Renowned Irish playwright and literary critic George Bernard Shaw once wrote that “A happy family is but an earlier heaven.” One can then extend this sentiment to its logical end and intuit that an unhappy family is the antithesis of heaven- an earlier Hell, perhaps. Eveline, the protagonist of James Joyce’s short story of the same name, would likely empathize more closely with the latter theory. Joyce’s character faces the ostensibly unconquerable conflict between her own personal happiness and the welfare of her family, with arduous sufferings pushing her to the arms of her boyfriend Frank and a sense of dutiful devotion anchoring her home. In “Eveline” of Dubliners, Joyce demonstrates the impregnability of familial bonds and duties and the need for familiarity of environment, for Eveline ultimately is unable to take the easy escape route from her harsh life, proving the family and household milieu to be an intuitive, yet acutely powerful, drawing force. While contemplating the decision to abandon her family, Eveline cannot help but dwell on her comfort in and closeness to the environment around her. Sitting at the window, watching the “evening invade the avenue” (Joyce 25), Eveline exclaims, subconsciously and panic-stricken, “Home! She looked around the room, reviewing all its familiar objects, which she had dusted once a week for so many years…never dreamed of being divided,” (25-26). Notice the sudden exclamatory use of the expression “Home!” which interjects almost violently amongst the nostalgic, peaceful, and sleepy stories of her childhood. Eveline’s subconscious demonstrates a sense of terror and anxiety to the reader, a genuine fear of separation. Like a fish floundering for air, Eveline must discard the thoughts of departure in which she drowns, and in their stead must breath in the air of acquainted sights- her eyes find solace upon the usual fixings of her home. Indeed, Eveline finds herself brought back to “reality”, for her thought process results in the realization of just how lofty, and perhaps unrealistic, her goal is- parting from this life can only be dreamt of.
Eveline often reverts to the memories associated with her home, which seem to be interminably curled about the back of her mind, providing a welcome sense of acquaintance. For example, while pondering the dust of the home, she recalls how she would wonder “where on earth all the dust came from” (25), or when she sees the yellowing photograph of a priest on the wall, she recalls her father saying, “He is in Melbourne now,” (26). Eveline’s environment requires no adjusting to, for these very memories are what provide Eveline with a grounding of sorts. Eveline, and Eveline alone, can extrapolate such sentiments from a measly photograph or a thin layer of dust- this is what differentiates a home from a house; as such, there is a sense of association, beyond merely physical association, that bonds her to this life. Eveline summarizes these ideas by resorting to a cost-benefit analysis of whether she ought to leave, weighing the fact that “she had shelter and food…and those whom she had known all her life” (26) on one side and on the other the “danger of her father’s violence”, the loss of her “entire day’s wages”, and the “hard work to keep the house together…and to see the two young children” raised (26-27). By no stretch of the imagination does Eveline’s life seem enjoyable and many would choose to leave; however, even in the face of these difficulties, she ultimately concludes that it is not a “wholly undesirable life” (27). Thus, Joyce outlines Eveline’s incentives quite clearly and scientifically: when the good is weighed against the bad, the good, namely the genuine comfort and recognition she has among her home, prevails.
Even when her decision to leave seems finalized, Eveline’s mentality is continuously invaded by memories of her family and reminders of her household obligations. As Eveline rests with the “white of two letters in her lap growing indistinct” (28), she seems to have made her final choice, which is to abandon her family. However, almost immediately Eveline thinks of her “father becoming old lately…and would miss her” and how he “could be very nice…making toast for her…and making the children laugh,” (28). This scene solidifies for the reader Eveline’s intent and seriousness in pursuing the possibility of departure- she goes so far as to prepare farewell letters. But, just as quickly as Joyce makes her decisiveness known to the reader, he undermines it by creating a juxtaposition between the revelation of the letters and two vital conceptions of Eveline’s consciousness. Firstly, Joyce alludes to a sense of guilt within Eveline, as displayed by the phrases “father becoming older” and “he would miss her”. These key notions suggest that Eveline’s father is growing feebler by the day, and her absence would simply be crushing to an aged man. Thus, the guilt attached to potentially breaking her own father down forces the reader to question her resolve. Secondly, Eveline focuses on the benevolent aspects of her father’s character- something she, hitherto, had failed to do. Recollecting the thoughts of playfulness and munificence, Eveline reveals to the reader that her father is a many-sided figure- his flaws, which were endlessly pointed out, in fact constitute only one side of the coin. The reader comes to see Eveline’s father in a new, more positive light, the thought of which serves to make Eveline’s decision all the more difficult. When push comes to shove, her father is human, and therefore imperfect, and her final choice must be influenced by the whole of his person, as opposed to just the drawbacks. Lastly, Eveline muses upon the memory of her dying mother and “her promise to keep the home together as long as she could,” (28). It is surely no coincidence that this particular memory appears right when Eveline’s decision seems to be made- her familial obligations and duties come crashing down around her, posing a moral dilemma. If Eveline does choose to leave, she effectively is ignoring the dying wish of her mother, which is a fairly strong incentive to remain. These particular instances draw significance from their moment of occurrence- just when she seems decided, and the story seems to be at an apparent apex, these memories and reminders of her domiciliary duties bring Eveline’s conflict right back to the forefront- the tale is not over yet.
Eveline’s ultimate selection at the end of the story reflects the power that her household duties and bonds hold over her. As Eveline, who ostensibly has made her final choice, goes to board the ship with Frank, she thinks “he would drown her....as the seas of the world came tumbled about her heart…and she set her white face to him, passive, like a helpless animal…with no sign of love or recognition or farewell,” (29). Eveline has come to the final frontier, for she is about to begin anew with Frank. However, she feels the sudden rush of the alien, of the unknown. Eveline has demonstrated an aforementioned need for familiarity, and Frank’s bringing her into unknown territory is analogous to the overwhelming experience of drowning. Furthermore, Eveline’s right of choice seems to vanish, as indicated by the phrase “passive, like a helpless animal”; she no longer actively decides to leave Frank, but rather is forced to by something else, specifically the obligations and familiarity she has in her home and among her family. Moreover, the lack of love or recognition demonstrates the centrality of her duty- her household obligations transcend the health of her relationship with Frank. Hence, Eveline is but a small creature, tossed and turned by indecisions and revisions, but her ultimate fate is set by the invisible manacles of her family and home.
Eveline is a young girl, lost and confused; however, the connections of duty and familiarity she shares with her family and household prove to be the strongest forces affecting her. Such sentiments shed light on the contemporary struggles of a child going off to college or being sent off to war, and ultimately prove a much larger point. Family, whether innate or learned, is the most vital aspect of a human’s existence- formation, support, comfort- some very important words all stem from the family structure.