The Horse Dealer's Daughter

The protagonist in D. H. Lawrence’s “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter” is Mabel. She faces many decisions, however her conflict is internal. Her family went from being wealthy, to losing everything that they had, due to poverty. When wealthy, the sense of money made Mabel proud, and now, in poverty, she feels insecure and overwhelmed (Lawrence 547 & 548). Her brothers and herself only have a short period of time to figure out where they each will live.

The reader’s interest in the story is based on what will happen next. The reader tries to follow the events that take place in Mabel’s mind. Mabel has a decision to make that may effect the rest of her life. She has no female friends, and no where to turn. She could go and live with her sister, but for whatever reason, that is not an option in Mabel’s mind. Poverty really took a toll on Mabel’s personality and way of life. “Mindless and persistent, she endured from day to day” (Lawrence 548).

The story is told starting in the middle and filling in the missi

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Also due to flashbacks, the reader learns that Mabel’s mother died when she was only fourteen years of age (Lawrence 548). The event when Ferguson, the doctor, falls in love with Mabel is foreshadowed throughout the story. Another event that is foreshadowed is when Mabel walks into the lake. It reveals that the family only has a short period of time before they have to be out of their home.

Flashbacks and foreshadowing are used in various places throughout the story. The order that the story is told allows the reader to place their own feelings and emotions on the situations that the characters endure. He remarried at the age of fifty-four, in order to retrieve is fortunes (Lawrence 547 & 548). For example, when the doctor is watching Mabel at her mother’s grave, it is stated that “some mystical element was touched in him” (Lawrence 548. The story would not be as affective if told in a different order. This act would be considered the falling action. It also keeps the reader in suspense, which helps to hold their interest. Their father died and left them in debt, which resulted in the loss of their home. When it is said that Mabel is coming nearer to her fulfillment, her own glorification, approaching her dead mother, who was glorified, this foreshadows the event that takes place when Mabel walks into the lake (Lawrence 548). Mabel feels as if everything has “come to an end, and there is no way out” (Lawrence 548).

Common topics in this essay:
Daughter Mabel, Joseph Pervin, Mabel Lawrence, lawrence 548, Dealing Poverty, lawrence 547, flashbacks reader learns, short period, lawrence 547 548, mabel walks lake, mabel walks, mabels mind, live sister, foreshadows event, walking lake, 547 548, lawrence 549,

Approximate Word count = 732
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

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