ARABY James Joyce, Slides of Literature

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ARABY

James Joyce

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

v Often hailed as one of the greatest novelists of the 20th century, Irish novelist and short story writer James Joyce is noted for his experimental style and his facility with language. A highly influential writer, he popularized the stream-of- consciousness technique v Joyce was born in Dublin in 1882. Financial problems forced the Joyce family to move frequently, each time to a poorer and shabbier section of the city. Joyce thus became acquainted with many facets of Dublin society. Despite the poverty he experienced, his mind was preoccupied with the people of Dublin, and the life of the city later became the focal point of all his fiction. v In 1914, Dubliners was published, a volume of short stories based on his childhood experiences. A notable feature of the stories in the collection is what Joyce called an epiphany—an ordinary moment or situation in which an important truth about a character’s life is suddenly revealed. “Araby” is among the collection’s best-known stories.

READING SKILL: ANALYZE DESCRIPTIVE DETAILS

v Joyce uses a wealth of descriptive details, or colorful words and phrases,

to help readers understand both the narrator’s real circumstances and his

imaginary experiences. For example, a visit to the market becomes a

religious quest in the boy’s mind.

v We walked through the flaring streets, jostled by drunken

men and bargaining women, amid the curses of laborers.... I imagined

that I bore my chalice safely through a throng of foes.

SUMMARY

v The narrator, a Catholic schoolboy living in a dingy Dublin neighborhood,

thinks he is in love with his friend’s sister. One day she asks if he is going

to Araby, “a splendid bazaar.”

He tells her that if he goes he will bring her something. When the day

finally arrives, he impatiently waits for his uncle to come home to give him

some money. The uncle is late. By the time the boy arrives at the bazaar,

nearly all of the stalls are closed. One of the few remaining vendors pays

him little attention. He buys nothing. As the lights go down in the hall, he

fights back tears of anguish and anger.

TEXT QUESTIONS

v Reread lines 16–24. What descriptive details help you understand the circumstances of the narrator’s life? v The first-person point of view often allows readers to experience the immediacy of the narrator’s feelings. What details in lines 35–41 help you identify with the narrator? v Think about how the story’s first-person point of view shapes your impression of Mangan’s sister. What information about her might an omniscient, or all- knowing, narrator convey that the boy cannot? v Reread lines 81–84. In what way does the boy’s description of Araby suggest that he is a naive narrator? v What descriptive details about Mangan’s sister recur in lines 97–106? Explain what these details reveal about the narrator’s imagination and romantic longing.

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

v What is Araby? v Who suggests that the narrator go to Araby? v Describe the narrator’s emotions in the days and hours leading up to his trip to Araby. v What does Araby symbolize, or represent, to the narrator? Support your response with details from the story. v What epiphany, or sudden awareness, does the narrator experience at the end of the story? Cite evidence. v With a first-person narrator, the reader sees the story unfold through the eyes of one character. Consider how the boy views the story’s characters and events. Would a third-person-omniscient narrator—one who sees into the minds of all characters—have presented a more engaging depiction of romantic infatuation? Explain why or why not.