New User? Sign Up. Create your account now. Signup with Email. Gender Male Female. Create Account. Already Have an Account? Just before he dies, Paul seems to ramble senselessly in a brain fever with demands that his mother acknowledge his luck and his love for her.
When she is unable to offer even this comfort to her dying son in his last moments, his uncle provides cold comfort for her with the suggestion that he is better off dead than living a life always searching for good luck. The Question and Answer section for The Rocking-Horse Winner is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel. The effect of Lawrence's heavily repetitive style is that it:?
Repetition of language particularly works well for Paul's character. The author expresses his desperation to find luck and win his mother's affections not just by simply saying he wants it, but simply saying he wants it three times, saying, "He She racked her brains, and tried this thing and the other, but could not find anything How did Paul's family feel about themselves in comparison to their neighbors.
Paul feels like they are not as affluent as their neighbours. He feels like they always have "got to have more money". He wonders why they don't have their own car and must use Uncle Oscar's car. He also helps his uncle and the gardener by giving them a partnership in his gambling. He also wants to compensate for the problems of his family.
However, he is too tender for taking the responsibilities of the household and cannot take the role of his father at this stage. Therefore, he fails in the quest for a mature mode of existence at this age. She is a selfish woman and craves for a luxurious life despite her middle-class social standing. She looks for the appreciation of those above her status.
When she is unable to fulfill her extravagant desires to gain more and more, she becomes agitated. For instance, Hester begins despising her husband and luck for not providing her with bundles of money.
She simply blames luck saying that they are unlucky. She explains that their marriage is a failed one in terms of fortune.
Hester remains unnamed for a major part of the story. This shows her unimportant status as a woman in society. She remains in this identity crisis throughout the story. That is why she longs for an upright social status among other people. She wants an identity different from the traditional concept of female roles.
Likewise, Hester is not a devoted and caring mother. It means that she only thinks about how others perceive her rather than true feelings. Hester and the children know that she is not a good mother and a devoted wife. However, she does not want the people to perceive her as a failed mom. She is cold and indifferent towards her children while Paul yearns for her love. For her love, he goes to such extremes that lead to his destruction. We can say that a materialistic mother becomes death for her child.
She does not live in extreme poverty. Her family has an otherwise stable life if she reduces her extravagant spending.
She is not willing to give up on her pretentious wealth. He is perhaps an inspiration for Hester also. Due to this materialistic race, she puts her family in trouble. Oscar allegedly cares for Paul and asks him to stop riding his rocking horse. However, he joins him when he comes to know about the seriousness of the matter. Oscar is somewhat a confusing figure.
It is because he sometimes seems to care about his nephew while other times his greed overcomes him. On the other hand, he is also anxious that gambling may ruin his life and it is not a better thought.
Despite the knowledge, he does not forbid Paul and lets him tread towards death. Moreover, he is a greedy person who values material wealth over relationships. For instance, he even takes his tip share while Paul has his last time.
He also advises Paul to send some money from the games to his mother. However, when he is dead, instead of being depressed he tells Hester that she is better off having such huge money than having an evil souled son. He is a humble man with religious views. He is a young boy who wounded his leg in World War I. He works with Paul and Oscar and arranges gambling bets for him because Paul asks Bassett to work for him.
He values Paul and keeps his money safe with him. Lawrence depicts this character as a kind of unconventional figure who remains absent from the lives of his family members. We come to know from the story that he has expensive choices like Hester.
However, his luck does not support him in the money-making process. He is not named until the end of the story. This feature is quite unconventional because in contemporary society men were given more power and value. She runs those responsibilities for the family that male members do e. Therefore, he begins to struggle for his luck. However, the tension begins when Hester refuses to accept the ordinary way of life.
She struggles to get out of this life and live luxuriously like elites. They live in a utilitarian world where everything is measured in material worth. Hester realizes to him their miserable financial status. She tells him that those who have money are lucky people. He also hallucinates that the house whispers about the lack of wealth.
He is confused about the whole situation. On the other hand, his greed overcomes him and he becomes a partner with Paul to gain some wealth. After a huge win, Paul decides to send his mother a significant amount of money as her birthday gift.
This should have been a happy occasion for her but seeing this gift increases her greed. She wants to get all the money, which he has reserved for her birthdays, together. Paul becomes more anxious at this revelation that his family and house cries for more and more wealth. In this depression, he rides his rocking-horse violently at a huge speed. The reason is that he desires to know about the winning horse in the upcoming memorable event of Derby. He wants to earn a mountain of money through shortcuts within no time.
In the end, he identifies the name of the winning horse that is Malabar. After this, he falls from his rocking horse and has a severe fit of brain fever. Within a few days, he dies but wins the bet and leaves 80, pounds for his mother. For instance, there is a reference to World War I through the story of Bassett. Also, horse racing games were common in the s.
The family lives in a nice and well-ordered house near London with maids working for them. They have a moderate level of income and needs. However, Hester is not content with living a simple life.
She is preoccupied with her wheel of luck. She only pretends to be rich as she has ordered her home in a sophisticated way. The children live and play in the nursery with maids. While the parents take their meals and rest separately.
The main place of action is their home but it is also haunted by the yearning for money. The moaning house predicts the internal conflicts of the house members. As Hester and her family live in a nice neighborhood, they crave to be better or at least equal to their surroundings. They feel their house is screaming but when Paul wins huge money, the house becomes more dreadful. Through the story, Lawrence warns materialistic people that they will never find comfort and peace even at home.
Lawrence depicts the issues of materialism and appearances in society through his ironic narration of such instances. For example, Hester is a pretentious woman for whom appearance is more important than reality. She wants people to acknowledge that she is a good wife and mother. On the contrary, she knows that this is all false. Here Lawrence becomes ironic when he praises her beauty or her mannerism.
However, readers are aware of her fake nature. Likely, the so-called wealthy and good Uncle Oscar also turns out to be a greedy person. He knows that Paul is following the wrong path to luck and success. Instead of forbidding him, he becomes his partner. On the other hand, the narrator shows sympathy for the young boy Paul.
He is depicted as a boy with real feelings. His tragic death also leaves the readers to feel sorry for him. For instance, there is a love triangle between Paul, his mother Hester, and his absent father. However, his mother is like a thankless beloved who is self-centered. The title seems a little confusing about the nature of the rocking horse. For example, Paul does not win the rocking horse. On the contrary, the rocking horse controls Paul and turns him into a wild animal.
He thinks that he has made it submissive to his will and desire. It also refers to the gambling bets that Paul wins with the help of the rocking horse. For example, it takes Paul into a trance-like state. Then he is able to guess about the winning horse in the next race. The narrator uses third-person omniscient narration to convey his thoughts about the characters. The story even begins with a description like a fairy tale in which the readers wait for something extraordinary to happen.
Through the use of ironic statements and exaggerated imagery about different characters, the writer presents their superficial natures. Through omniscient narration, the narrator informs the readers about the inner and outer selves and fake personalities of the characters. For example, the rocking horse can be taken as an evil force. Also, we can consider it a simple toy turned wild by its owner or it can be anything else.
The story seems like folklore or a classic tale. Reference Works. Primary source collections. Open Access Content. Contact us. Sales contacts. Publishing contacts. Social Media Overview. Terms and Conditions. Privacy Statement. Login to my Brill account Create Brill Account. Author: Jason Mark Ward. Login via Institution. Purchase instant access PDF download and unlimited online access :.
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