Comparing Rocking Horse Winner the Movie and Novel Essay example

Hester does not abuse her children in the traditional way, her treatment of

     Hester Prynne, through the eyes of the Puritans, is an extreme sinner. She has gone against the Puritan ways by committing Adultery. The Puritans believed that Hester was a lost soul that could only be saved by sincere and thorough repentance. For this

Despite the isolation, Hester supports herself and Pearl with nothing but her inner strength. She is able to deal with the negativity from the townspeople and the local government, and is even able to be honest and compassionate in ways such as acknowledging her sin, keeping the identity of her

     The characters are totally different in the two versions. The short story’s main characters are a family; a husband, a wife, and two children. The film’s characters are a woman and a man, and the man’s mother and younger sister.

From the start of the novel, Hester is portrayed in exile. She begins in the jail, and soon after is paraded through the streets to start her public exile with her child, Pearl. This first public shame caused Hester to feel “as if her hear had been flung in the street for them all to spurn and trample upon (Hawthorne 52).” The

One of the differences is the father. In the short story the father is not involved in Connie’s life as much as he should be. “Their father was away at work most of the time and when he came home he wanted supper and he read the newspaper at supper and after supper he went to bed. He did not t bother talking much to them” (Oates 1). They changed in role in the movie. He is more involved in her life in the movie. He talks to Connie about her and her mother's relationship, he is concerned about Connie being on the side of the road, and he tried to steer Connie in the right direction.

“The Rocking-Horse Winner,” by D.H. Lawrence is a fictional story about a woman’s obsession for money and the lack of love and affection she shows to her family. Her son Paul hopes to change his mother’s mind-set in order to gain her love by becoming lucky. Paul discovers a way to become lucky from a rocking horse that he receives as a Christmas present. He perceives that this horse has magical powers,

her lack of luck. Hester’s son, Paul, believes he is lucky and wants to earn her

‘The young woman was tall, with a figure of perfect elegance.” and “She had dark and abundant hair, so glossy that it through off the sunshine…” (4). While managing to face her realities, Hester accepts her “sin” and fate with dignity.

In “The Rocking-Horse Winner” the mother is quite obsessed with the fact that she does not have enough money, even though she spends lavishly on materialistic things. She whispers to herself constantly about not having enough money, thus giving Paul the impression that he needs to do something in order to make her happy. The story mysteriously unfolds with Paul riding a magical horse that gives him prophetic visions of which horse would win the Epsom Derby. At first it seems like an interesting idea, but eventually Paul obsesses over money exactly like his mother. In the very end of this story, Paul dies from convulsions. Paul chooses the winning horse in the race, but he ends up losing his

In the book, The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne, Hester is very strong-willed and loyal. For example, when Dimmesdale tells Hester to identify the father and she replies, “I will not speak!” (51). When Hester is in front of many people; she stays strong and does not give Dimmesdale up. This is important because by not revealing the identity of the father, Hester stays loyal to Dimmesdale. Another example is when the governor tries to take Pearl away from Hester and she says, “Ye shall not take her! I will die first!” (85). Hester continues to be tough and not give up Pearl but also does not give the name of Pearl’s father. Hester continues to argue why she should keep Pearl and is willing to die before she would let someone else raise

The role of money is merely to buy attention. Hester wants to use it to buy acceptance in the higher classes, and Paul wants to use it to buy his mother’s affection. The attention the characters seek is only superficial, however. The attention is based on outward signs of prosperity. Hester’s family is considered the best on the block because everything they own looks rich and expensive, but they are in great debt. Hester’s compassion for Paul is also based on this money- presents are the only things that show her love. This never stops Hester from pushing for more luxuries in an attempt to win this false admiration. Of course, in the end, Hester’s vanity will cost them

For the most part, Hester sees her relationship with her daughter as a big important factor in her life. This can be seen by the ways that Hester express herself. “She is my happiness - she is my torture, nonetheless!” (Hawthorne… pg.

As a result of her biological and emotional urges, Hester grew as a person. While she couldn’t really be described as happy, she was certainly in a better condition than Pearl’s father.

Hester never sought to earn anything beyond subsistence for herself and a simple abundance for her child. Her own clothing was made of rough materials in somber colors, with only the one decoration—the scarlet letter—which she was doomed to wear. The child’s clothing, on the other hand, was distinguished by a fantastic ingenuity. Her whimsical dress heightened the lively charm the young girl developed early on, but it appeared to have a deeper meaning too. I’ll tell you more about that later. Aside from the small expense used to dress her child, Hester gave all of her disposable income to charity. She gave to wretches who were happier than she was and who often insulted the hand that fed them. She spent a great deal of time making crude garments