The Brilliance of James Joyce – Short Story Review!

Dubliners – The Dead!

James Joyce

The writer James Joyce should need no formal introduction from me. Born in Dublin in 1882, he became known as one of the greatest modernist writers of the twentieth century. And justifiably so!

You may be aware of the stream-of-consciousness writing style James Joyce uses as seen in Ulysses (1922), and Finnegans Wake (1939). However, I would like to turn to his earlier work, Dubliners first published in 1914.

Dubliners contains fifteen short stories with the final entry being The Dead. The Dead, at over fifteen thousand words long is arguably his best story. I found it colossal, curious and engaging. It also comprises the vital elements of excellent storytelling, these are: character, conflict and resolution. I especially liked the use of snow as character. It played a pivotal role in the story.

Gabriel Connor, the central character, is a man riddled with self-doubt and uneasiness. It is immediately apparent when at the beginning he attends the annual Christmas party thrown by his two aging aunts, Kate and Julia.

It’s a snowy evening and the moment he arrives he has an awkward exchange with the young housemaid, Lily when he implies she will soon be married off. This is her response to Gabriel as she takes his overcoat:

“The men that is now is only all palaver and what they can get out of you.”

This unfavourable response sets the whole tone and mood of the evening for Gabriel. Although he was merely trying to be polite and light-hearted, it caused offence. It can be argued, the ‘palaver’ of men Lily refers to may also include him! He then attempts to tip her which she initially refuses to accept.

As the evening unfolds Gabriel appears awkward and remains ill at ease. He is unable to wholly participate in the celebrations. What’s more, although he is the favourite nephew of his two aunts he feels more pressured by this, than assured. We also learn he has a speech to give later in the evening, which he is apprensive about.

As part of the celebrations, Gabriel is to form a part of the quadrille dance with another guest, the patriotic Miss Ivors. Whilst they are dancing she challenges Gabriel for what she sees as a lack of patriotism after he discloses to her he prefers to take his annual cycling tour in Europe. He is then referred to as a West Briton, which is a derogatory term for someone who is more English than Irish.

In The Dead, I liked the way James Joyce interweaves characterisation with descriptions. For example, Gabriel himself is described as being a stout tallish young man with a hairless face, then further description: there scintillated restlessly the polished lenses and the bright gilt rims of the glasses which screened his delicate and restless eyes. His description is appropriate and believable for an educated man who works as a teacher and a literary book reviewer. And he is certainly restless! The descriptions of the other characters are also vivid and colourful. Gabriel’s two aunts, the hosts, are described as being two small plainly dressed old women. What I found fascinating was the way these two elderly women knew how to throw such a grand party, every year. It implies they are more alive than mere age can disclose. They certainly had more verve than their nephew!  

The Christmas party is well attended, with a singer, a tenor Bartell D’Arcy lined up for later. In the meantime, the evening is busy with chatter and merrymaking. The dancing and festivities depict the celebration perfectly. I could hear the swishing and swaying of the women’s skirts against the floors. I could smell the food, which was a lavish display, and hear the clatter of cultery at the dining table. And interestingly, it is Gabriel who heads the dinner table and does the carving of the goose, a role he is pleased to do.

The story of The Dead I felt was strengthened by its use of real-life locations and landmarks. Usher’s Island is the setting for the party and is the real-life home of  James Joyce’s grand-aunts, where they lived in 1870!

The Dead is a multi-layered short story. It explores themes such as existence, mortality (obvious from the title), but it also explores and exposes the inner world and thoughts of the central character. Gabriel is a bad fit for the life he is living. He has grand ideas for a man of his social milieu. He is described as being irritated and even says to the patriotic Miss Ivors, I’m sick of my own country, sick of it! Quite a dramatic and revealing outburst. It could allude to Gabriel feeling he has outgrown Ireland. Needless to say his comment is met with disapproval from Molly Ivors.

By the time of the speech Gabriel is sufficiently nervous and feigns modesty regarding his public speaking abilities. In the speech he makes reference to the younger generation who lack the humanity and kindness of the older generation. This is ironic coming from a man who wants to escape his own country! He then moves on to pay homage to those absent faces – the dead, but urges not to become too sentimental about the past. It is the living that are important, confirmed by a toast to his aunts, who are delighted. The toast also includes a cousin, Mary Jane, who helped arrange the gathering. They are known collectively as the Three Graces.

The scene is of particular interest as it is at this point Gabriel is considering his own mortality. Life is fleeting, so occasions like the party should be enjoyed. The Dead is rich with symbolism: the party represents an affirmation of life before death. Even the snowy winter setting of The Dead is symbolic of death. Snow like death descends upon all living things.

After the speech the focus of the short story shifts from the guests to Gabriel specifically. You would be forgiven if you have overlooked Gretta, Gabriel’s wife. She does not appear much until the end. It is through the relationship with her husband that we grasp and understand the enormity of The Dead.

It’s early morning by the time Gabriel and Gretta leave the party amid a flurry of goodbyes. Together with two other guests they share a cab to the Gresham Hotel, where they are staying. It’s interesting to observe the different preoccupations between the husband and wife. Whilst Gabriel is reminiscing about their married life and becoming dreamy eyed and romantic, Gretta on the other hand, is distant and thinking about a song she had heard earlier. It is here we see how truly unaware or dead Gabriel is to his own wife’s inner world. So too can we see the silent rift within the marriage. Gabriel acknowledges the passing of the years, made busy with children, household chores and with his vocation. We see him becoming more enamoured, the closer they get to the hotel.

Gabriel anticipates a night of passion. He is eager to become physical with Gretta even as they are climbing the stairs to their room, but is hesitant. You can sense the paraylsis of his character. Paralysis is a common theme used frequently by James Joyce. Gabriel is stuck between his lustful instincts and courtesy, as he is uncertain of his wife’s response.

It soon becomes clear all is not well with her as he asks: “Gretta dear, what are you thinking about? ” If Gabriel is paralysed by etiquette, Gretta is being held captive by her past as Gabriel will discover.

She goes on to recount how the song she heard earlier, The Lass of Aughrim, reminded her of another man!Michael Furey was the young man Gretta was thinking of and who effectively died because of her. Michael Furey was a delicate suitor who came to visit the young Gretta at Nun’s Island in Galway where she was staying with her grandmother. He stood in the pouring rain throwing stones at her window. Gretta then found him wet and shivering at the end of the garden. It didn’t end well for him.

This tearful confession is powerful, yet subtly delivered. Its effect upon Gabriel is profound and revealing. It becomes clear from this admission he had never really captured his wife’s heart. Moreover, it’s apparent he himself would not risk his health for love.

This revelation forces Gabriel to see himself as he really is: a pompous, hollow, ineffective husband, a ludicrous figure! He then becomes indifferent to Gretta’s feelings and even becomes critical of her looks. He moves to the window, away from a wife who is overcome with emotion. Not for him, but an earlier sweetheart. As he looks around the room he notices Gretta’s clothes thrown over a chair. Then he observes a boot, one boot stood upright, its limp upper fallen down… To me the boot represents Gabriel himself, an upright man on the surface but who has since fallen. He has failed Gretta, his marriage empty, of a love he cannot feel, therefore cannot embrace.

This realisation leads to the close of what is a magnificent story. As touched on before, it is rich with symbolism. The Dublin setting with the snow as character, is fitting and feels real. The characters, colourful and authentic, but in the fullness of time they too will pass through life and be gone.

Michael Furey’s love and apparent death because of Gretta leads Gabriel to reflect and conclude: it is better to have lived and loved before death. Death like the snow patting on the window pane and all over Ireland, comes to us all. This sad acknowledgement can be viewed as growth through epiphany for Gabriel. It moved him to tears even as he accepted he didn’t really love Gretta. The ultimate twist being; it took a dead man to make him see this. A sad realisation before the inevitability of life’s end.

The last few sentences are poetic and brings The Dead to a beautiful close. It affirms James Joyce’s brilliance:

Yes, the newspapers were right: snow was general all over Ireland. It was falling on every part of the dark central plain, on the treeless hills, falling softly upon the Bog of Allen and farther westward, softly falling into the dark mutinous Shannon waves. It was falling, too, upon every part of the lonely churchyard on the hill where Michael Furey lay buried. It lay thickly drifted on the crooked crosses and headstones, on the spears of the little gate, on the barren thorns. His soul swooned slowly as he heard the snow falling faintly through the universe and fainting falling, like the descent of their last end, upon all the living and all the dead. *

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Thanks for stopping by!

Until next time.

Happy reading!

Sharon

*Extract from The Dead.

Image courtesy of Djuna Barnes – Public Dormain Media