Heralded as one of the preeminent short stories in the English language, The Dead is the final volume in Dubliners, a collection of 15 short stories by Irish novelist and poet James Joyce published in June 1914. The Dead’s complex narrative is the most renowned within the collection, and Joyce, widely recognised as one of the most influential modernist writers of the 20th century. The Dead focuses on the spiritual journey of the protagonist Gabriel Conroy who, while attending his aunts annual Christmas party, has a series of encounters with three female characters, Lily, Miss Ivors and his wife, Gretta, which drive the narrative to its culmination; a moment of painful self knowledge, a quality he had unconsciously lacked previously, referred
In the Dead there are; life and death; Gabriel and Gretta; male and female; past and present; youth and British/European and Irish. A psychoanalytical reading also reveals self-knowledge and self-delusion, and escape and entrapment as oppositional forces tormenting the protagonist. These paired opposites give meaning to and define the other, and are a code to signify the world in which Gabriel inhabits is one he is alienated from, and that alienation is the root cause of his insecurity displayed on multiple occasions throughout the text. Syntagmatically; that being a sequence of events that build the narrative and convey meaning, (Berger 1998; 16) the Dead’s structure is divided into three distinct parts, that arrival, the dinner and the departure. Gabriel is the unifying concept, who links and imbues meaning to these parts through his interactions with other characters. However, while applying psychoanalytic criticism, it can be seen that the structure is in two halves, a discourse between Gabriel’s conscious and unconscious, revealing Gabriel is vastly different from the man he perceives himself to
These repressed thoughts continue to exist, however, and attempt to exert influence in ways, which the conscious mind does not understand, including neurotic behaviour, symbolism, and language. (Berger 1998; 66/67) With Gabriel, it is evident he perceives himself to have a certain character while the reader sees through his continual exhibition of neurotic behaviour, anxiety, his desire to escape almost to a claustrophobic level, and interior monologues that he is another. Gabriel’s self-delusion signifies he has repressed many parts of his self thus creating a barrier. His unconscious neurotic behaviours point to his ongoing conflict between his consciousness and unconscious, which is paralysing and alienating him. Ultimately, it is Gabriel’s unconscious which reveals who he truly
James Joyce is praised for his distinct stylistic purpose and furthermore for his writings in the art of free direct discourse. Though at times his language may seem muddled and incoherent, Joyce adds a single fixture to his narratives that conveys unity and creates meaning in the otherwise arbitrary dialogue. Within the story “The Dead”, the final and most recognizable piece in the collection Dubliners, the symbol of snow expresses a correlation with the central character and shows the drastic transformation of such a dynamic character in Gabriel Conroy. The symbol of snow serves as the catalyst that unifies mankind through the flawed essence of human nature, and shows progression in the narrow mind of Gabriel. Snow conveys the emission of the otherwise superficial thoughts of Gabriel and furthermore allows for the realization of the imperfections encompassed by mankind. Riquelme’s deconstruction of the text allows for the understanding that the story cannot be read in any specific way, but the variance in meaning, as well as understanding depends solely upon the readers’ perspective. Following a personal deconstruction of the text, it is reasonable to agree with Riquelme’s notions, while correspondingly proposing that the symbol of snow represents the flaws, and strengths of Gabriel, as well as the other characters as it effects all equally.
According to Edgar Allan Poe’s “Single Effect Theory”, “the short story writer should deliberately subordinate everything in the storycharacters, incidents, style, and toneto [the] brining out of a single, preconceived effect” (qtd. in Reuben). In other words, all elements within a short story have to come together to create tone. One such story is the “The Dead”, an exceptional conclusion to James Joyce Dubliners (1914) that is a collection of short stories that consist of natural depictions of middle class Irish men and women in the early twentieth century. The primary focus of “The Dead” concerns not only dead people, but more specifically a dead generation and the living who behave as if they were dead already. Through artistic unity, Joyce creates a portrait of ordinary people who are more concerned with fulfilling duties rather than enjoying a Christmas party. In depicting this dead society, Joyce adheres to Poe’s “Single Effect Theory” by creating vivid imagery of people who are fettered by tedious routines and the past.
1 Joyce, James : The Dead , Norton Anthology of English Literature Vol.2, sixth edition
ScreenPrism. "ScreenPrism." Why Did "Night of the Living Dead" Spark Controversy after Its Release. Web. 19 Sept. 2017.
Zombie literature in its current form has been around since the early 1920’s, the concept of the “Zombie” itself originated in the nation of Haiti around the same time. Since it’s inception, the purpose of the zombie genre is to commentate on social issues during many periods of human history. These periods include World War II, the Vietnam War, and the Cold War. The zombie has represented several things from the nuclear bomb, to the collective fears of humanity in general, such as the fear of death and of dying. Zombies have also been represented as a physical manifestation of the flaws of humanity, such as mindless, joyless consumerism. (McGregor)
In Night of the Living Dead, the zombies were eventually eliminated. Or were they? Theorists argue that the monster’s elusiveness is due to its physical, psychological and social characteristics that cross the lines of classification. Human’s innate fear of the unknown is due to their inability to make a distinction or draw a clear conclusion. This is explained further in Jeffrey Cohen’s second thesis in “Monster Theory” that claims that; “the monster never escapes” (Cohen, 14). The zombie as a monster can never be destroyed completely and if it is, it leaves a remnant the make people feel uncertain of its destruction. Base on Cohen’s theory, the zombie’s different interpretation allows it to emerge in other forms (a faster, smarter zombie?)
As the last story of James Joyce's short story collection, The Dubliners, "The Dead" is about a young Dubliner's one day of attending his aunts' party and his emotional changes after the party ends. In the paralyzed city the young man feels the atmosphere of death everywhere. And he often has misunderstandings with people, especially women including his wife. From the main character Gabriel's experience, we can see his personal life is in a strained circumstances. This difficult situation is probably caused by his failure to deal with the relationship with the female characters. Many events happen in the story prove that he can not get a real freedom until he understands the value of woman to improve the mutual relationship.
In his work "The Dead," James Joyce utilizes his character Michael Furey, Gretta Conroy's deceased love from her youth, as an apparent symbol of how the dead have a steadfast and continuous power over the living. The dominant power which Michael maintains over the protagonist, Gabriel Conroy, is that Gabriel is faced with the intense question of whether his wife, Gretta Conroy, loves him and whether he honestly loves her. Joyce provides substantial information to persuade one to believe that Gabriel does truly love his wife. Even though it is made evident to the reader that Gabriel possesses such devotion and adoration for Gretta, Michael diverts Gabriel's confidence in his love, causing Gabriel to come to terms with his understanding that his life is not as Gabriel once thought it to be. Through this process of misleading realization, Gabriel has allowed himself to become one of the many living dead of his community in Dublin.
James Joyce began his writing career in 1914 with a series of realistic stories published in a collection called The Dubliners. These short literary pieces are a glimpse into the ‘paralysis’ that those who lived in the turn of the century Ireland and its capital experienced at various points in life (Greenblatt, 2277). Two of the selections, “Araby” and “The Dead” are examples of Joyce’s ability to tell a story with precise details while remaining a detached third person narrator. “Araby” is centered on the main character experiencing an epiphany while “The Dead” is Joyce’s experiment with trying to remain objective. One might assume Joyce had trouble with objectivity when it concerned the setting of Ireland because Dublin would prove to be his only topic. According the editors of the Norton Anthology of Literature, “No writer has ever been more soaked in Dublin, its atmosphere, its history, its topography. He devised ways of expanding his account of the Irish capital, however, so that they became microcosms of human history, geography, and experience.” (Greenblatt, 2277) In both “Araby” and “The Dead” the climax reveals an epiphany of sorts that the main characters experience and each realize his actual position in life and its ultimate permanency.
In Dubliners, James Joyce tells short stories of individuals struggling with life, in the city of Dublin. “It is a long road that has no turning” (Irish Proverb). Many individuals fight the battle and continue on the road. However, some give up and get left behind. Those who continue to fight the battle, often deal with constant struggle and suffering. A reoccurring theme, in which Joyce places strong emphasis on, is the constant struggle of fulfilling responsibilities. These responsibilities include; work, family and social expectations. Joyce writes about these themes because characters often feel trapped and yearn to escape from these responsibilities. In “The Little Cloud”, “Counterparts”, and “The Dead” characters are often trapped in unhappy living situations, often leading to a desire of escape from reality and daily responsibilities.
The novella "The Dead" by James Joyce tells the tale of early twentieth century upper class society in the Irish city of Dublin. The story tells of the characters' entrapment, and the tragic lives they lead, hiding behind the conventions of their society. Joyce uses the symbolism to draw a parallel between the natural way in which the snow covers the land and the way in which the characters use their culture unnatural to cover reality. This story comes together, not only to tell of the individual tragedy of these peoples lives, but to tell the tragic story of all of Ireland, as it's true problems become obscured in so many ways.
James Joyce emerged as a radical new narrative writer in modern times. Joyce conveyed this new writing style through his stylistic devices such as the stream of consciousness, and a complex set of mythic parallels and literary parodies. This mythic parallel is called an epiphany. “The Dead” by Joyce was written as a part of Joyce’s collection called “The Dubliners”. Joyce’s influence behind writing the short story was all around him. The growing nationalist Irish movement around Dublin, Ireland greatly influences Joyce’s inspiration for writing “The Dubliners”. Joyce attempted to create an original portrayal of Irish middle class life in and around Dublin at the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century. The historical context for Joyce’s written work was the tense times before the Irish-English civil war broke out. An examination of his writing style reveals his significance as a modern writer.
James Joyce, “The Dead” 1914 takes place during the feast of Epiphany on January 6. At the party Kate and Julia Morkan eagerly await Gabriel Conroy, their favorite nephew and his wife Gretta. Gabriel is a well educated man who is isolated throughout the party by the situations he encounters. Joyce uses situations and key points, for example, his education and encounters between characters to show how isolated he has and is becoming from the rest of society throughout the celebration. Although, Gabriel doesn 't realize his isolation between himself and the rest, it is clear to the reader that he is being alienated from society. Gabriel’s alienation is revealed and demonstrated throughout story by three main women characters. Overall, he is unable
James Joyce's short story "The Dead" deals with the meaning of life. This title is significant and enhances several aspects of the story. First of all, it reveals that the characters are unable to be emotional. They are physically living but emotionally dead. Second of all, it contributes to the main subject of the story, Gabriel's epiphany. The title contributes to these aspects of the story by adding meaning and acting as a reminder of the overall theme of the story.
Although a scene of a funeral home might come to mind when a reader first hears a short story aptly named “The Dead,” the tale actually takes place in the festive setting of a winter dance at the home of the two aunts of the main character, Gabriel Conroy. James Joyce’s short story “The Dead” has a literal title, because its main concept is death – both physical death and spiritual death.