drawing of a young boy riding a rocking-horse

The Rocking-Horse Winner

by D. H. Lawrence

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Student Question

Which quote in "The Rocking-Horse Winner" describes Paul's thoughts and feelings?

Quick answer:

Paul's thoughts and feelings in "The Rocking-Horse Winner" are conveyed through his actions and the narrative rather than direct quotes. A passage describes his fear and obsession with winning money for his mother, highlighting his anxiety and desperation. Despite his efforts, the house's voices insistently demand more money, illustrating his futile struggle. This narrative technique effectively communicates Paul's internal state without explicit interior monologue.

Expert Answers

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In a book which has become something of a minor classic, Points of View: An Anthology of Short Stories, editors James Moffett and Kenneth R. McElheny have compiled a collection of short stories representing all the different types of points of view used in fiction, from the most subjective, which they call "Interior Monologue," to the most objective, which they call "Anonymous Narration: No Character Point of View." Shirley Jackson's famous story "The Lottery" is included in this excellent anthology as an example of "Anonymous Narration: No Character Point of View." D. H. Lawrence's story "The Rocking-Horse Winner" is not included in this book, but the editors would obviously classify it as "Anonymous Narration: Single Character Point of View." Points of View: An Anthology of Short Stories is available in paperback. I recommend it highly.

I can find no "quote" in "The Rocking-Horse Winner"--anything enclosed in quotation marks--that describes Paul's thoughts and feelings. The closest I see is this passage:

It frightened Paul terribly. He studied away at his Latin and Greek with his tutor. But his intense hours were spent with Bassett. The Grand National had gone by: he had not 'known', and had lost a hundred pounds. Summer was at hand. He was in agony for the Lincoln. But even for the Lincoln he didn't 'know', and he lost fifty pounds. He became wild-eyed and strange, as if something were going to explode in him. 

What frightens Paul so terribly is the fact that, although he has secretly provided his mother with a great deal of money which she has found numerous ways to spend,

And yet the voices in the house, behind the sprays of mimosa and almond-blossom, and from under the piles of iridescent cushions, simply trilled and screamed in a sort of ecstasy: "There must be more money! Oh-h-h; there must be more money. Oh, now, now-w! Now-w-w - there must be more money! - more than ever! More than ever!" 

Your question is interesting because it calls attention to the fact that the author manages to convey Paul's thoughts and feelings very well without trying to go inside the boy's head, so to speak. Most of Paul's thoughts and feelings can be understood from what he says and does, including from his furious riding on his rocking-horse. The rocking-horse tells us much about Paul's strong motivation, his need for love, his anxiety, and his uncanny precognition.

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