In "The Rocking-Horse Winner," why does the narrator conceal the secret of the rocking horse until the end of the story? And what do you think...

The secret of the rocking horse is not revealed to Pauls' mother until the end of the story because she probably would have found it as strange as the reader. However, the reader is given many clues about how Paul is finding the winner of the horse races and this helps us to understand the sick relationship between mother and son. The obvious sexual overtones of riding a horse make Paul's obsession with pleasing his mother even more bizarre than if he were reading tarot cards or something like that. Leaving Paul's secret to the end also helps show Hester's insensibility and carelessness about her son. She does have some hint and anxiety about his odd behavior, but chooses to ignore those feelings until it is too late. Thus, Lawrence has created much suspense by leaving Hester in the dark about her son's behavior and also shown the audience her true personality by leaving the secret until the end of the story.