First Week of Blogs

Class:

You have all done a nice job of exploring the first four stories in The Dubliners. I sympathize with your feelings that the text is difficult. It is a misleading book. We tend to think of short things as easy things, but Joyce's stories are very thick and hard to work through. It will get easier, however. The stories are all related to one another and the themes will start to stick out for you more and more. I greatly encourage you all to look up any confusing references you see in the stories. It will help you a great deal. Also, pay close attention to any reference you see to the British, alcohol, iron railings, etc. Focusing in on these things will help you build connections between the stories. Remember, Joyce does nothing by accident. Every decision he makes in the text is deliberate. The Dubliners is a book filled with symbols.

Upon reading James Joyce's first few stories this week, I was some drawn into the dark, troubled times of Ireland that he seemed to cleverly incorporate into all of his works. The slight nod to a seemingly trying time period gave it a distinctive jolt to my attention. The first story, "The Sisters," consisted of a predominant theme involving the death of a priest, with a twist of mystery. What were the intentions of this crooked priest? Nothing in Joyce's works are unintentional, I can't help but wonder the reason behind this queer character. The second story, "The Encounter", was a showcase of Ireland's dire need of change, and we as human beings, to this day, are stuck in our unwavering routines. In the third story, "Araby", the symbols used to represent "coming of age" were unique. At the end, the boy goes through a discrete, but very life-altering experience. The story was very dark, as is all of these short stories in the collection. In "Eveline", she had a gateway to freedom, and she turned it down with no excuse but unfinished business. In conclusion, each individual short story by James Joyce has a dark, twisted storyline with a clear cut point.

First impressions from James Joyce's Dubliners

As we discussed in class last Friday, James Joyce's writing style can be 'sneaky'. His stories are descriptive in an attempt to engage ones mind in with the story. Some lines seem to fit in with the story, peering as a normal way to set the scene. Others have seemed to be unnecessary bits of information, steering away from the point of the story. Regardless to what these appear to be, most of these lines in the story serve a purpose for Joyce's deep underlying message about Ireland's past. I personally find this style of writing unique and impressive. To be able to write a story that is informative and entertaining is a true challenge. Another technique of Joyce's was the use of recurring themes, the most notable one being the theme of paralysis. The priest's physical downfalls as he battles old age, the strange man the boys encounter leading a life without morals or promising future, and a priest's demise, all focus on the paralysis of individuals and Ireland. I look forward to further picking apart Joyce's writing in the upcoming stories in Dubliners.

After reading the first four stories of the Dubliners, there is no doubt that all the stories have something very unique to them. Each story seems to focus on an epiphany in which the characters are strongly affected. The first story, "The Sisters", deals with death. The young boy in "The Sisters" is struck by the death of friend Father Flynn. In the second story, "An Encounter" these two boys decide to "escape" and skip school for a day and walk through Dublin. The two boys meet an older man who talks to the boys in rather disturbing fashion. This story exhibits the fact that new experiences can end up being very disturbing. After the first two stories it is apparent that James Joyce likes to write about the dark sides of life. In the third story, "Araby" James Joyce suggests that all people look for love and new life experiences in various aspects. Araby is a bazaar to which Magan's sister wants to go. The narrator, promises Magan to bring her a gift from this bazaar. In the end of the story the boy realizes his foolish dreams. The fourth story, "Eveline" deals with the struggles of holding onto the past when looking into the future. This story, like the others stories, has a strong meaning to it.

Dubliners Blog Post 1 Jebediah Pritchard

James Joyce writes in a very certain style, with a specific articulated method. The short stories that were covered for the week share a theme. That theme, is a theme that is pervasive in Joyce's Dubliners . That overarching theme that pervades the short stories is one of death and how death is dealt with. One may rightly wonder in reading the first stories as to why I would speak of them all as absorbed in the cloth of death. Perhaps it it more of doom, and the foreboding that certain events in life, events common to us all, having in fact in them each a dark hue. In " The Sisters", a priest does in fact die, in the most literal way, it is not a unique event in the stories, however. In "An Encounter " Joyce and his mate end up meeting an old man who is rather odd, and who puts the boys somewhat ill at ease. In reading the excerpt many conclusions can be drawn and to what the exact relationship between Joyce and the old man is, the view could be taken that the old man represents a sort of undeadness, yes the man breathes, though he is antiquated, as some odd carnival show that is broken in every way, though some how still lives on, en viced in the endless ever repeating stories(as they appear to be to Joyce), this I believe portends to death as well.
One may wonder how "Araby" can be about death, or some similar construct, and it is , though a romantic death occurs. A slow, painful sorrow comes over Joyce as the events of the bazaar evening do not go according to plan, nor in fact, the real fact, the events do not go to heart. A death all to familiar .
Jebediah Pritchard

Blog Assignment

Each week, you are to write a blog of approximately 200 words that covers the assigned readings for the week. Your posts should be comprehensive and should demonstrate that you have read the text. They should not, however, be a simple critique. Pose questions about the text. Try and analyze what you liked or disliked. Talk specifically about the writer's effectiveness in telling the story. Every two weeks write a 50 word response to another person's blog along with your regular post. This assignment is worth twenty percent of your grade.