Mabel, the main character in D.
H. Lawrence’s The Horse Dealer's Daughter’s story, is a young girl who has been made to demonstrate low self-esteem by the many hardships that she has experienced. For example, Mabel is orphaned after her father dies. To add insult to injury, the father leaves his family in huge debt - a situation that forces the children to reluctantly change residence. Further, Mabel’s brothers mistreat their sister. Such negative aspects make Mabel’s life hard.
She thus demonstrates low self-esteem owing to the notion that she is unworthy. Essentially, the numerous challenges that Mabel has endured in life, coupled with the feelings of low self-worth, motivate her to decide to end her life. Being a destitute orphan, Mabel endures the humiliation of having to shift residences unwillingly. Moreover, her bothers add to Mabel’s troubles when they demonstrate unkindness to their sister (Lawrence 9).Feeling not loved, Mabel thus opts to end her suffering by committing suicide in a nearby pond.
An analysis of Mabel’s behavior shows that the girl is a static, as opposed to a dynamic, character. This is because Mabel shows consistency in her behavior all through the story. To illustrate, at the outset, when she attempts to end her life through suicide, Mabel demonstrates low self-worth. This behavior persists even after Jack Fergusson comes into the picture, rescues Mabel, and gives her the love that she very much needs.Due to her insecurity that emanates from her low self-esteem trait, Mabel does not believe that Fergusson really loves her. In addition, the girl regards herself as being unworthy of Fergusson’s affection.
She thus repeatedly asks Fergusson whether he actually adores her. This action demonstrates low-self-esteem-induced insecurity and lack of self love. Because of exhibiting such a consistent behavior pattern, Mabel is truly a static character.
