Lawrence's "Sons and Lovers": Relationships There can be no argument that D. H. Lawrence's Son's and Lover's is a study of human relationships. Gertrude Morel, because of her turbulent and odd relationship with her husband, ends up developing deep emotional relations with her two eldest son's. The second eldest in particular, Paul, is the receiver of most of this deep emotion. Because of these feelings and the deeper-than-usual emotional bond between the two, Paul has difficulty being comfortable in his own relationships. Paul's relationship with Miriam is plagued by his mother's disapproval, jealousy, and Miriam 's own spirituality