Welcome to the LitCharts study guide on D. H. Lawrence's Lady Chatterley’s Lover. Created by the original team behind SparkNotes, LitCharts are the world's best literature guides.
Lady Chatterley’s Lover: Introduction
Lady Chatterley’s Lover: Plot Summary
Lady Chatterley’s Lover: Detailed Summary & Analysis
Lady Chatterley’s Lover: Themes
Lady Chatterley’s Lover: Quotes
Lady Chatterley’s Lover: Characters
Lady Chatterley’s Lover: Terms
Lady Chatterley’s Lover: Symbols
Lady Chatterley’s Lover: Literary Devices
Lady Chatterley’s Lover: Theme Wheel
Brief Biography of D. H. Lawrence
Historical Context of Lady Chatterley’s Lover
Other Books Related to Lady Chatterley’s Lover
- Full Title: Lady Chatterley’s Lover
- When Written: 1920s
- Where Written: Florence, Italy
- When Published: 1928 (Lawrence’s private edition), 1932 (authorized edition), 1960 (uncensored edition)
- Literary Period: Modernism
- Genre: Romance Novel, Erotic Literature
- Setting: The English Midlands in the years after World War I
- Climax: Constance decides she wants to leave her husband Clifford for his gamekeeper, Oliver Mellors.
- Antagonist: Clifford Chatterley
- Point of View: Third Person
Extra Credit for Lady Chatterley’s Lover
Connie in Court. Though a heavily censored version of the novel was published in 1932, Lawrence’s full manuscript was not made available to readers until 1960. But before Penguin could release the book, the British government charged the publishers with obscenity under the Obscene Publications Act of 1959. Fortunately, the defense summoned a slate of famous authors—including E. M. Forster—to defend the novel’s artistic merit (plus, the Bishop of Woolwich testified to what he saw as the book’s Christian values)! After a six-day trial, the jury found that Lady Chatterley’s Lover was more artistic than obscene, and Penguin was allowed to go through with publication.
Midlands on the Movie Screen. Lady Chatterley’s Lover has been adapted for the screen several times, but the most recent film was released in 2022. The movie stars Emma Corrin (famous for playing Princess Diana on The Crown) as Connie.