Kimberlei Taylor, Fall 2009
D. H. Lawrence’s “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter” has been the source of extensive critical focus and is viewed as a story of resurrection. In “D. H. Lawrence and Tradition: ‘The Horse Dealer’s Daughter,’” Jeffrey Meyer focuses on the religious and the sexual implications in the text and he notes that other critics have not recognized the ways Lawrence combines classical and Christian resurrection myths. To be sure, the story expresses a death theme and Mabel’s unexpected rebirth after attempting suicide. However, Meyer’s critical focus overlooks the ways in which patriarchal gender roles are the ultimate source of human experiences during the story’s cultural time period. Lawrence uses literary devices such as diction and characterization to convey how patriarchal gender roles are socially constructed and destructive for women.
The story takes place in a coal town in central England and focuses on the psychological turmoil experienced by Mabel and her brothers. The opening scene is weighted with hopelessness. Lawrence’s choice of diction builds tension and emphasizes the helplessness of the men by describing them as having “glazed looks of helplessness” (235) and “frightened at the collapse of their lives” (234). On the other hand, Mabel is described as “sullen-looking” (234) and is alone because “She did not share the same life as her brothers” (234). Because Mabel’s role within the family is that of caregiver and homemaker, she is considered inferior (woman as other) and subject to male dominance. For example, when Mabel’s brothers speak to her, they do not wait for an answer. Indeed, Mabel hardly notices them because “They had talked at her and round her for so many years, that she hardly heard them at all” (236). When Dr. Jack Ferguson does not speak to Mabel when he arrives, he makes eye contact with her as a way of greeting and validates her presence. However, when Dr. Jack Ferguson asks Mabel about her plans, she only “look[s] at him with her steady, dangerous eyes…” (239). Meyer interprets her making eye contact with Jack as “the first sign of life” (346) shown by Mabel. However, Mabel has been conditioned to be silent even when she is spoken to because women are expected to be subservient and not encouraged to participate in men’s conversations.
Traditional gender roles are socially constructed to “keep women powerless” (Tyson 86) and elevate the “male point of view” (Tyson 84). It is some time into the story before the reader learns the source of the family’s mournful countenances. The patriarch (their father) “had died and left them all hopelessly in debt” (240). In a patriarchal culture, failure to provide adequate economic support is “the most humiliating experience for a man because it is [considered] his biological role as provider” (Tyson 87). Additionally, as Meyer mentions, “Like his father, Joe marries to retrieve his fortunes but cannot convince his impassive, inscrutable, and apparently mindless sister to make plans for the future” (346). Mabel’s brothers are also failures because they have not fulfilled the culturally defined patriarchal gender roles.
Meyer’s discourse ignores the negative impact of patriarchal gender roles and focuses on themes relating to “revelation of truth through nakedness and touch, release of primitive emotions through ritual and ceremony, self-discovery and return to life through regenerative love” (346). In doing so, Meyer objectifies Mabel by focusing on projections of patriarchal male desire and suggests that she has rejected her traditional gender role and is a “bad girl”. Meyer emphasizes the exasperation of Mabel’s brother, Fred Henry, and his eagerness to “divest himself of responsibility for his sister” when he “discourages Ferguson by calling the passive Mabel ‘the sulkiest bitch that ever trod!’” (347). This characterization implies that Mabel is a monster and she has trivial concerns.
Negatively portrayed, Mabel is punished by the progression of narrative events. Her physical description represents unattractiveness when she is described as being “sullen-looking” and having the face of a “bull-dog” (234) with “steady, dangerous eyes” (239). On the one hand, her brothers criticize Mabel because she does not respond to their questions; however, her silence is learned behavior that reaffirms men’s ownership of women in a patriarchal culture. Mabel’s refusal to conform by answering their questions evokes negative reactions from them, thereby reflecting her moral decline. While her father was alive, Mabel’s sense of identity depends on the stability of the patriarchal family; however, after his death, Mabel loses her domestic role and identity when her brothers abandon her.
For a time, she suffers but keeps “the home together in penury for her ineffectual brothers” until she realizes “the end has come” (240). Lawrence portrays Mabel as hysterical, a condition patriarchal society deems “peculiar to women and characterized by overemotional, extremely irrational behavior” (Tyson 86). Moreover, the author describes her as “Mindless and persistent…in a sort of ecstasy” and “in a state bordering on pure happiness” as she prepares to join her “glorified” mother (241). However, when Mabel is in the churchyard, Lawrence presents her as “looking at [Jack] with slow, large, portentous eyes…[that] mesmerize him” and give him life (242). Here, Lawrence uses characterization to suggest there is a sexual attraction between Jake and Mabel.
Traditional gender roles characterize men as rational, strong, and protective, whereas, women are characterized as irrational, weak, and submissive. Mabel exemplifies the patriarchal woman who internalizes the norms and values of social constructionism. As a patriarchal woman, she has been socially programmed to depend on men for fulfillment and financial survival. So, it is understandable that, after Jack saves her life, she jumps to the conclusion that he loves her—enough to have removed her wet clothes and avoid hypothermia. Comprised of multiple layers, the standard dress for women causes them to move slowly and deliberately. During the time period of this story, women’s clothing consisted of long skirts, corsets, and high-buttoned shoes. Mabel’s clothing contributes to her oppression as a patriarchal woman because it severely restricts her ability to move freely and unencumbered. Instead of challenging restrictive norms and practices, Mabel reinforces the idea of women as helpless, fragile, and in need of rescuing.
Images of femininity are powerful reflections of cultural belief systems and are manipulated to serve the needs of those in power (men). In patriarchal societies, dominant ideas influence how women view themselves and their world. Lawrence’s narrative promotes and reinforces the stereotyping of women by using diction such “helpless,” “hopeless,” “sullen-looking,” and “unresponsive” to transmit negative messages. Today, progress is being made in American society—women challenge restrictive norms and practices by defying stereotypes. Unfortunately, young woman still struggle to negotiate social norms that provide complex messages of what it means to be a woman in a male dominated culture. Fortunately, there is hope for women—feminist organizations are working for the freedom of all women.
Works Cited
Lawrence, D. H. “The Horse Trader’s Daughter.” The Seagull Reader: Stories. 2nd ed. Joseph Kelly. New York: Norton, 2008. 234-250.
Meyers, Jeffrey. “D. H. Lawrence and Tradition: ‘The Horse Dealer’s Daughter’.” Studies in Short Fiction 26.3 (1989): 346-351. MLA International Bibliography. EBSCO. Web. 1 Dec. 2009.
Tyson, Lois. Critical Theory Today: A User Friendly Guide. 2nd ed. New York: Routledge, 2006.