The Dubliners Not Just Another Pretty Face - 1464 Words

The Dubliners is a series of short stories by James Joyce first published in 1914. They form a picture of Irish middle class life in Dublin in the early years of the 20th century. The last book, The Dead, is considered to be the finest of the entire series. In this story we have the protagonist, Gabriel Conroy. He â€Å"is insecure, egotistical and demonstrates in his awkward attempts at communion, an often-profound misunderstanding of his companions (Free 282).† He is also the â€Å"favourite nephew†(Joyce 558) of the Morkan sisters who invited he and his wife Gretta to the annual Christmas dinner. Gabriel does what most good nephews do which is to be pleasant company and perform the typical male gendered tasks, such as carving the goose.†¦show more content†¦This encounter with Lily sets the demeaning tone of insecurity in Gabriel for the remainder of the evening. As he skips hurriedly away and the night goes on, Gabriel is partnered up for the festive holiday dance with Miss Ivors. Miss Ivors is a a true Irish nationalist at heart. She is like an Irish Susan B. Anthony, who can size up Gabriel with a lashing tongue of ego busting insults that gets Gabriel’s feelings twisted, which makes this dance between them anything but festive. Miss Ivors starts the tirade by telling him that she has a â€Å"crow to pluck†(Joyce 563) which starts the conversation off with her using an authoritative voice. Miss. Ivors uses numerous insults such as an â€Å"innocent Amy† (Joyce 563) or â€Å"West Briton† (Joyce 563). She proceeds insulting him about his job for The Daily Express, belittling the job to mere trash or â€Å"rag like that† (Joyce 563). Miss Ivors engages Gabriel by taking the lead in the dance when she tells him â€Å"Come, we cross now† (Joyce 563). Gabriel’s fury comes to a head when Mis s Ivors invites him and his wife to a holiday trip to the west coast of Ireland with them, and when pressed why he won’t come along with them he retorts back that â€Å"Im sick of my own country, sick of it! (Joyce 564)† Gabriel couldn’t even give an answer as to why he doesnt like his own country. So Miss Ivors closes the dance with the biting insult of â€Å"West Briton†(Joyce 565) and then we see Gabriel, clearly upset and beaten, going â€Å"to a remote corner ofShow MoreRelatedDubliners By James Joyce s Dubliners1419 Words   |  6 PagesJames Joyce’s Dubliners is an assortment of brief stories in which he criticizes twentieth century Dublin. In these stories, Joyce analyzes the paralysis that entices the characters in Dublin and forbids them from accomplishing their desires and goals; rather than relentlessly trying to conquer the obstacles that stand in their way, they give up on achieving their goals in all. During this time period, man y gender inequalities are occurring, and women are often brushed-aside by society and more oftenRead MoreEveline3513 Words   |  15 Pagesstories, Dubliners. Dubliners consists of 15 stories and each of them unfolds lives of many different Dubliners vividly. By describing details of ordinary life and characters inner life, which is described by their interior monologue, Joyce succeeds in showing the realistic landscape of the inner space of Dubliners as well as that of outer space, the city Dublin at the turn of the century. Joyce tries to emphasize the fact that Dublin is not in the healthy state by showing unhealthy Dubliners. In DublinRead MoreThe taste of melon by borden deal11847 Words   |  48 Pagesanalyse story structure ââ€"   identify changes in the narrator’s perspective ââ€"   interpret characters’ motives 130 Look Closely D E A L When I think of the summer I was sixteen, a lot of things some crowding in to be thought about. We had moved just the year before, and sixteen is still young enough that the bunch makes a difference. I had a bunch, all right, but they weren’t sure of me yet. I didn’t know why. Maybe because I’d lived in town, and my father still worked there instead of farmingRead MoreANALIZ TEXT INTERPRETATION AND ANALYSIS28843 Words   |  116 Pagespoint of the narrative actually occurs. Nor is there any special reason that the crisis should occur at or near the middle of the plot. It can, in fact, occur at any moment. In James Joyce’s â€Å"Araby† and in a number of the other companion stories in â€Å"Dubliners† the crisis – in the form of a sudden illumination that Joyce called an epiphany – occurs at the very end of the story, and the falling action and the resolution are dispensed with altogether. Exposition and complication can also be omitted in favour