Abstract This paper takes a look at Maria, a character in the story "Clay" by JamesJoyce, who never actually wakes up to face the reality or realizes that her whole life has been based on false assumptions and lies.
From the Paper "In the Dubliners, James Joyce's short story "Clay" stands out as a piece that has as its main character an ignorant woman who is essentially blind to the world around her. While many of Joyce's characters are struck with life-changing epiphanies, Maria does not recognize the signs - that are predictors of her future - even when they are painfully obvious to the reader. Working at the Dublin by Lamplight laundry, Maria thinks of her position as being of the utmost importance when in reality she is nothing more than a common dishwasher. Although Maria's budget is very limited, she nevertheless thinks that she is an independent woman and can afford the same things as women her age who are actually married. Maria believes that other individuals respect her and admire her, even though those same individuals either mock her unassuming nature or fail to notice her all together. Maria considers Joe's family to be the closest thing she has to having her own family. Meanwhile, Joe, his wife and his children simply put up with Maria once a year as if she was an unpleasant burden. Throughout the story, Joyce presents comparison after comparison of how Maria views herself versus how others view her. While Maria sees her life and the world around her through rose-colored glasses, the reality is rarely accommodating of her expectations."
Tags: clay, james, joyce, maria, Dubliners, character, analysis, english, literature
Abstract This paper examines the main character Stephen Dedalus, in JamesJoyce's "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man", struggle with sin and society. The paper describes the main character's childhood and religious upbringing, and later his emergence into independent adulthood. The author writes that after a battle with sin followed by a religious rebirth that he can find a level of peace within himself.
From the Paper "Stephen Dedalus, in the book "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" by James Joyce is forced throughout his life to deal with the issue of sin. Early in his childhood he is taught the basics of right and wrong by his parents. This matter becomes complicated and fearsome under the influence of the Catholic Church, and Stephen, despite his desire to be pious, begins to question it."
Abstract This paper examines, in extreme detail, the "Sirens" episode in JamesJoyce's epic Ulysses. The author explores the following areas: The episode's place within the whole, Joyce's intent, themes, literary structure, and Bloom's character and tendencies. Attention is paid to Joyce's use of musical motifs (fugue, canon etc) and many quotes from the novel are included.
From the Paper "James Joyce has proven himself to be something of a narrative chameleon in terms of the styles that he chooses to employ in his writing. In his telling of the story of Ulysses, the only constant is the fact that the narrative style changes from episode to episode. The beginning of the novel appears to be straightforward, filled with easily identifiable interior monologues and descriptions. Yet as the story progresses, the reader finds that these all-important Joycean agents of the story become increasingly difficult to follow and attribute to any particular character. Each episode takes on its own unique tone and style, making the task of the reader far more difficult in terms of comprehension."
Abstract This five page undergraduate paper examines the autobiographical nature of JamesJoyce's work and provides revealing insights into Joyce's own personality, beliefs, character, and perspectives of society. The writer discusses that reading this story is fascinating, for Joyce exposes his own deepest thoughts through the narrator and other characters and holds nothing back.
From the Paper ""Araby" demonstrates the autobiographical nature of James Joyce's work and provides revealing insights into Joyce's own personality, beliefs, character, and perspectives of society. Reading this story is fascinating, for Joyce exposes his own deepest thoughts through the narrator and other characters and holds nothing back. Essentially, he is the narrator, and his intimate portrayals of the characters in "Araby" reveal his own soul, with all of its flaws and imperfections, but also with all of its nobility and intense longing to find meaning in life."
Abstract The paper discusses JamesJoyce's contribution to the art of the novel, his influence on the form of the novel and on other writers. The paper explains Joyce's innovative literary techniques and also examines the impact of the novel "Ulysses."
From the Paper "Irish novelist and poet, James Joyce, was the most influential novelist of the ?th Century bringing a new approach and sensibility to the art of the Western novel that has not been surpassed since the publication of "Ulysses." His technical innovations and use of language are largely responsible for the modern novel that represents a break with the traditional naturalistic novels of the ?th and ?th centuries of Henry Fielding, Charles Dickens, Gustave Flaubert and Daniel Defoe among many others."
Abstract This paper looks at the collection of short stories by JamesJoyce "Dubliners". The paper focuses on the final story "The Dead" and its role as the culmination of many themes begun in other stories in the book. Specifically the book looks at the themes of parental abandonment, apostasy, lost love, financial failure, decay and finally death. These indicate Joyce's perceptions of the death of Ireland.
From the Paper "The collection of short stories by James Joyce called Dubliners draws a picture of life in that city in the early 20th century, and is descriptive not only of the people in specific, but also of the country as a whole. Joyce's pessimistic view of the state of the country at that time is made abundantly clear in the course of this collection of stories, which flow together so cohesively they might well be considered as one work. Dubliners concludes with "The Dead," also the longest story in the book with the largest and most complex cast of characters, and is the most highly symbolic of Joyce's perceptions of the state and fate of Ireland in the early 1900s."
Abstract The essay highlights the ways in which JamesJoyce should be considered a modernist writer. The paper includes comments from many critics, including William York Tindel, and quotations from Shakespeare. Many modernist writing techniques are revealed that conventional writers would not have used. The use of symbolism is shown as well as examples that show Joyce using realism to portray himself as a modernist writer. The two central short stories used to convey Joyce as a modernist are 'Araby' and 'Two Gallants'. There are also examples taken from 'The Sisters'. The essay also demonstrates how Joyce uses religion to show Dublin in a state of paralysis, which is one of the central themes seen throughout the collection.
From the Paper "James Joyce's "Dubliners", a collection of short stories published in 1907, revolves around the everyday mundane lives of Dublin and its citizens. According to Joyce himself, his intention was to "write a chapter of the moral history of my country and I chose Dublin for the scene because the city seemed to be the centre of paralysis". James Joyce is a modernist writer as he also does not conform to the traditional style of writing genre which conventional writers such as Jane Austen would have used at the time. Joyce believed that they modernists should "As t"were hold the mirror up to nature? (hamlet, William Shakespeare). Joyce believed that a revelation of truth would free Dublin's citizens from the paralysis of Dublin and their daily life?s. Joyce felt that due to the secularisation and the industrialisation of Dublin at the time the citizens were left in a state of paralysis with no escape. "The stories portray Joyce's feeling that Dublin is the epitome of paralysis and all of the citizens are victims". (Levin 159)."
Abstract In this article, the writer notes that great artists become famous and immortal because of the mark they leave in this world that made a difference; a difference that proved their innovativeness and deep understanding of their arts. The writer notes that it is in breaking with traditions and conventions of his time, and formulating his own canon of literature that ensured JamesJoyce a place in literary history where his works will still be discussed for decades to come. The writer points out that although Joyce wrote other literary pieces like 'Finnegans Wake' and 'Chamber Music', it is 'Ulysses' that brought concrete proof that Joyce will never be dismissed from the annals of literary masterpieces. The writer discusses that he writes with a cool and masterful detachment, which allows the reader to approach Joyce with a completely open mind, sometimes liking the warm humanity, sometimes detesting the cold arrogance of the man, always having the sense that he who was often a fool in his life was always wise in his work.
From the Paper "Dubliners depicted the stories of middle-class Irish folks living in Dublin in the early 20th century and the book exposed the feelings of nationalism and patriotism at the time when Ireland is seeking its own identity apart from British dominion. The importance of Dubliners in the annals of literature - and in Joyce's writings for that matter - is that the characters in the book served as a jump-off point for characters seen later in his other books.
"Dubliners did not give Joyce the rags-to-riches opportunity but instead it paved the way to a brighter and better literary career. A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man was Joyce's next piece de resistance, and was published in 1916. Portrait is somewhat an autobiographical book that depicts the life of Joyce's "alter ego" in the person of Stephen Dedalus. It is an epiphany of sorts for Joyce because his main character had a religious, social and political awakening and began questioning the teachings of the Catholic Church and the idealisms of Irish culture and tradition. The rebellious nature of Dedalus and his eventual departure for Paris paralleled the life Joyce had earlier on."
Abstract This paper uses examples from JamesJoyce's "The Boarding House" and "Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" to argue that the poet rejected the idea of meaning produced by structures and instead pointed the way towards an infinite number of interpretations rooted in subjectivity. The writer explains the focus on meaning through empiricism that was prevalent in Joyce's time, and how Joyce, on the other hand, through his writing establishes that while the self indeed only marks the intersection of various social tensions, it exists as the ultimate and mutable source of meaning. The paper concludes that if Joyce is correct and there is no truth but the subjective, then the self is the ultimate guarantor of meaning and art the tool by which it is uncovered.
From the Paper "Meaning and a sense of self are central to the human existence in order to place the self in context with the environment. According to Ferdinand de Saussure, we are trapped through language as integral parts of our environment or social system, within which we contextualize our selves. It follows that the structure of language produces reality, and timeless cultural structures create the individual, illusory sense of self; a self that remains stagnant because it cannot escape its place within its environment. Both the self and the possibility of change are therefore illusions, because meaning only stems from structures. This is the very idea at the heart of structuralism and similarly modernism which dominated Western thought during Joyce's time."
This paper discusses the writing of JamesJoyce as illustrated by the short story, "The Dead", and the novel, "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man".
Abstract This paper explains that entrapment and escape are common themes uncovered in JamesJoyce's literature. By utilizing society as a symbol of entrapment for his characters and through moments of realization, Joyce's characters often experience an epiphany that allows them to escape their paralysis. The author points out that the setting in "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man", essential to understanding the character 's entrapment, is the beach where Stephen's epiphany takes place, revealing a stark contrast to the life he has known. The paper illustrates the powerful language that Joyce uses to bring an element of understanding to his stories, allowing the reader to visualize his characters.
From the Paper "In contrast, Stephen's experiences at Clongowes can be identified as a series of defeats. For instance, he had "tried to build a breakwater of order and elegance against the sordid tide of life without him and to dam up, by rules of conduct and active interest and new filial relations, the powerful recurrence of the tides within him" (98). Stephen is feeling bewildered by life at this point. As he attempts to make something of his life, his efforts seem fruitless. His scholastic endeavors seem to torment him more than anything does. In addition, he struggles with writing poetry. He is scorned for thinking Byron is a better poet than Tennyson. All of these scenes make Stephen feel as though he does not fit into his society."
Tags: entrapement, escape, themes, epiphany, language
Abstract This paper explains that, while it is tempting to read JamesJoyce's "Dubliners" as a simple narrative description of 'a chapter of the moral history' of Ireland, with Dublin serving as 'the centre of paralysis', Joyce was actually concerned with suggesting a means of moving out of this paralysis. More specifically, the paper stresses that 'The Dead', the fifteenth and final story of "Dubliners", should be seen not as a mere description of paralysis but as a means of suggesting a way forward or out of this condition. The author relates that the word 'escape' appears in no less than four of the stories in this collection; therefore, this word itself can be seen to hold the key to how Joyce's "Dubliners" is to be read. The paper presents a chapter by chapter description and analysis of each short story.
From the Paper "At this early stage in Dubliners, however, these concepts are merely signified. The reader is, in other words, merely offered what Saussure would term 'signs' or words. In fact, that the significance of these key words is announced typographically, in italics, very quickly draws attention to the fact that it is words that we are dealing with here. Accordingly, when the reader is presented with these words, it is not the concepts underlying them that trouble the narrator of 'The Sisters,' but the words themselves and their fundamental sounds. The narrator has, he says, taken to saying the word 'paralysis' 'softly' to himself 'every night ... .
Abstract This paper looks at the theme of sexual progression in the short story, "Araby" written by Irish author JamesJoyce. The author describes Joyce's style as a manipulation of sexuality that has an innocent and almost Catholic-like element. The paper traces the theme of sexual progression in the unnamed protagonist of the book who does not ever engage in the carnal act of sex but rather swims amongst the emotions surrounding sexual desire and attraction. The author gives quotes from the books and includes personal notes on the symbolism of the language used. The author also praises the poetic style that Joyce engaged, allowing the reader inside the emotional and sexual struggle of an emerging adolescence with sexual imagery tinged with innocence and Catholicism.
From the Paper "One of my favourite elements of Joyce's Araby is how poetic some of the language is. Even though Joyce progresses this story through the description of the young man's sexual feelings he does not necessarily make the reader think about the physicality of sex. Joyce manages to portray the innocence of youth without undermining the young man's emotions. The most poetic line in Araby is also one that depicts the increasingly strong longing the young man has for the girl."
Tags: book review, literature, adolescence, puberty
Abstract This paper discusses love in JamesJoyce's "Dubliners", through the analysis of selected stories: "Araby", "Eveline", "A Painful Case" and "The Dead". It looks at how his love stories reflect his attitude towards Dublin (harsh, not softened or sweetened) and for that reason they rarely have "happily ever after" type endings. The paper moves chronologically through the book and shows how the book also proceeds chronologically in terms of the age of characters (Joyce's idea) who steadily grow older story by story, to represent the different facets of a Dubliner's life.
From the Paper ""Araby" is one of Joyce's stories of childhood, of childhood love. Even the setting is so hopelessly idealistic: "The space of sky above us was the color of ever-changing violet and towards it the lamps of the street lifted their feeble lanterns. The cold air stung us and we played till our bodies glowed" (24). This boy, who has fallen in love with his friend Mangan's sister, is completely desperate for her: He follows her in the shadows as though she were a ?summons to [his] foolish blood,? his "heart leaped" at the very sight of her on the doorstep, his "body was like a harp and her words and gestures were like fingers running upon the wires" (25). When they finally talk to one another, she tells him she would like to go to the bazaar, but can?t."
Abstract This paper examines the notion that, while a literary work will continue to thrive for a long time, the figure of the author will vanish. To this extent, the paper analyzes a quote by Italo Calvino that expresses this idea. The paper relates "The Death of the Author" by Roland Barthes to a discussion on JamesJoyce's "Ulysses," explaining how Joyce questions the authority of the author in "Ulysses," his cyclical vision of literature, his use of inter-textuality and varying styles, and his aim to damage the 'tyranny of the author'.
From the Paper "Ulysses is renowned for its extensive use of intertextuality, through which Joyce could be said to undermine his own position as author. Ulysses propounds a cyclical, modernist view of history and of literature. The story of Homer's The Odyssey is self-consciously recuperated, its characters brought to life in twentieth century Dublin. The myth is revived, and the banal is elevated by a mythic dimension. Simultaneously, the past and the present are brought into ironic contrast, to comic effect. The past is renewed in Ulysses, but Joyce seems to doubt that anything completely 'new' can ever exist; history is a cycle, people are 'types' not individuals, and literature is a process not of creation, but of recycling. In this way, Joyce seems to doubt the author's ability to 'create', to ever be original, and it is this ability to create which is viewed as the main function of the author, and is the reason for much of society's admiration for them."
Abstract This paper discusses similarities between JamesJoyce's novel "Ulysses" and the collection of short stories, "The Dubliners," especially themes of Irish Catholicism. It also looks at the stories "Araby," "Eveline" and "Counterparts" and their thematic relationship to "Ulysses."
From the Paper "While the slim volume Dubliners is years and indeed light-years away from Ulysses in style and scope, the culture out of which Joyce drew his material is identical for both texts. Irish Catholicism from which Joyce was famously not only disconnected but also ..."
