...For my Research Paper, I plan to explore James Joyce's use of Irish History in "The Dead" through the lens of the character Gabriel Conroy. This topic is significant now on the grounds that Joyce wrote short stories that demonstrated the social conformity from which Ireland, particularly Dublin, endured. Particularly controversial about this topic is that Joyce used vivid descriptions of past events when the truth about the names of Dublin public places, such as the parks and streets, and the unattractive Irish behavior, especially child and spousal abuse, drunkenness, prostitution, gambling, corruption and suicide, were revealed. As a matter of fact, including such specific details in any literary work meant to delay the publication of this...
Words: 355 - Pages: 2
...English 12 12 December 2011 Paper Assignment #6 James Joyce Strangled by Spiritual Paralysis Stanislaus Joyce once wrote “Ireland [is] a country which has seen revolutions in every generation” (Joyce 510). But what happens when these revolutions seem to come to an end? The Irish defeated British to become an independent nation of devout Catholics. They worked harder than those beside them to keep their families out of poverty, when Ireland became over populated as a result of the Napoleonic Wars. They suffered through the Great Potato Famine, losing many loved ones in the process. The country struggled to recover after each of these tragedies, but with their triumphs brought improvement. Through their devotion to Catholicism, their loyalty to Ireland and their hard work for their family, they survived, but they settled into an unchanging society engulfed by a form of spiritual paralysis as author James Joyce identifies in his writings. Many literary critics have taken an interest in his writings because of the underlying theme of spiritual paralysis in Dublin. Joyce’s brother, Stanislaus wrote “James Joyce: A Memoir”, in effort to defend and explain Joyce’s motivation for using Dublin as the heart of his writing. He describes Joyce as an independent person, often excited by multiple “enthusiasms”, which he was quick to share with the world (Joyce 488). Joyce was not afraid to criticize his homeland if he felt it would bring improvement, which can be seen in his impulsive...
Words: 1742 - Pages: 7
...Dead: A Psychological Perspective James Joyce’s “The Dead” can be interpreted form a psychological perspective that focuses on the impact of the cognitive and subconscious influences that impacted the content of Joyce’s work. In analyzing “The Dead” from this psychological perspective, there are insights that reveal how confused, disturbed, insecure, and troubled Joyce was in his personal life. The first article is by Coen and is entitled “What Will Become of Epiphanies? A Psychoanalytic Reading of James Joyce’s ‘The Dead.’” One of the more interesting points that was made in this article was that Coen describes how there are elements being juxtaposed against one another in Joyce’s story. These contrasting elements represent death and life. One example of this contrast between life and death was where Joyce wrote, “The morning was still dark. A dull yellow light brooded over the houses and the river and the sky seemed to be descending” (Joyce). This description uses all dark and dull matter to symbolize death. The morning sky, which could be described as brilliant specks of color trying to break through the early morning dark sky, were instead simply referred to as dark. Then, right after this description, Joyce’s entire mood and writing style changed. He wrote, “…Gabriel’s eyes were…bright with happiness. The blood went bounding along his veins and the thoughts were rioting through his brain, proud, joyful, tender, valorour…” (Joyce). This excerpt is full of descriptive...
Words: 1382 - Pages: 6
...JAMES JOYCE -AN IRISH MODERNIST MODERN FICTION GROUP NUMBER 4 GROUP MEMBERS : HAFSA SHAHID R CONTENTS: Introduction to James Joyce Modernism and James Joyce A portrait of an Artist as aYoung Man Ulysses Themes and Style of Joyce's two Works a) Mythological Allusions b) Kunslerroman c)Stream of conciousness c)Focus on inner time rather than outer time d)Search for identity e)Treatment of religion f)Treatment of sexuality Conclusion James Joyce (from February 2, 1882 to January 13, 1941) was one of the most preeminent Irish authors of the 20th century. He is known for his literary innovation strictly focused narrative and indirect style. James Joyce matriculated from University College of Dublin in 1903. After moving to Paris, Joyce planned on studying medicine. The lectures were conducted in a technical French but Joyce’s education had not prepared him for it. Despite his mother’s attempts to get him to return to Catholic Church, Joyce remained unmoved even after her death. Joyce studied at Clongowes Wood College from 1888 until 1892. When the family’s financial state devolved, Joyce had to leave the school. After a brief time at Christian Brothers School, Joyce was enrolled at Belvedere College in 1893. In 1898, Joyce began studying Italian, English and French at University College Dublin. At this time, Joyce also began his entry into the artistic...
Words: 9723 - Pages: 39
...by society, concealing a darker unspoken reality which has power to threaten the pure and romantic values of marriage and intimate relationships as well as established gender roles. Despite the alleviation of religious and moral restrictions, sex embodies the warped animal reflection of the exclusively human concept of love, exposing primal desires and ensuring its continued belonging to the realms of the shocking and distasteful, while inadvertently strengthening its power. It is this power that lies at the heart of much modernist literature. The illicit imagery serves as a physical subversion of the dated foundations the writings oppose. Prominent in early modernist work was the theoretical influence of Sigmund Freud, most notably in the case of contemporary writer James Joyce whose literary techniques, such as the stream of consciousness writing in Ulysses, have come to epitomize modernist fiction. Ulysses not only challenges the censors’ attitude to sex, but also what were considered the sexual norms for men and women in pre-war Catholic society. Similarly, Vladimir Nabokov uses sexual deviancy to protest the theoretical ideas implicit in modernist literature through characteristics derived from post-World War II civilisation. The absence of structure or control left by the war undermined contemporary opinion of western stability, presented in Lolita through American culture. This subversion is mirrored in the poetry of Carol Ann Duffy through use of explicit language...
Words: 4061 - Pages: 17
...Essay Question on the extract from ’An Encounter’ and one other story In this extract from ‘An Encounter’ James Joyce marks a growing sense of weariness from the boy in the direction of the old man, as the passage progresses, the boy’s attitude changes from one of naivety to one of marked suspicion and doubt at the old man’s motives for being there. However, due to his innocence and relatively inexperienced life skills, the boy seems to struggle to grasp what other reason the man would have for being there. One example which highlights this point is when the old man queries how often the boys get whipped at school, but despite this question being asked, the boy decides to ‘remain silent’. This response of silence from the boy indicates that there is indeed an element of doubt and confusion inside his head as to why the man wants to know these questions – but instead of perhaps retorting in disgust or walking away as an older person would probably have done, the boy remains where he is, and the conversation continues. Joyce’s description of the boy as ‘Magnetised’ by the old man is interesting; this suggests that the boy is enjoying the idea of listening to this old man who has encountered a lot in his long life, and that at that present point in the extract, the boy does not see the behaviour of the man threatening or in any way unnerving. The boy actually wants the man to stay and talk to him because he is intrigued about what he may have to say – adding to the little boy’s...
Words: 981 - Pages: 4
...Natasha Nayo Lit.411 Yeats, Joyce and Woolf Presentation Review 2: Gabriel’s Alienation in “The Dead” by James Joyce Talking about James Joyce throughout this class and papers, it was only fitting to conclude by discussing about his last chapter in Dubliners (1914) ‘The Dead’. As the final installment [and the longest story in the collection] it had enough pages to describe the events that portrayed life in Dublin; at its peak of political revolution and colonization. The deceased and people described in this chapter hints the historical events of Joyce’s time. ‘The Dead’ takes place at a grand feast organized by the owners of the house, Aunt Julia and Kate Morkan and their talented niece, Mary Jane. In a cold January to celebrate the feast of Epiphany [which celebrates the manifestation of Christ’s divinity to the Magi] every relative and friend arrived to the party, including the most anticipated favorite nephew, Gabriel Conroy and his wife Gretta, whom will be the main focus of the story. “Of course, they had good reason to be fussy on such a night. And then it was long after ten o'clock and yet there was no sign of Gabriel and his wife. Besides they were dreadfully afraid that Freddy Malins might turn up screwed. They would not wish for worlds that any of Mary Jane's pupils should see him under the influence; and when he was like that it was sometimes very hard to manage him. Freddy Malins always came late, but they wondered what could be keeping Gabriel: and that...
Words: 1718 - Pages: 7
...A&P and Araby John Updike's A & P and James Joyce's Araby share many of the same literary traits. The primary focus of the two stories revolves around a young man who is compelled to decipher the different between cruel reality and the fantasies of romance that play in his head. That the man does, indeed, discover the difference is what sets him off into emotional collapse. One of the main similarities between the two stories is the fact that the main character, who is also the protagonist, has built up incredible,yet unrealistic, expectations of women, having focused upon one in particular towards which he places all his unrequited affection. The expectation these men hold when finally "face to face with their object of worship" (Wells, 1993, p. 127) is what sends the final and crushing blow of reality: The rejection they suffer is far too great for them to bear. Updike is famous for taking other author's works and twisting them so that they reflect a more contemporary flavor. While the story remains the same, the climate is singular only to Updike. This is the reason why there are similarities as well as deviations from Joyce's original piece. Plot, theme and detail are three of the most resembling aspects of the two stories over all other literary components; characteristic of both writers' works, each rendition offers its own unique perspective upon the young man's romantic infatuation. Not only are descriptive phrases shared by both stories, but parallels occur with...
Words: 7200 - Pages: 29
...A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man Context James Joyce was born on February 2, 1882, in the town of Rathgar, near Dublin, Ireland. He was the oldest of ten children born to a well-meaning but financially inept father and a solemn, pious mother. Joyce's parents managed to scrape together enough money to send their talented son to the Clongowes Wood College, a prestigious boarding school, and then to Belvedere College, where Joyce excelled as an actor and writer. Later, he attended University College in Dublin, where he became increasingly committed to language and literature as a champion of Modernism. In 1902, Joyce left the university and moved to Paris, but briefly returned to Ireland in 1903 upon the death of his mother. Shortly after his mother's death, Joyce began work on the story that would later become A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Published in serial form in 1914–1915, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Mandraws on many details from Joyce's early life. The novel's protagonist, Stephen Dedalus, is in many ways Joyce's fictional double—Joyce had even published stories under the pseudonym "Stephen Daedalus" before writing the novel. Like Joyce himself, Stephen is the son of an impoverished father and a highly devout Catholic mother. Also like Joyce, he attends Clongowes Wood, Belvedere, and University Colleges, struggling with questions of faith and nationality before leaving Ireland to make his...
Words: 18420 - Pages: 74
...Kaitlyn Simpson W0436017 Dr. Gibson English 231-04 Archaic Lore in “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter” and “The Dead” Intro: Id texts and subject. Thesis: D.H. Lawerence and James Joyce use archaic lore in their stories “The Horse Dealers Daughter”, and “The Dead”. Storytakes place in English midlands, four sibling late 20’s sittng around family home. -- D. H. Lawrence’s stories have the sense that they’re ritualistic; his rough home life. He had a God awful dysfunctional family. His mom and dad were polar opposites which caused them to Fight battle through the kids. In early 20’s he got ill, and diagnosis 100 years ago tuberculosis. It was incurable then. . He knew he was dying therefore he decided he wouldn’t waste what he had. He sought out the things that were really important. A deeper meaning in life “savage pilgrimage,” he traveled around the world. He was looking for the power spots. One of the things he realized was there were also power centers within everyone of us. All over the planet ancient patterns that play out over and over. In D. H. Lawrences’ writings he explains a very archaic belief--that there are energy vortices within all of us. These power centers are located in our spiritual bodies, and are known as “chakras”. But as Lawrence explains, in most of us, there is a tremendous imbalance in the way the chakras are activated, and this imbalance causes various problems, neuroses, and complexes in our lives. In “The Horse Dealer’s Daughter” D.H. Lawrence...
Words: 1503 - Pages: 7
...G. James Joyce 1. How does “Araby” convey a sense of desolation and gloom? What words, symbols, and motifs contribute to this atmosphere? Is the narrator’s despair at the end of “Araby” confined to his frustration with the bazaar itself or does it extend to larger issues? The “Araby” is considered gloomy in reference to the character’s feelings of isolation and being incomplete or unwelcomed. Yet, there is a theme of light vs dark. For instance, the character’s mood slightly brightens when he sees his crush, “her figure defined by the light of the half-opened door” (2279). However, symbolism is relevant to the character for the house mentioned at the beginning is, “An uninhabited house of the two stories stood at the blind end, detected from...
Words: 1098 - Pages: 5
...Hades The sixth episode of James Joyce’s Ulysses is based around Leopold Bloom’s thoughts and actions throughout the time before, during, and shortly after the funeral of Paddy Dignam. In R.M Adams’ essay, “Hades: Bloom Alone”, he discusses a “great hollow resonance” (96) that is present when reading this episode and Adams claims “that is the real development of this chapter, the sounding of that resonance, the deepening and darkening in Bloom’s mind of an immense emptiness.” (96,97) Throughout the episode, it is clear to see the isolation between Bloom and the rest of the characters presented. On the carriage ride to the funeral, Joyce makes it clear that the thoughts of Cunningham, Power, and Simon Dedalus are completely different from the thoughts of Bloom. Adams writes that Bloom’s “matter-of-factness often serves to set him apart from his companions.” (98) This is clear when Bloom speaks out that he would rather prefer a quick death than a slow death. Bloom, being Jewish, does not seem to take into account that Catholics fear a quick death as it does not offer a chance to repent. This conversation leads into Mr. Power, unaware of the suicide of Bloom’s father, speaking about the disgrace of having a suicide in the family. It is obvious to see that Bloom is not close to these people and that they have no intentions of being so. However, Adams writes that “Deeper than any of these on-the-whole trivial misadventures, there is the gloomy emptiness of Bloom’s encounter...
Words: 317 - Pages: 2
...Not Living Dead If there is one thing that has remained true throughout the time of all human existence, it is that we all must die. However, there are sometimes moments in our lives when we encounter people who are perfectly alive, but could also be characteristically described as dead. In James Joyce’s “The Dead”, we encounter Gabriel who has an epiphany that is considered gloomy on a night that has historically always been “a great affair” (178). In reading about Gabriel’s epiphany, it has served as a sort of warning to me personally, that it is important to take the time out to really enjoy the ununiformed parts of life. The lesson is a warning against working so hard that I wake up one day to find myself dead inside, thus becoming a part of the living dead. Gabriel is a man who considers himself intelligent, in fact, more intelligent than the other guests at the party, and this is further evidenced, as he studied his speech and considered changing parts of it to accommodate those who may not understand his Robert Browning references. “He was undecided about the lines from Robert Browning for he feared they would be above the heads of his hearers” (180). The setting of the story begins at an annual party that his aunts and cousin host, and then veers off to a lonely night in a hotel room. The contrast of the settings is interesting because at the party, Gabriel appears to be this intelligent, comedic guy who his aunts deem important as they felt that he was the perfect...
Words: 753 - Pages: 4
...James Joyce: Ulysses James Augustine Aloysius Joyce, better known as James Joyce, was born on February 2, 1882 in Dublin, Ireland. Joyce soon grew to have quite a large family. He was the first of ten surviving children to be born to John Stanislaus Joyce and Mary Murray Joyce. Two of his siblings died of Typhoid. Due to the large number children the Joyces had and his father’s drinking, the Joyce’s gradually sank deeper into poverty throughout Joyce’s young life. As a child, Joyce displayed impressive writing skills and a love for literature and poetry. Dante, Aristotle, Thomas Aquinas and many other great writers and philosophers were among the literary giants that Joyce would occupy himself with. Joyce also showed linguistic talent...
Words: 1114 - Pages: 5
...The book “Ulysses S. Grant” is strictly a biography written by Steven O’Brien and published by Chelsea House Publishing in 1991. The author writes about Grant's life from his early age to his death. Steven O’Brien includes a detailed analysis of every event that impacted and changed Grant’s life, describing it in an organized and cohesive manner. Grant was not always a man of success and the author does a fair job of showing Grant’s achievements as well as failures because no man is perfect after all. The book presents old information in an interesting fashion, it is great for people that want to learn facts about the life of the 18th President of the United States and develop their own idea about who Ulysses S. Grant was. The author, Steven O’Brien has taught social studies in high schools for over twenty years. He holds a Masters in history from the University of Connecticut and a Ph.D. from Harvard. His historical writings appear in the New York Times Magazine and other well-known publications. In the series World Leaders-Past and Present Steven O’Brien summarizes Grant’s life in every detail and explains very carefully every aspect of his life. He includes many failures as well as achievements and explains the impact of them on Grant’s life. He carefully adds that that Ulysses S. Grant had lived through what was some kind of a mystery to everyone around him but also himself. Steven O’Brien writes; “Ulysses S. Grant was something of an enigma when he lived, and he remains...
Words: 978 - Pages: 4
