she proves from her final swaying of her son. She has stronger and much influential personality than her son, as she is able to achieve what she wants. She loses her son but safeguards her glory and reputation. She was regarded as a national savior for her act of abstaining Coriolanus from attacking Rome (Dixon 188). “Volumnia uses her influence over her son to satisfy her own ambitions” (Liwerant 3). Therefore, it is quite clear that Volumnia, Coriolanus’ mother exercises full control over son and that control is for her own self. Like Coriolanus’ mother, Mrs. Morel is also a mother that exercises full control over her son, Paul Morel in Sons and Lovers. Although the stories of the two works are quite different but the control of mothers over their sons is quite similar. However, the psychoanalytic theme of son and mother’s love is additional. In Coriolanus, Volumnia is not seen as having a sexual control over her son while in Sons and Lovers, Paul is attracted towards his mother with sexual attraction. Like Coriolanus, he is also a mom’s boy who is always ready to accept what his mother asks him to do. Paul Morel has so much influence of his mother that he is unable to love any other woman except her mother and even if he tries, he considers himself wrong and guilty. Mrs. Morel and her husband Walter Morel have a relationship that has no love in it. With the increasing years of their togetherness, Walter Morel loses his charm and is also unable to provide his wife with her due rights and care. This causes a boundary between the man and his wife. Due to this distance that is created between Mrs. Morel and Walter Morel, Mrs. Morel shifts her attention firstly to her elder most son, William. This attention shifts from William to Paul after William’s diseased death. Mrs. Morel is unable to devote her attention equally between her children. Previously, she loved William mostly and after William, she devoted her most love towards Paul. Gertrude Morel, Paul’s mother has not only loved her son but also dominated him in all aspects. She has made her son to do what she likes. Mark Schorer (1948) connects the story of Sons and Lovers with Lawrence’s real life and says, “Lawrence loves his mother, but he also hates her for compelling his love; and he hates his father with the true Freudian jealousy, but he also loves him for what he is in himself, and he sympathizes more deeply with him because his wholeness has been destroyed by the mother’s domination, just as his, Lawrence Morel’s, has been” (109). Lawrence considers his mother as a dominating one and has also portrayed Gertrude Morel as a dominating mother who exercises maximum power over son. As far as the concept of Freudian jealousy is concerned, it is a jealousy that a son keeps for his father and wishes to replace his father with his own self. Paul and his mother also feel this type of relationship. After distancing of Paul’s father, Paul becomes the man to her mother. They never have any sexual intercourse but Paul has always kept a Freudian wish to do so. However, this fact cannot be denied that Paul is dominated by his mother due to which, he is unable to accept the domination of Miriam Leivers. Miriam wants to posses Paul wholly but he is already completely possessed by his mother, so, he is unable to establish a loving relationship between him and Miriam. In Part 2, chapter 8, Paul elaborates about his possession by his mother, “With his mother, Paul is happy and proud that his mother takes charge of his life.” (Lawrence 192) Therefore, Paul is aware about the dominant nature of his mother and becomes happy to be with her. Paul is unable to give the right of possession to Miriam, as he never wants to hurt his mother on any cost. H.M. Daleski (1988) informs in his article, “The Son and the Artist”, “Paul is overwhelmed by the unnatural love, which his mother fosters in him” (191). Paul has always shown love and consideration for his mother and has always shown disgust for his father. The father in Sons and Lovers is portrayed as an intruder in the relationship between mother and son. There is no love bondage between the father and son as the mother has wholly captivated the love and bondage of the son for herself. At one juncture in Chapter 8, Part 2, she tells Paul, “And I’ve never- you know, Paul-I’ve never had a husband-not really-” (Lawrence 197) After the whole dialogue with Paul related to Miriam and herself, his mother “kissed him a long fervent kiss”. This whole dialogue with her son is indicative of her relationship with her son that is not natural at all. She dominated her son so intensively that he started hating Miriam who has become a reason for his mother’s being hurt. At the starting of chapter 9, the writer writes, “The deepest of his love belonged to his mother”, which means that he is unable to love anyone else with such intensity as he does to his mother. He is also unable to position anyone else near his mother. He feels guilty for hurting his mother and his mother has proved her full control over his son by defeating Miriam in terms of establishing a love relationship with Paul. Mrs. Morel considers Miriam as a competitor in terms of acquisition of Paul’s love. H.M. Daleski (1988) writes, “The immediate effect of Mrs. Morel’s poisonously possessive love for Paul is her implacable hostility to Miriam” (195). She regards Miriam as a woman who has got the capacity of snatching Paul from her. Paul also regards Miriam dominating and he says that she tries to own everything. Mrs. Morel says about Miriam, “I could let another woman-but not her. She’d leave me no room, not a bit of room.” (Lawrence 197) Mrs. Morel regards that Miriam will dominate Paul in place of her and then, she will have to lose her son. He will be wholly hers. She wins by dragging Paul away from Miriam. Paul is so captivated by his mother’s love and dominancy that he cannot allow even himself to hurt his mother. In addition, Paul’ mother in the above quoted dialogue tells that it is she, who will allow anyone with Paul. She is the authoritative figure with whose permission, Paul will select a love partner, not with his own will. Paul is wholly dependent on his mother for his decisions and in deciding for anything considers his mother supreme over any other thing. Hence, it is quite clear that Coriolanus as well as Paul Morel both have mothers who exercise their full control on their sons. The method of controlling is different. Volumnia takes pleasure in his son’s glories that he brings to her and her reputation that becomes manifold with her son’s efforts while Mrs. Morel takes pleasure in keeping Paul all for herself. Volumnia regards Coriolanus as a source of her reputation while Mrs. Morel regards Paul as a source of her being. Both of the mother figures are authoritative and matriarchs, as they keep whole household and management under control. They not only manage the activities but the lives of their sons. The mothers in both the works, Coriolanus and Sons and Lovers are dominant figures upon whom their sons depend wholly. Whatever their sons receive at the end is because of them. The mothers are fully possessive and do not allow any self-perceived step by their sons. They have their sons under their control and make them do what they like. Therefore, the mothers in both the works are not only mother figures but also the authoritative and dominant figures who keep the power of manipulating their sons according to their own needs and requirements. Works Cited Bayley, John. The Thing I am Coriolanus. Shakespeare and Tragedy. London: Routledge, 1981: 147-163. Daleski, H.M. The Son and the Artist (1965). Modern Critical Interpretations. Ed. Harold Bloom. New York: Chelsea House, 1988. Dixon, Suzanne. The Roman Mother. London: Routledge, 1990. Also available at http://books.google.com.pk/books?id=VqM9AAAAIAAJ&printsec=frontcover#PPA168,M1 Lawrence, D.H. Sons and Lovers. New York: Penguin Books, 1974. Liwerant, Gabriel. Destruction by Selflessness. Retrieved on 10th May 2009 from http://english.la.psu.edu/engl297a/Catalyst/coriolanus.htm Schorer, Mark. Technique as Discovery. Hudson Review 1 (1) (1948). Shakespeare, William. Coriolanus. Ed. G.R. Hibbard. New York: Penguin Books, 1967. Read More