Narrative Role in Story Narrative Perspective Plays

Narrative Role in Story

Narrative perspective plays an important role in many works of literature and often helps to determine the themes of said work. DH Lawrence's short story, "The Rocking Horse Winner" is an allegorical tale, which investigates the relationship between luck and money and the impact that these topics have on the characters in the story. The omniscient narrator of the story helps to guide the reader through the story without influencing the events that transpire, thus establishing that the events that take place are allegorical and are supposed to teach a lesson to the reader.

The story is told from an omniscient narrator's perspective who understands the complexity of the relationship between Paul, a young boy whose "luck" enables him to bet on horses and provide his mother, Hester, with money that he believes the family so desperately needs. Throughout the story, Hester continuously argues with her husband about the financial troubles that they are constantly embroiled in. It is revealed that the couple are both employed, however, "the mother had a small income, and the father had a small income, but not nearly enough for the social position which they had to keep up. The father went into town to some office. But though he had good prospects, these prospects never materialised. There was always the grinding sense of the shortage of money, though the style was always kept up" (Lawrence). By providing this information, the narrator allows the reader to understand the troubles that the family has even though they do not voice their discontents outside of the home

Additionally, an omniscient narrator is able to present an unbiased view of the events that transpire and is able to recount what Paul is doing behind his mother's back and what lead to that behavior. Through a conversation with his mother, Paul comes to believe that luck and money are intrinsically linked. However, despite this link, Hester tells Paul that to be born rich is unlucky and "[i]f you're lucky you have money. That's why it's better to be born lucky than rich. If you're rich, you may lose your money. But if you're lucky, you will always get more money" (Lawrence). This is poor analogy on Hester's behalf because it drives Paul to tap into his "luck" to pick the winning horses at the racetrack and get more money for his mother. It is also through this analogy that Paul begins to correlate money with happiness as the more money his mother has, the less arguing he hears and a sort of stability is once more restored to the household.