Plumed Serpent, The

The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature | 2003 | 700+ words | Copyright

Plumed Serpent, The, a novel by D. H. Lawrence, published 1926.

Kate Leslie, an Irish widow of 40, weary of Europe, arrives in Mexico at a turning-point in her life. The theme of the novel is Kate's struggle for deliverance, for a mystical rebirth. She is drawn to General Don Cipriano Viedma, who introduces her to Don Ramón Carrasco, a mystic and revolutionary leader, reviver of the cult of the ancient god Quetzalcoatl, the plumed serpent. The book contains scenes of violent Aztec ‘blood-lust’; Kate, though repelled, is fascinated by the darkness and elemental power of Mexico and its people, and herself enters the cult as the fertility goddess Malintzi and the bride of Cipriano. The novel ends with her acceptance of the subjugation and loss-of-self demanded of her by Cipriano and her hopes for fulfilment.

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MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Plumed Serpent, The." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. 29 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Plumed Serpent, The." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Encyclopedia.com. (May 29, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-PlumedSerpentThe.html

MARGARET DRABBLE and JENNY STRINGER. "Plumed Serpent, The." The Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature. 2003. Retrieved May 29, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O54-PlumedSerpentThe.html

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