The Sisters:Plot summary - A young boy is told that his tutor, Rev. James Flynn, has died and yet the boy seems to already be aware of his passing. The story shows the reaction towards his death and highlights certain religious practices that prepare the dead for heaven. There is an overtone of suspicion throughout as the Reverend's behaviour is put under scrutiny and the question of him commiting a sin is suggested.
The boy shows an obsession with language and communication through his analysis of words such as paralysis, gnomon and simony and the way in which he mentally questions the conversation of his family; for instance the repeated use of ellipsis. One may view this boy as a personfication of Joyce's own obsession with language and his attempt to provide an insight into the communication of 20th century Dublin.
The words Joyce uses appear to have been stated merely in a train of thought, but the reader can see that they have been chosen specifically for a purpose. Paralysis, gnomon and simony may be linked by the idea of prevention. While paralysis prevents the nerves from feeling and thus inhibits movement, a gnomon is the needle on a sundial that prevents light, thus creation a shadown. Simony refers to the buying and selling of pardons in order to prevent the soul going to hell. One may suggest that in all three meaning what is left is something false, not quite pure, which in the context of the reverend suggests that he too was corrupt.
The repeated use of ellipsis in conversation may provide ground for the idea of uncertainty, that those speaking have no solid opinion of a situation but rather leave empty sentences. The character of Old Cotter in nparticular epitomises this idea, repeatedly stating "I have my own theory" and "I'll tell you my opinion" and then drifting off the subject, returning to his topic of comfort "faints and worms". Joyce seems to be suggesting then that the working classes of Dublin were somewhat narrow minded in their thought with no real ability to speak of things outside of their own personal sphere. However, one could say that there is a meaning implied within the unfinished sentences, rather the truth is too being prevented from the boys understanding, ellipsis acting as censorship; "I puzzled my head to extract meaning from his unfinished sentences".
The boy describes a "freedom, as if I had been freed from something by his death", twisting the word paralysis to refer to his own state. The reverend had been his tutor and taught him the "responses" of the Mass, arguably feeding a false communication into the young boys "impressionable" mind. Through his death the boy is now free to pursue alternative perspectives and determine a voice for himself.
The phrase "poor James!" is repeated numerously, seemingly stripping him of his official title and implying a poverty of some kind; be it monetary or spiritual.
An Encounter:
Plot Summary - A group of boys seek the adventures of the Wild West; bravery, heroism and the promise of glory. They prepare to skive school, and the story details their journey through Dublin and their encounter with a strange old man.
The words used in the first story, The Sisters, seem to pave the journey of the second and shape its meaning:
Paralysis - The narrator remains rooted in the conventions of his routine life even when he seeks adventure. The monotony of the old man's anecdotes, speech and his behaviour (walking up and down repeatedly for instance) showcases such a routine. Arguably the man shows both the darker realities of the unknown and the strange elements of the familiar.
Gnomon - Time is significant in this story as it acts as the boundary of the boys adventure, a point at which they must return in order to hide their misbehaviour.
Simony - Religion too plays a great part in The Encounter but is described as something that provides social gain, "His parents went to eight'o clock mass every morning". The divide between Catholic and Protestant is also showcased by Leo being chastised for reading a magazine instead of studying, only Protestants would read it etc... and then again when two Protestant boys throw stones at the narrator and his friend in their travels through Dublin; the metaphor of the battle enhances such an image of division.
The boys seek to reach the Pigeon House, the electrical power station, something that epitomises the lust they have for excitement, the energy and spark of life they wish to feel. However, the monotonous routine of life prevents them from achieving this as time dictates their return; though they seek to break the boundaries of Dublin life they are confined by it still.
On two occassions Joyce's narrator mentions "green eyes". On the first the boy is watching the sailors on board a vessel and imagining the stories and adventures this ship has to offer. In an allusion to the heroes of Homer's The Odyssey the boy looks to see whether they too have green eyes, presumably those that mirror the drama of the sea. However, he is disappointed and finds instead green eyes, the supposed mirrors of brave and new experiences, in the old man, showing how not all adventures provide heroes but often the stranged and warped.
Araby:
Plot Summary - An un-named boy tells of life on his street, living in a house where a priest died, and in particular the infatuation he feels for "Mangan's sister". After watching her every morning without communication she finally speaks and asks whether he is going to Araby, a Dublin bazaar. He promises to go and buy her something but by the time he arrives, after being delayed by his uncle and the train, all the stalls are closed and he realises that, though it promised exoticism, it was only vanity that led him to this disappointment; this in turn makes him give up on the girl as he believes she too will only offer disappointment in the end.
Here Joyce provides an example of that which the old man in the previous story spoke of, namely boys who chase after "sweethearts". Indeed, this boy shows almost the opposite of paralysis in his infatuation as involuntary behaviour occurs, "Her name sprang to my lips at moment in strange prayers". The boy too shows a parallel with the narrator of An Encounter, showing a resentment at the tedious routine of school and "intervening days". Throughout the story, time too mocks him with its rhythmic and unchanging "ticking" and "intolerable delay". Seemingly inevitably, this narrator follows the disappointment of the previous as both see that exoticism and adventure is a vanity neither can achieve in Dublin. The English accents and flowered teapots which remain at the bazaar are a far cry from its luxurious and sensual connotations, thus leading the boy to give up all hope on both the bazaar and the girl whom, described as "brown" as those of poetical Arabia, he can only assume would also be a disappointment. It is in this way that An Encounter and Araby may be considered parallel as they suffer an incompletion in their adventure.
The idea of continuations and incompletions appears prevalent within this story; the girl for instance cannot accompany the narrator to the bazaar as she has routine commitments to attend to. While saying this she notably twists a bracelet round and round her wrist, almost implying they are chains or handcuffs to which she must adhere to. The conversation between the Englishmen and women at the bazaar too follows a repetitive and somewhat circular pattern, repeating "O" before every sentence and arguing backwards and forwards in a motion parallel to that of a clock ticking. It seems then that monotony is inevitable and the wonders of the likes of Arabia are inaccessible to Dubliners.
Eveline:
Plot Summary - Eveline is a woman attempting to make a decision as to whether to leave Dublin for Buenos Aires and make a new life for herself married to Frank, or stay as she promised her mother and look after her occasionally violent father. As she sits with two letters in her hand she recalls fond memories of her childhood but after hearing an organ, which reminds her of the life her mother had, she impulsively leaves. At the port however a flood of anxiety comes over Eveline and she remains rooted to the ground, unable to move and the ship leaves without her.
Paralysis again plays a major part in the result of this story as it seems apparent that all Dubliners are anchored, desiring adventure and a new life but at the same time fearing it, thus rendering them unable to achieve anything beyond its boundaries. Dublin is then portayed by Joyce to have its own force of gravity, retaining its people by the forces of time and ensuring they can never leave.
Eveline is the first female narrator and also the first to name themselves. Arguably Joyce used this name to make a pornographic reference to a story in which a woman has sex with her father, adding a further controversial dimension to the story without overtly stating so. This idea places her father's character on par with the perverted old man in The Encounter, showing another example of Joyce's stories overlapping; possibly highlighting a shared experience for all Dubliners or the fragment of Joyce's own experience being explored in different methods.
After the Race:
Plot Summary - This story details the character of Jimmy Doyle revelling in the luxury and influential social circles that come with wealth. After meeting Charles Ségouin at Cambridge he reaps the benefits of this friendship by being allowed to ride in one of the winning race cars that have recently driven through Dublin. The story then tells the events of the night, resulting in a disastrous card game for our protagonist and ending with him having a revelation about his behaviour, showing him to have regret for his lavish and unthinking expenditure.
Jimmy is physically taken on a journey by wealth, firstly the car ride and then being taken round the fashionable areas of the city, bumping into further acquaintences who provide further luxuries (for example the yacht). Jimmy's father encouraged this journey, arguably catalysing it by rejecting any patriotic feeling for Ireland and sending him to have an English education and financially supporting French companies. The monetary loss Jimmy experiences by losing the card game in juxtaposition with the French and Dutch victories in the car race shows how such a journey into wealth, success and high society, attempting to transcend Dublin, along with the description of poverty in which the race takes place shows how Dublin is being exploited and abandoned by the success of the "Continent"- something Jimmy himself feels through regret of his actions and the realisation that he can not rest and look differently upon things tomorrow, for "Day break" has already arrived. The card game acts as a catalyst for ephiphony and Jimmy experiences his first taste of impoverished Dublin.
Two Gallants:
Plot Summary - Corley and Lenehan are two men living on the edge of financial ruin and scraping a life for themselves. They concoct a plan in which Corley's latest romance, a "slavey", is persuaded to give them some money. While Corley meets the lady in question in order to start proceedings, Lenehan is left to his own devices and walks aimlessly around the streets of Dublin, stopping only to eat a meal of peas and ginger beer. Waiting for Corley to return he begins to doubt his loyalty and thinks he has betrayed him, running off with the money himself. However, when Corley arrives the woman runs into her place of work and returns with a single gold coin (twenty shillings/£1).
There is a definite parallel portrayed by Joyce between this story and the state of Ireland. He achieves this parallel in the following ways:
- Traditionally Ireland has been portrayed in literature as an abused woman, for instance in Seamus Heaney's Act of Union whereby the metaphor of rape is used. The action therefore of persuading a woman out of money then adheres to such an image.
- Lenehan's meal consists of the Irish colours, orange and green, something that notably lifts his spirits after his aimless wanderings but which he spends only "three halfpence" on; something that shows his poverty and the way in which he lives his life on the very edge, "walked on the verge of the path".
- When walking the men hear a man playing the harp, something traditionally symbolic of Ireland and her past; Thomas Moore popularised this in his Irish Melodies. Lenehan later mimics the harpist, tapping the rhythm while he walks through Dublin suggesting that Lenehan is in some way the same as Ireland but alternatively guilty of abusing it as it haunts him (indeed he is part of the plan to exploit the Coley's maid).
- The theme of betrayal is something prevalent within both Two Gallants and Ireland's political past:
1. Betrayal of the "slavey" for monetary gain.
2. Lenehan believes Coley has betrayed him and taken the money.
3. Coley betrays others and arguably his country by choosing not to work out of idleness and misrepresenting himself. Indeed he is described to have been told the "hard word"; that there are jobs but he doesn't wish to do them. Furthermore he betrays people's trust by being a police informer, mispronouncing his name to "Horley" (or as a pun, Whorely) and by telling his "slavey" that he works at "Pim's".
The Boarding House:
Plot Summary - Mrs Mooney set up a boarding house with her children after seperating from a drunken husband; Polly was to "entertain" the guests" and her son Jack was a physical force. Mrs Mooney is nicknamed The Madam as she runs a particularly tight ship. When Polly and one of the guests start a secret affair Mrs Mooney does nothing, to the surprise of her daughter, merely biding her time before she has deciphered what "cards" she holds. Mr Doran sees that he only has two options, to run and ruin his reputation or marry Polly.
With a nickname of The Madam and Polly's entertainment of the guests with songs such as "I'm a naughty girl" it seems that this boarding house is being run much in the same way as a brothel. Joyce's description of Mooney and her calculative monetary ways, e.g. with the locking up of the butter and sugar, shows her ability to seek a bargain; something she appears to apply to her daughter's marraige. By biding her time and describing all the "cards" she holds she is certain that she can "win" her daughter a solid match; presenting the image of a game. It is questionable whether Polly is being played as an ignorant or knowing pawn as, while she seems confused by her mother's lack of disapproval and intervention for her behaviour, when Mr Doran speaks with her mother she seems perfectly at ease, rather fixing her hair and thinking fondly of the future. Either way, it is a game that laid a trap and which caught a prey.
Marraige itself is portrayed as something to merely determine one's social position. Be it because of Mrs Mooney's disastrous marriage or not, she dwells not on the moral issue of Mr Doran's actions but rather how she can play them to her advantage. Mr Doran too seems to debate to himself the social advantages and disadvantages of marrying Polly; is marrying below his status worse that ruining his reputation. Society's views seem personified by Jack Mooney, whom as Doran meets on the stairs, showcases his disapproval in his facial expression.
The downward direction Mr Doran takes in his journey down the stairs seems symbolic of a fall whatever decision he makes.
As a place where “everyone knows everyone else’s business,” the boarding house serves as a microcosm of Dublin. Various classes mix under its roof, but relationships are gauged and watched, class lines are constantly negotiated, and social standing must override emotions like love. The inhabitants are not free to do what they choose because unstated rules of decorum govern life in the house, just as they do in the city. Such rules maintain order, but they also ensnare people in awkward situations when they have competing and secret interests. Even the seemingly innocent Polly ultimately appears complicit in Mrs. Mooney’s plot. After threatening to kill herself in despair, she suddenly appears happy and unbothered about the dilemma when she is left alone, and she knows Mr. Doran will comply with Mrs. Mooney’s wishes. In “The Boarding House,” marriage serves as a fixture of life that Dubliners cannot avoid, and the story shows that strategy and acceptance are the only means of survival. [From Sparknotes.com]
A Little Cloud:
Plot Summary - Little Chandler, named so because of his small introvert features and timidity of character, spends the day thinking of his evening meeting with old friend Gallaher, a successful journalist who moved to London 8 years ago. On his way to the pub where they are to meet, Chandler considers his social superiority to Gallaher and sees it unfair that he should not have been a successful writer. When they meet Gallaher tells tales of the promiscuous and immoral cities of London and Paris, something Chandler both dreams of and condemns. On returning home Little Chandler considers the confinement of his own life, but then feels remorse as he takes his own inability to live out on his son and wife.
Throughout the story Chandler is obsessed with the literary approval that comes with great writing and also the approval of a somewhat patronising Gallaher. However, though he dreams of the respect and fame writing brings he never actively writes anything to justify his yearning. Indeed, he states he can never even read poetry out loud out of embarressment. Little Chandler may be said then to suffer from a paralysis as he is unable to make himself live anything but a melancholy and straight-laced life in the confines of Dublin. Such paralysis seems to stem from his religious ideals and the embedded morality that lives within him preventing him from actively seeking more from life, and yet also which ensures his condemnation and ignoral of others; for instance the impoverished.
Counterparts:
Plot Summary - Farrington is a man who works as a copier for a law firm and is behind with his work. The story shows the progression in his anger and his thirst as he abandons his work for drink. After realising he will not be able to get an advance on his wages he pawns his watch so that he can meet his friends in the pub. Though his entire day revolved around drink, he is not satisfied even when at the pub, getting angry at a woman ignoring his advances, his expenditure on other people's drink and losing in an arm wrestle. All this results in him taking his anger out on his young son; seemingly a routine cycle.
Alcoholism is evident from the very first description of Farrington as "wine coloured". He seems unable to concentrate on anything, rather trailing off to think about the evening's promise of alcohol. Joyce uses ellipsis to effectively show how Farrington is unable to complete anything, rather providing empty sentences, for instance "In no case shall the said Bernard Bodley be.." which seems to leave out the whole crux of the subject. Alcohol s right described as "poison" as, though addicted and finding pleasure in the present, it leaves on anger in the pursuit of it and the aftermath. It seems his alcoholism arose because of the monotony and routine life he leads, as is evident in many of Joyce's other stories, and yet alocholism itself is a vicious cycle of addicition and anger.
The title Counterparts highlights such monotony, showing that Farrington's only purpose is to rewrite things that have already occurred - no thought required just a body with an ability to write. However there seems a twisted irony as Farrington craves his routine pub crawl, something he daydreams of all day and yet never satisfies him because of its own monotony:
- There is a roundness even of the coins he is spending, "making a little cylinder", but which has limited depth, meaning he has to find more from somewhere.
- He runs through the days events only so he can repeat them to his friends later.
- He is angered by the traditional circular motion of taking turns to get a round of drinks, feeling he is being robbed.
- When he returns home angry from a night of drinking he bullies his family, who in return bully him when he is sober, "His wife was a sharp-faced woman who bullied her husband when he was sober and was bullied by him when he was drunk". Even at the end the boy repeats "I'll say a Hail Mary for you" in between ellipsises.
At the same time Farrington seems obsessed with the extraordinary, for instance the women described in the story provide a different perspective, something removed from his cycle. There is an emphasis on the description of colour when Joyce described the lady in the pub, "peacock-blue", "bright yellow" and "large dark brown", which ensures Farrington is drawn to her. However when she walks past him, with her London accent he is angered by the sheer unobtainability of her.
Clay:
Plot Summary - Maria is a well loved employee of a Protestant-run launderette and is particularly organised and shows immaculate attention to detail. The story shows her travels to the shops and then to the house of the boy she nursed and mothered for Halloween. After realising she has left some of her wares on the tram Maria gets particularly agitated, to the point where she almost cries and has to get distracted by traditional games. In the blindfolded game Maria gets a saucer of clay, signalling early death, she then plays again and gets the bible, suggesting a life within a convent. At the end of the story Maria is asked to sing a song and unknowningly repeats the first verse.
Interestingly the character of Maria follows on from Counterparts and the boy pleading to his father by saying he'll say Hail Mary's for him. Indeed Maria seems to possess the virginal "veritable peace-making" qualities associated with the Virgin Mother, and is even Catholic herself. This is emphasised by the ladies making a toast for her and also her recieving the Prayer Book in the Halloween game.While these qualities make her someone very much loved by all around her it seems it also ensures her monotonous life, as is becoming a motif in Dubliners.
Her obsession with the minute details, for example splitting up the minutes of her day so that she knows exactly when she will need to depart and later going into a different shop because the icing on the plumcake was too thin, suggests that her life is so narrow that although she attempts to appear "neat and tidy" with her ocntrolled life there is so little to focus on that the small details become massively significant to her, i.e. her crying over forgetting the cake. By recieving the clay then in the game the metaphor of an early death may be applied to her life, as a life where one is not truly living can only be described as a form of death.
By repeating the first verse of the song again she seems subconciously to be highlighting her true desires, "I dreamt that I dwelt in marble halls...that you loved me still the same". No-one mentions her error and thus it appears Maria cannot see the repetition of her own life.
The last line "That you loved me still the same" and the beginning comment about getting the "ring" which made Maria so uncomfortable suggests that her life took such a route by not having anyone to love wholly herself. Indeed she only nursed Joe and is not his really mother and though she is loved by many it is not a romantic love.
A Painful Case:
Plot Summary - Mr Duffy is a bank cashier that leaves on the outskirts of Dublin and makes the same journey every day, eats in the same restaurants and allows himself an occasional trip to the opera or theatre. On one such trip he meets Mrs Silico and her daughter and begins to make a regular occurance of conversing with her about their mutual intellectual interests. Mrs Silico's husband is a Captain who no longer finds pleasure in his wife and thus renders her lonely; a void which Duffy fills. However, when one evening Mrs Silico is overcome with passion and raises his hand to her face Duffy breaks the relationship off as he fears it will disrupt his routine. After two years he reads about her death in a newspaper and, after at first being angry and condemning of her fall into alcoholism, he has a moment of epiphony as he sees that he killed her. Though he becomes melancholy at the thought of his "outcast" life he does nothing to change it and merely allows it to pass.
Music is all that frees Mr Duffy and yet when written it too must follow strict rules and particular notes in order to be achieved.
By living on the outskirts of the city it is Duffy himself who rejects life, not as he believes lif that has "outcast" him. Indeed, life offered him the companionship of Mrs Sinico and yet he rejected her because of the disruption she would have made to his routine lifestyle. Both life and death offer him a revelation, as Mrs Sinico's death eventually makes him see that to love brings life. However he "allows" both to go unfulfilled and returns to his own miserable existence of his own free will - as is true of many characters within Dubliners.
There is again a reference to the eyes, something that throughout the book is becoming to characterise people and how others percieve them. In this case Mrs Silico has "very dark blue" eyes, signifying water. Mr Duffy is described as "saturnine", meaning he is of the water star sign sagittarius and his melancholy may only be cured by music. What with this connection via the ever-moving force of water and their interest in the arts it becomes clear Mrs Silico is Duffy's "soul's companion". Water follows the easiest path, something Mr Duffy can adhere to, however when one path is blocked it merely finds another, completely out of the norm, arguably something that can explain Mr Duffy's fear of the love displayed before him.
Ivy Day in the Comittee Room:
Plot Summary - This story takes place in the old headquaters of the legendary Irish politician Charles Parnell, who was betrayed by his government and then died in 1891. A group of men are hired to canvass votes and support for local publican Tierney, who is running for Lord Mayor. However, because of the wet weather there is little zeal and rather the men sit awaiting payment in a darkened room and talk mainly about the past. Different characters walk in and out of the room sporadically but there remains a definite lack of activity. When discussions arise about Parnell's policies Mr Hynes recites a poem he wrote about his death and the betrayal that occurred, silencing the men and allowing them to see the inadequacy of politics now.
The death of Parnell is obviously the key theme within this story and may be used to show the lackadaisical efforts of the men and politics. The character of Old Jack is first introduced as raking "the cinders" of a dwindling fire together. As the oldest man in the room, and the most silent, it may be he then that truly remembers the work of Parnell and he that is attempting to preserve it, though his efforst seem somewhat to no avail. He takes little part in the discussion other than describing the impudence of his son, "What's the world coming to when sons speaks that way to their father?" This reference to a blood-line may be used as a metaphor for the successors of Irish politics, something emphasised by the way in which the men disregard the candidates as "shoneens" and corrupt, "You must owe the City Fathers money nowadays if you want to be made Lord Mayor". Such corruption however is something that he men too take a part in, being obsessed with their payment as opposed to the atual political zeal and enthusiasm supposed to be surrounding a campaign.
This reference to religion alongside the character of the mysterious Father Keon provides the reader with Joyce's image of religion. Indeed at first the characters can not distinguish Father Keon between a "poor clergyman or a poor actor", his "shabby" appearance possibly showing the Irish faith to too be threadbare. In order to survive Father Keon has to resort to common "business matter[s]" to "knock it out" as he doesn't belong to any particular institution and thus has to find his own way of survival.
Betrayal too is a common theme within this story, the betrayal of Charles Parnell being portrayed and emphasised in Mr Hency's poem, "slain by the coward hounds" and "treachery sundered him from the thing he loved". The character of Hynes is believed to be an informer for the other candidate, coming to betray the trust of the other men and report back to his own employer.
A Mother:
Plot Summary - Mrs Hearney is obsessed with keeping up appearances and strives for perfection in even the most menial of tasks. She marries not out of love but for safety and dictates the route her daughter Kathleen will take by dictating her education in piano, French and Irish. Her daughter then seems the personfication of the Irish cultural revival and is invited to play in a series of concerts. Her mother ensures a contract of 8 guineas is set up with the inexperienced Mr Holohan and the takes control of the concerts by giving him advice on the proceedings. However on the first night of the concert she is appalled by the low standards and decorum of the entire production, including the behaviour of the audience, and upon hearing that they will cancel the third concert to ensure a good turnout for the finale is obsessed that her daughter's contract remains unharmed (along with her reputation). Such obsession is her downfall though as in her quest to seek fulfillment of her rights AND hold herself like a lady it seems an impossible oxymoron is formed and she humilates herself with her angry unravellment.
Like so many of the characters within Dubliner Mrs Kearney's desire to better herself remains unfulfilled and actually her reputation takes a nose dive. By being unable to relinquish control of the situation she angers herself where no-one else sees a problem. It seems she too suffers a form of paralysis, she can no free herself from the hold her ultimate aspiration has over her and thus behaves in a way that jeopardises it.
This story does however raise the issue of equality and civil rights as one can see the concern she feels for her daughter's welfare and that she should be treated as a man would be. By constantly being deferred and ignored Joyce points out the lackadaisical approach of the men towards her demands, the reptition of which renders her anger unrestrained. Arguably Mrs Kearney is the personification of Ireland as an abused woman, aiding Mr Holohan only then to be belittled and ignored.
Grace:
Plot Summary - Mr Kernan, a formerly promising businessman takes a fall down the stairs in a symbolic method of showcasing his fall in morality, fatherhood and business. After being returned home by old friend Jack Power, Power notes the lower-class accents of his children and the way in which his wife speaks of his neglection of the family. Power then concots a plan with his wife and several other men to reform Kernan in the traditionally Catholic way. Though they succeed in getting Kernan to a retreat he refuses to light a candle as he doesn't believe in magic.
There is some repetition of shape in this story with "arcs" and "arches" showing the rise and fall of certain characters but also the religious significance of the alter.
The fact that on his fall Kernan bites his tongue, rendering him unable to communicate the events that led to his fall may somewhat show is inability to see his own mistakes and rectify them. Indeed it takes the pressure of his friends plotting to even get him to the retreat. Even then he rejects lighting candles, labelling them as "magic lantern business". Previously the men were reciting mottos of the Pope "Lux upon Lux" and "Light in Darkness", showing how possibly Kernan fears that his life will be exposed and an unwillingness to reform and face up to his mistakes.
The Dead: (See notes in book)
