Local Area Network keeps saying "acquiring network address" and it just keeps saying this and will never conn

I am in college using a computer in a dorm room, and whenever I turn the computer off and then turn it back on again later, or if it is in hibernate and I turn it back on the Local Area Network thing just says "acquiring network address", and it just keeps saying that continuously and it never ends up connecting. Sometimes, like today, if I wait long enough (about 30-45 minutes) and/or do other things like renaming the system, it will eventually connect and I can get on the internet. But other times it will not connect at all no matter how long I wait or what I do, and I don't know why. So does anyone know why the Local Area Connection icon just keeps saying "acquiring network address" and it never connects?

Local Area Network keeps saying "acquiring network address" and it just keeps saying this and will never conn
replace your network cable.