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Symbolism In The Rocking-Horse Winner, By D. H. Lawrence

816 Words4 Pages

Money and the pursuit thereof has often proven itself to be disastrous to the balance of society and the interworking of the human mind. In The Rocking-Horse Winner, by author D.H. Lawrence, readers begin to see the psychological effects of the never ending pursuit of riches. The main character, Paul, learns the devastating consequences of greed at a young age, when he discovers that he has special talent for picking the winning race horses. Having grown up in a family that craves a lavish lifestyle that they can not afford, the boy sees this as an opportunity to provide for his mother and the rest of his family. Nevertheless, the situation escalates into an obsession that he will never recover from. The Rocking-Horse Winner tells the story …show more content…

The rocking-horse itself is symbolic of the death that is to come to Paul, the young boy. According to literary analyst W.D. Snodgrass, “Though the reach of the symbol is overwhelming … the life of the family that chooses money instead of more stable value, that takes money as the nexus of its affection (Vol)”. By this, he means that many readers pay attention to the rocking-horse itself and the death it represents versus the true issues within the story. The fact that the family is so obsessed with greed and material things, they are willing to let their loved one sacrifice themselves for its purpose. Furthermore, Snodgrass dives into the symbolism of the connection between mother and son. The story says "She is such a good mother. She adores her children." Only she herself, and her children themselves, knew it was not so. They read it in each other 's eyes. (D.H. Lawrence)” Paul, the young boy, is constantly worrying about and trying to provide for his mother, as a result of his father being absent most of the time. Furthermore, the mother and son both are described as wearing the same shade of green, representing their connection through luck and money, proving the development of his Oedipus Complex. The special bond between the mother and son is unhealthy and eventually

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