The Rainbow

The Rainbow is a novel by British author D. H. Lawrence. It follows three generations of the Brangwen family living in Nottinghamshire, particularly focusing on the sexual dynamics of, and relations between, the characters. Lawrence's frank treatment of sexual desire and the power it plays within relationships as a natural and even spiritual force of life, though perhaps tame by modern standards, caused The Rainbow to be prosecuted in an obscenity trial in late 1915, as a result of which all copies were seized and burnt. The Rainbow was followed by a sequel, Women in Love. In 1998, the Modern Library ranked The Rainbow 48th on its list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century. The novel relates the story of three generations of an English family--the Brangwens. As the main characters move in and out of the story's framework, readers are brought face-to-face before an intriguing theory of passion and power among the familiar social roles of husbands, wives, children, and parents.