"The Rocking-Horse Winner" is a short story by D. H. Lawrence. What is ironic about the title?
To my mind, at least, the central irony that creates the conflict that runs through the whole story is introduced to us in the first paragraph when we meet Paul's mother. Note how the text presents her:
She had bonny children, yet she felt they had been thrust upon her, and she could not love them... Everybody else said of her: "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.
The irony of this passage is that the mother appears to love her children, and gives every visible proof of her affections through her actions, but this cannot prevent the reality of her heart "turning hard" whenever she is with them. It is this lack of love that drives Paul to go to such supernatural lengths to gain money to make his mother happy, and therefore gain her genuine affection. Note how this irony is referred to again at the end of the story by Uncle Oscar, her brother:
"My God, Hester, you're eight-odd thousand to the good, and a poor devil of a son to the bad. But, poor devil, poor devil, he's best gone out of a life where he rides his rocking horse to find a winner."
Note the criticism that is implicit in this remark. Paul is "best gone" from a life where he is forced to go to such lengths to make his mother notice him. Although Hester has what she wanted, she has only gained it through losing her son.
In “The Rocking Horse Winner,” the theme of the story is that greed and materialism can never be satisfied and destroy true happiness and peace. Throughout the entire story, the mother wants more and more money; the more she gets, the more she needs. As per her teachings, Paul equates love with luck and money; he strives throughout the story, and essentially sacrifices his life, to get money. Despite trying to stop the whispers, “there must be more money,” Paul himself becomes greedier and almost addicted to gambling and bidding on the horses. It only wears him down and kills him in the end. Greed demands everything and gives only misery in return. It appears than trying to satisfy the mother's hunger for money only gives makes her thirstier for it - she is consumed by her desire for more money, and however much she has it is never enough. The words of her brother at the end of the story, “he’s best gone out of a life where he rides his rocking horse to find a winner,” clearly state the dangers of this materialism while he also implies Paul’s release form his agony. The mother has gained a big sum of money but has lost her son in the process. Thus she clearly shows the dangers and consequences of unbridled greed.
What does Arnold Friend’s jalopy symbolize in "Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?" is a frequently anthologized short story written by Joyce Carol Oates ?
Arnold Friend’s flashy gold car, with its outdated phrases written on the sides, is an extension of Arnold himself: extreme and not entirely right. The car gives Connie her first clues that there might be something wrong with or dangerous about Arnold. She complains that the color of the car is so bright that it hurts her eyes, and she is puzzled by the phrase “Man the flying saucers” on the front fender, which was an expression that her peers used to use but that has fallen out of fashion. This reinforces Connie’s sense that there is something not quite genuine about Arnold; he claims to be the same age as she is, but he is not entirely convincing. Not only is the car itself rather off-putting, but Arnold presents it as the vehicle that will transport Connie to her new life. Once Arnold’s true, violent nature comes through, the car becomes a symbol of all that is dark and ominous about his character.
Discuss the themes of Lord of the Flies at an allegorical level.
Lord of the Flies is an allegorical novel in that it contains characters and objects that directly represent the novel’s themes and ideas. Golding’s central point in the novel is that a conflict between the impulse toward civilization and the impulse toward savagery rages within each human individual. Each of the main characters in the novel represents a certain idea or aspect of this spectrum between civilization and savagery. Ralph, for instance, embodies the civilizing impulse, as he strives from the start to create order among the boys and to build a stable society on the island. Piggy, meanwhile, represents the scientific and intellectual aspects of civilization. At the other end of the spectrum, Jack embodies the impulse toward savagery and the unchecked desire for power and domination. Even more extreme is Roger, who represents the drive for violence and bloodlust in its purest form. Furthermore, just as various characters embody thematic concepts in the novel, a number of objects do as well. The conch shell, which is used to summon the boys to gatherings and as a emblem of the right to speak at those gatherings, represents order, civilization, and political legitimacy. Piggy’s glasses, which are used to make fire, represent the power of science and intellectual endeavor. The sow’s head in the jungle, meanwhile, embodies the human impulse toward savagery, violence, and barbarism that exists within each person. Throughout Lord of the Flies, Golding uses these characters and objects to represent and emphasize elements of the themes and ideas he explores in the novel.
留言列表
