Araby Case

ARABY

Dual nature:realistic and symbolic

Realistic: adolescent infatuation

Symbolic: frustrated desires: political and religious forces.

A story of:

_ first romantic love

_ blindness

_ Journey to maturity at the cost of loss of innocence.

_ incompatibility b/w dream and reality/ illusion

Historical context: 1904: under British control.

The question of independence: primary importance.

Roman Catholicism: dominated Irish culture: story filled with religious references.

Schools: run by Jesuit priest or convent run by nuns.

Araby: refers to long term political, religious and political tensions b/w the Irish and the British ( ruled Ireland until 1921)

Araby: real festival in Dublin in 1894, romanticized version of Arabia or Arab world, notion of romantic and exotic fulfilment.

protagonist: an unnamed boy: universal experience: reflection of human experience: each person life mirrored in the boy's experience

Atmosphere: permeated with religious references: dead priest, Christian school, some Freemason affair, " this night of our Lord", shrill litanies, a chalice safely through a throng of foes ( sort of consecration) the name of Mangan's sister springs to his lips " in strange prayers and praises", confused adoration ( love of the girl takes on for him sth of the nature of a mystic religious experience- romantic love-religious love: mixed up: type of community he is growing up+the boy's religious experience.

Religious references: define the boy's attitute+

Indicate why so much hope put in the journey.

Araby :utter disillusionment+despair

_ excitement, epitomy of beauty, chance to prove the purity of hope and love ( bring a gift for Mangan's sister)

_none of expectation, anything but exciting ( dreary trip)

_completely dark, about to close: trip a failure: can do nothing to prove his faithfulness.

_ illusion stripped off:pure love for her breaks down.

_disillusionment with love: extended to life in general: only childish illusions

Infatuation

Draw