A Look at the Allegory of Death and Resurrection Within “the Horse Dealer’s Daughter”
A Look at the Allegory of Death and Resurrection
Within “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter”
Man of Steel debuted this past weekend to shatter all previous box office records for a June release. The overwhelming success of this newest installment in the Superman franchise capitalizes upon our need for a hero, for good in the midst of bad, and for hope in the midst of despair. Though comic books and superheroes are a fixation of more recent years, the art of creating characters that portray redemptive qualities is not a new one. Such is the case with D.H. Lawrence’s “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter.” Within the confines of this short story we are granted a look into the troubled life of a young woman who has long since died emotionally and the seemingly simple yet almost tragic interaction that arouses her back to life.
When we are first introduced to Mabel Pervin, we are made aware of a young woman who, though she should be in the prime of her life, is emotionally cold and distant. She is given little value, as evidenced by her brothers talking at her rather than to her in the opening sequence about what choices she should make for her future. Even when company presents itself in the form of the young Doctor Ferguson, she is scarcely noticed due to how withdrawn and repressed she is.
As the story unfolds we are fed pieces of the puzzle that have led to Mabel’s inability to connect emotionally. At the tender age of 14 her mother passed away and now she merely “[lives] in the memory of her mother” (Lawrence, 705). Her mother’s passing has left her with only males in the household, her father and three brothers. “She [...] loves her father, too, in a different way, depending upon him, and feeling secure in him, until at the age of fifty-four he marries again. And then she [...] sets hard against him” (Lawrence, 705).
To further exasperate her fragile view of family and shatter her sense of security her father passes away leaving them “hopelessly in debt” (Lawrence, 705).
Within “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter”
Man of Steel debuted this past weekend to shatter all previous box office records for a June release. The overwhelming success of this newest installment in the Superman franchise capitalizes upon our need for a hero, for good in the midst of bad, and for hope in the midst of despair. Though comic books and superheroes are a fixation of more recent years, the art of creating characters that portray redemptive qualities is not a new one. Such is the case with D.H. Lawrence’s “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter.” Within the confines of this short story we are granted a look into the troubled life of a young woman who has long since died emotionally and the seemingly simple yet almost tragic interaction that arouses her back to life.
When we are first introduced to Mabel Pervin, we are made aware of a young woman who, though she should be in the prime of her life, is emotionally cold and distant. She is given little value, as evidenced by her brothers talking at her rather than to her in the opening sequence about what choices she should make for her future. Even when company presents itself in the form of the young Doctor Ferguson, she is scarcely noticed due to how withdrawn and repressed she is.
As the story unfolds we are fed pieces of the puzzle that have led to Mabel’s inability to connect emotionally. At the tender age of 14 her mother passed away and now she merely “[lives] in the memory of her mother” (Lawrence, 705). Her mother’s passing has left her with only males in the household, her father and three brothers. “She [...] loves her father, too, in a different way, depending upon him, and feeling secure in him, until at the age of fifty-four he marries again. And then she [...] sets hard against him” (Lawrence, 705).
To further exasperate her fragile view of family and shatter her sense of security her father passes away leaving them “hopelessly in debt” (Lawrence, 705).
Cited: Herbert, Michael. "The Horse Dealer 's Daughter: Overview." Reference Guide to Short Fiction. Ed. Noelle Watson. Detroit: St. James Press, 1994. Literature Resource Center. Web. 19 June 2013. Holy Bible, New International Version®. , Editor. : Biblica, Inc.®, 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011. Lawrence, D.H. “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter.” The Bedford Introduction to Literature. Michael Meyer, DD. 9 ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin 's,2011. 701-712. Print.