This magisterial biography of D. H. Lawrence, by three leading scholars, draws on an unprecedented range of documentary and oral sources to transform our understanding of one of the most influential writers of the twentieth century. The first volume describes Lawrence's upbringing, his years as a teacher, and his often troubled early relationships with women. The second volume covers the years 1912-22, as Lawrence forged a reputation as one of the greatest and most controversial writers of his time and revolutionised English fiction with Sons and Lovers, The Rainbow and Women in Love. The final volume chronicles Lawrence's travels in Ceylon, Australia, the USA and Mexico, his later literary career, his battle against censorship particularly over Lady Chatterley's Lover, and his ultimately unsuccessful struggle against tuberculosis. Lawrence is revealed as a complex, humorous and resolute man, grappling with the central problems of life and death.