Eveline’s analysis

The purpose of the present text is to analyse briefly Eveline, a short story written by James Joyce. 

The first part is set in Dublin and in particular in Eveline’s bedroom. So, there is an inner setting which implies a more intimate situation. There is no doubt that, as the title suggests, the main character is Eveline, who comes into surface thanks to her body language, inner thoughts, sensations and feelings, told by a third person narrator. Therefore, it is clearly visible Joyce decided to adopt the typical Modern feature of the sheet of the point of view since all Eveline’s sensations and impressions are expressed by an external narrator who adopts Eveline’s point of view. An additional Modern feature used is the temporal distortion. Indeed, the story is told in the present through the flashbacks Eveline has, watching out of the window, which makes her think about her past experiences. For example, at the beginning she reminds when she was happier because her father treated her well and her mother was still alive. Going on with the narration, the narrator reports her inner thoughts where she makes future expectations about her life and her relationship with Frank.

In the last part of the short story the setting changes. There is an outdoor setting, in particular the station where Eveline is supposed to leave with Frank, but she feels unable to take action and decided not to move away with him. This underlines her weak personality. Indeed, she cannot take a decision or have her own opinion, she is afraid of changing the future, of the unknown and of everything new. She is always undecided, insecure, not autonomous and influenced by the people around her and her past life. She does not want to leave from her comfort zone because she needs to feel protected and is scared of what the future can reserve her.

Consequently, the intelligent reader can find a continuing shift between past and future, which makes him/her think about the concept of relativity, born with Einstein in the Modern age. It consists of considering life as a mixture of past memories and future expectations. In Eveline, life is seen as a negative experience since she seems trapped by her past life and unable to take a clear decision for her future. 

All things considered, it seems that Eveline is almost living in her past life, without behaving properly in her present life.