Publisher's Synopsis
This text examines canonical texts from the unusual perspective of D.H. Lawrence's remarks on Restoration literature. After defining "the Old Adam" as a perennial target of ideology in the West, the book discusses the taming of the Old Adam, "glorying in the dirt" (from Lawrence's remarks) in Restoration comedy as opposed to Fielding's comic stage. It also looks at: Richardson's "underclothing excitements" in contrast to Fielding's sexual consciousness; Clarissa as sexual vengeance; "the Old Eve" and "the Old Adam" in Tom Jones; the disappearance of the "substantial" body from English literature; and in conclusion, modern efforts to bring "physical consciousness" back into the novel.
