"The Horse Dealer's Daughter" by D.H. Lawrence Topic/Main Idea: A good life can be found by rejecting the scientific, intellectual approach to relationships, and living by an instinctual response to people and events. The characters of Mabel and Jack are symbols of the passivity of the conscious and dominance of the emotional and instinctual, while Mabel's brother Joe is a symbol of the conscious, intellectual approach to life.
The Pervin family has become impoverished, leading to the breakup of the family unit.