Joyce, James - Eveline (7)

1. Features of the text

Genre
Short story

Theme(s)
Love, family, travel

Style
Realistic and descriptive

Narrator
External

Setting
Dublin

Characters and their interaction
-Eveline is the protagonist; she’s sweet and reflective
-Frank is the sailor who’s in love with Eveline
-Eveline's Father is a sort of antagonist; he can be both violent and tender
-Eveline's mother is dead, but still existing in Eveline’s heart and mind
-HARRY is one of Eveline’s brothers. He’s still alive, while Ernest is dead

Summary
Eveline is a young girl who’s in love with a sailor named Frank. Her mother is dead and his father is a violent man, so she wants to set sail towards Buenos Aires with her beloved Frank. Sitting in front of her window with a letter for her father and another one for her brother Harry, Eveline starts thinking about her childhood and her monotonous life in Dublin. When about to leave from the quay, Eveline is extremely unsure because she’s thinking about her mother’s will to keep the family united and also about the rare moments of tenderness of her father. What’s more, she’s afraid of the future she’s going to have with Frank. Praying, she remains on the quay, looking passively at Frank.

2. Personal Response

Relevant points:
a. Find an effective paragraph pages 33-34

b. Quote a remarkable thought, image or other in it

She stood up in a sudden impulse of terror. Escape! She must escape! Frank would save her. He would give her life, perhaps love, too. But she wanted to live. Why should she be unhappy? She had a right to happiness. Frank would take her in his arms, fold her in his arms. He would save her.

Extract (identify and give a suitable title to a meaningful, self-contained extract):
Page 34 title Farewell
“No! No! No! It was impossible. Her hands clutched the iron in frenzy. Amid the seas she sent a cry of anguish. —Eveline! Evvy! He rushed beyond the barrier and called to her to follow. He was shouted at to go on but he still called to her. She set her white face to him, passive, like a helpless animal. Her eyes gave him no sign of love or farewell or recognition.”

3. The author

Historical and/or social background to be considered for a better understanding of the text
Dubliners contains a portrait of life in the Irish capital. Joyce focuses on children and adults who skirt the middle class. In Joyce’s collection the Irish could observe and study themselves. These portraits were probably the consequence of a middle class life beginning and, of course, of the fact of living in Dublin.