The understanding of life seems quite simple for Hester in the short story “The Rocking-Horse Winner” by David H. Lawrence. She believes that life is difficult without money, and money is the essence needed, not love, in order to live a great life. Part of this is true since money is a necessity to at least live a healthy life. However, Hester neglects her kids before and after she is no longer able to support her lavish lifestyle. When Hester’s son Paul shows to be a beneficial character there is still no love for him till the end. Hester’s act of neglecting Paul is what leads her family to their destruction by her ever growing greed. First, Hester shows her greed for money through the explanation of her regretful choice of love verses wealth …show more content…
Hester lives a life that most people cannot afford. The irony is that she cannot afford her lavish lifestyle. She thinks that her children are forcefully placed on her rather than having the choice to have them. Hester feels that her husband wanted to have the children more than she wanted them. This is an expression of her love for money, which is greater than her love for her children. The children can tell that Hester does not love them, since she lacks the will to show them their much needed attention. Although Hester tries to put on an act as if she does adore her children in front of company that she wishes to impress. The two girls and one son, Paul, realize her want for money by the house’s occasional moan saying, “There must be more money” (Lawrence 525). The phrase is emphasized throughout the story to show that the parents have the constant need and want for money to support the kids. Even though the phrase is not heard personally from anyone, it is believed that the parents are indeed the ones saying this. The idea is that the parents are carrying a conversation that is echoed into the children’s rooms through the vents. Her children do not understand why these things, such as money and luck, are so important to their parents. That is where the differentiation between luck and
In the beginning of the written story the author reveals Hester to be a cold-hearted mother. "She had bonny children, yet she felt they had been thrust upon her, and she could not love them"(75). In public she is thought of as the perfect mother, but in private she and her children know her true feelings. "Everyone 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"(75). Heste...
Throughout the novel, the harsh Puritan townspeople begin to realize the abilities of Hester despite her past. Hester works selflessly and devotes herself to the wellbeing of others. “Hester sought not to acquire anything beyond a subsistence of the plainest and most ascetic description, for herself, and a simple abundance for her child.
One of Hester’s greatest qualities is her unrelenting selflessness. Despite her constant mental anguish due to her sin, the constant stares and rude comments, and the
In fact, now many women revere her as a wise counselor and go to her seeking advice. Hester tells them that she has come to believe that the world is still growing and developing, and someday it will be ready to accept a new more equal relationship between men and women. However, despite her renewed optimism and the people’s apparent forgiveness for her transgressions, Hester still sees herself as “a woman stained with sin, bowed down with shame, or even burdened with a life-long sorrow” (232-233.36-2). In her youth, she sometimes envisioned herself as one who could usher in the newer and more accepting age, but she now believes that she is too tainted to play such a role and that the task must instead be left to a woman who could be “a medium of joy” and exemplify “sacred love” (233.4-5). In this final description of Hester, we don’t see any trace of the vanity she exhibited when she was young. Her opinion of herself has become much more humble and self-deprecating, and it is clear that she has matured greatly since the opening of the
Hester feels the hatred that the people of the village have put upon her. At the beginning of the book she walks with "natural dignity and force of character" towards the scaffold as she holds her sin, the baby. She takes her punishment with humility; and does not act out against the people of the village by becoming a witch or creating havoc in the town. Hester works in her little hit making clothes for the rich and the poor. She refuses to hide her letter because she refuses to let it define her, “the scarlet letter has not done its office.” Gradually throughout the book Hester turns cold, suicidal and
One should not violate the godliness of a pure heart. Hester was a radical woman in her time, more like a 20th century woman. She knew that true love was more important than a phony, love-less marriage.
When someone makes a mistake there are two options, own it and move on with life, or push it to the back of your mind and let it haunt you for the rest of your life. Hester Prynne chose to own it and move on with life, which was the best choice. Many people would have chosen to force it to the back of their minds, which in turn would cause much more suffering than choosing to deal with their mistake. Hester is able to face her troubles head on and that makes her a real hero. It shows that she has realized her mistake and accepted it. Facing her trials head on makes Hester able to move on with her life instead of being stuck in the past.
“Some attribute had departed from her, the performance in which had been to keep her a woman. Such is frequently the fate, and such the stern development, of the feminine character and person, when the woman has encountered, and lived through an experience of peculiar severity” (148). Hester is built off the notion of a woman who goes against the puritan beliefs and values. Hawthorne does believe that Hester is able to embrace her sin however, she experiences redemption. Hawthorne is suggesting that townspeople no longer see her as an “adulterer” but as someone who is able. Moreover, Hawthorne thinks that the change in which Hester experiences is not a good one. Hawthorne states, “Much of the marble coldness of Hester’s impression was to be attributed to the circumstance, that her life had turned, in a great measure from passion and feeling, to thought” (210). Hawthorne is trying to convey that Hester from a life of passion to one of quiet thought. A woman can not manipulate conformity unless she has undergone an inner change. Hester is not able to overcome her issues by her passion alone, but with her thought. Hawthorne is suggesting that although Hester gained her respect from society, her sole worth is to please everyone else but herself, ultimately conveying that one must create a life of happiness for themselves in which Hester tried to do. Moreover, Hawthorne is praising the thought of individuality suggesting that Hester, a woman, can be her own
Throughout many years of her life, Hester was considered an outcast by the people of her town. These repercussions are felt by her daughter, Pearl, as well, because she has no friends. They don't associate with others and some instances occurred when Puritan children would throw rocks at the two. During this time, Hester refuses to make publicly known the name of her child's father. To bear the weight of her punishment all alone made her even stronger. As her life progressed, Hester became less of an outcast in the public eye. She was gifted at embroidery and was charitable to those less fortunate than she. (Although Hester was a talented seamstress, she did not make as much money as she could have because she was not allowed to sew wedding dresses. This is obviously because she had committed sins that were supposed to be confined to the sanctity of marriage.)
In order to sustain her indulgence for the finer conditions, her hunger for moneys grows so much that even the house whispers about it because there is never enough. Hester's anxiety over wealth affects her children to the point they feel as if they can hear the house constantly saying they need money: "And so the house came to be haunted by the unspoken phrase: There must be more money! There must be more money!" (Lawerence 411). Children feed off their parent's energy. In the mother's constant state of distress, Paul feels trapped by the overwhelming cries that flow throughout what should be his safe haven. In an attempt to quiet the voices, Paul secretly gives money to Hester to be distributed over a span of 5 years. Unappreciative of this
In this scene, the reader is able to see inside Hester's head. One is able to observe the utter contempt she holds for the Puritan ways. She exhibits he love and respect for the father of her child, when she refuses to relinquish his name to the committee. The reader can see her defiant spirit due to these actions.
Hester is affected by isolation physically and emotionally. For example, in the book Hawthorn describes Hester and Peal in the woods in two very different ways, Pearl seems to catch the sunlight and it seems to dance around her but Hester when she nears the light it seems to run away from her. This shows that she has lost her beauty by being isolated and not taking care of herself. This is because she is isolated and seems to not care about anything but taking care of Pearl and not about herself. Hester was not only isolated but alienated as well because she would not reveal who the father of her child was. As a result she would pay for the si...
Hester is indeed a sinner, adultery is no light matter, even today. On the other hand, her sin has brought her not evil, but good. Her charity to the poor, her comfort to the broken-hearted, her unquestionable presence in times of trouble are all direct results of her quest for repe...
Hester was not like the other puritans in the community she resided in. Hester did not herself a Puritan because she was simply not religious. She had no respect for their religion or moral code. Her lack of respect in the reason she disobeyed the community (Stewart 57). Her reasoning behind committing adultery was her passion and weakness (Draper 1603). Hester thought power and intellect were more important than believing and worshiping a higher being (Stewart 57). Because Hester’s Roger Chillingworth, Hester’s husband, moved away and abandoned her, Hester’s womanly weakness of feeling love and passion immensely grew. This drive for love and passion is what pushed Hester to committing adultery (Draper 1603).
One of the main symbols in Lawrence’s short story is Hester. She is the mother of Paul and both are main characters. Hester is a good representation of greed, selfishness and being materialistic. She values money more than her children “She had bonny children, yet she felt they had been thrust upon her, and she could not love them” (Lawrence, 295). Hester is not capable of creating...