Introduction & Overview of Odour of Chrysanthemums by D. H. Lawrence

Odour of Chrysanthemums Introduction

"Odour of Chrysanthemums," regarded as one of D. H. Lawrence's most accomplished stories, was written in 1909 and published in Ford Madox Hueffer's English Review in June, 1911. A different version, which transformed and expanded the concluding section in which Elizabeth Bates reflects on her married life in the presence of the body of her husband, was published in 1914 in The Prussian Officer and Other Stories. The story's controlled analysis of the harsh industrial setting and of Eliza-beth Bates's psychological transformation has been widely admired. H. E. Bates has even argued that Lawrence's greatest achievement is his short fiction.

The story's evolution in its three major versions has been examined by a number of critics. The final version's unsentimental and highly judgmental condemnation of Elizabeth Bates for the failure of her marriage has been related to Lawrence's liberation from the influence of his beloved mother upon her death...
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