JAMES JOYCE – DUBLINERS

“Dubliners” is the name of the collection written by James Joyce in 1914. The collection is composed by some short stories which are all set in Dublin. One of these short stories which I’m going to analyzed is titled “Eveline”.

The short story was written by James Joyce in third person narrator. The narrator is not intrusive and omniscient because he knows everything what crossing Eveline’s mind. Besides Eveline’s point of view correspond to James Joyce one.

The text is organized in 10 sequences:

The first one is the introduction and the novelist introduces us the character of Eveline. She is sat near the window and she is looking out; she is looking to the external world. So it is Eveline who tells the reader the world outside which is filtered by Eveline’s mind because the events take place in Eveline’s house.

The second sequence covers the lines from 4 to 21 and it’s function is to tell the reader Eveline’s past: she used to play with other children in the fields. Some of them children left from Dublin or died.

This sequence presents the way the external world appear to Eveline’s eyes. The reader can have a concrete idea of the external setting thanks to the use of language appear to the senses. In addition onomatopoeic use of language makes the environment concrete: the reader can see, hear, smell and touch. The world outside is perceived as a negative place, menace. Dublin is the center of paralysis; Dubliners are not able to move, to react and they are not dynamic. Eveline is so: she is sat at the window, she does nothing, she is paralyzed. Nevertheless she knows the world outside and she is not surprise in front of it.

Few people pass and the silence seems to be broken by the footsteps which interrupt the balance. The balance is interrupted by the words “everything changes” which indicate a change of rhythm. The intelligent reader can understands that Eveline is thinking and going back to her past. This in contrast with the world outside which is changed: hard red houses building by a man from Belfast who came and bought.

Everything is changing and now it’s Eveline’s time. She looks forward to the future but at the same time she looks to the past with a nostalgic point of view and in these last sequences that is showed greatly. In fact she reminds her past thinking about her life and her routine. Her routine-like nature is underlined by Joyce with expressions like every-evening; where every means the repetitions and evening is the alliteration. The memory goes back to her child while she is adult and she has to take important decisions as well as stay or leave. But she is not able to decide because she is paralyzed like all Dubliners.

In the following two sequence which covers the lines from 22 to 72; the novelist presents Eveline’s house. It is full of objects that bind her to the past. She looks around her and she thinks to the past and the way all things change. And now was her time to change: “to go away, to leave her home”. However she is insecure to leave her house and her past but she tries to convince her that she would have found a better place. She would have a man and a new life with new people. She would not cry to leave the past. Differently in her new home she would be a deserved woman and in the meantime she is thinking to the future she reminds her past when money was never enough and the father bashed her and her brothers. But now they were gone as was her turn. Eveline’s life is intolerable but now that she has to leave she doesn’t find it a wholly undesirable.

Next sequence covers the lines from 73 to 97. Eveline reminds her first meeting with Frank and their journey. She dreams with Frank till her father banded her to have anything to say to him. In the following sequence it is evening and she has two letters in her lap: one for Harry and one for her dad.

The time is running out but she continues to sit by the window: she is paralyzed, she is unable to move. Stay sitting she hears a organ playing: immediately she reminds her promise to her mother; to keep the home together as long as she could. She shooks those thoughts immediately. She has to go and Frank is waiting for her. It is time to change.