Lesson 5: Poetry on Gambling:

http://www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish-central-poems-gambling-poem.htm

Go to the website and read the three poems Tom Beatty, The Green Clothes and One-Dollar Gambler. You have to do a brief comparison of each poem to a short story in approximately 100 words. Respond to at least 2 discussion threads below. Do note that you are also to comment on your friends' comments and these will be graded too.

Show how the poem Tom Beatty could be compared to The Rocking Horse Winner . In studying the poem, note that the opera house is really life and when He makes the rules it's either the Lord or perhaps the devil. Beatty suggests that everyone has about 70 years, but Paul in The Rocking Horse Winner had much less time. Explain what Paul's weakness was, how the cards were stacked against him and do you think Paul was lucky not to live to be an old man fumbling the cards, leaden-eyed and whining about his losses?

Paul was too obsessed with winning the gamble that he could not focus on anything else except the races. If Paul did not ‘know’ which horse will win, the odds against him winning were high. On the other hand, if he ‘knew’, he will most likely win. I think Paul is lucky not to live to be an old man cursing his luck and whining about his losses because his chances of winning depends if he ‘knew’ the result. If Paul grew up, his obsession with gambling may confine his life to gambling horse races, just as how Beatty’s opera house was really life. By then, no one can save him anymore.

In The Green Clothes, green is the color of envy, greed and money! This poem is thematically similar to Paper . Even though the poem takes place at a roulette wheel the gamblers from the short story and the poem have similar experiences. Explain how tips, dry lips, and all that was spent in vain could apply to the short story Paper .

The gambler in The Green Clothes was looking to get back for his losses by winning the gamble. He was so focused on winning that all he cared for was the small ball trembling in the circle. He even sacrificed his sleep to gamble. Similarly in Paper, Tay Soon gave his all to buy shares in the stock market. In the end, he spent all of his money for nothing. When the stock market started crashing, he was indecisive to sell his shares. At last, he decided to gamble by not selling his shares. His nervousness and desire for winning the gamble contributed to him suffering an emotional breakdown. Besides losing his money, he also lost his health, and died soon after.