D.H. Lawrence's Last poems : Roberts' MS E192 and Etruscan places

D. H. Lawrence's last manuscript of poetry, Roberts' Ms. E192, contains the culmination of his religious thought. Published posthumously as Last Poems (1932), the manuscript presents a quest, a multifaceted journey toward the expression of his religious vision. However, the manuscript has been incorrectly published. By compensating for the editorial errors which persist in the 1971 Pinto and Roberts The Complete Poems of D. H. Lawrence, one can reconstruct Lawrence's struggle for expression, and upon examination, one finds the religious vision is the principle element which gives the-manuscript its continuity, clarity and intensity. The comprehension of this religious poetry is greatly facilitated; by the volume, Etruscan Places (1932). Many of the religious themes expressed in Etruscan Places become the themes of the poetry which was written thereafter, and an examination of the symbolism and the religious ideas present in Etruscan Places informs much of the poetry of the manuscript. Finally, Lawrence's conception of his own role as poet is examined in Etruscan Places and he reveals a new awareness which influences the poetry in this manuscript.