Who Is Paul In The Rocking Horse Winner

In the short story “The Rocking Horse Winner”, by D.H. Lawrence there is a particular character that had an odd familiarity. The character’s name is Paul; a young boy who is been lead to believe that his mother is not content with the quality of life they lead. Paul sees this as a challenge to make their lives better by winning money at the horse races. In the end, he loses his life trying to make his mother happy. Like Paul, I too have gone to great lengths to make my mother happy.

Paul brings joy to his mother by funding her way of life. In the beginning of “The Rocking Horse Winner”, Paul is talking to his mother about money and why his family doesn’t have much. He comes to the conclusion that he will be the lucky one and tells his mother that he will bring home the money. However, “the boy saw that she did not believe him; or, rather, that she paid no attention to his assertion. This angered him somewhat, and made him want to compel her attention.” (Lawrence 794) He decides that in order to gain her attention, he will give her the earnings he wins at the horse races. He is committed to his mother’s happiness and therefore committed to riding the rocking horse just to make her happy. I too went above and beyond what was expected of me in my

Paul’s biggest sacrifice is his life. He is so selfless that he ends up “d[ying] in the night… go[ing] out of a life” after a long ride to find the final winner and bring home a fortune (803). Although my sacrifices were not quite as monumental as Paul’s, there were several to be made throughout my high school career. I put in numerous hours of practice and rehearsal to remain in good standing and hold my place at the school. When my childhood friends and siblings were off playing in the evenings and summers I was often at a concert or performance. When I look back I am content with my choices, but at the time it often felt like a huge