The Short Story Dubliners by James Joyce Essay

In his book Dubliners, James Joyce included fifteen short stories, which were originally aimed to depict the reality and naturalism of the Irish middle class life in Dublin and its suburbs in the beginning of the 20th century. Not only did James manage to depict the actual life of its protagonists, but he also managed to show the variety of colours of that life, catching reader’s attention, at the same time shocking him. The stories were actually written when Irish nationalism was in full swing. These were the days when people were searching for national identity and purpose, as Ireland has been always shocked by a number of converging ideas and influences. The main idea of all the short stories is ‘enlightenment’ – Joyce wanted to push his characters to self-understanding. Also,   another trace of James Joyce’s short stories is a clear interpretation of all the periods of life of a human being – childhood, adolescence and maturity, as mostl y all the stories are narrated by children and with the continuation of the story, James interweaves elder people. Actually, Joyce is writing rather neutrally, he does not use hyperbole or emotive language, as he is first and foremost aimed at simplicity and reality of the story – he pays much attention to details to create a realistic setting. Due to such approach, a reader becomes closely connected to the narrator and the story itself, literally being soaked through with the setting, feelings and emotions. Despite the fact that the majority of the stories lack traditional dramatic resolution, they do not leave the reader unemotional or indifferent, vice versa – such style helps the reader come to his own conclusion and consider the story without the author’s intrusion. Undoubtedly, the stores do not leave the reader indifferent; they do make the reader ponder, at the same time leaving a trace of tragedy. Indeed, if we take a precise look at almost all the stories from Dubliners, we may arrive at conclusion that they depict a rather negative life. Almost all the protagonists seem to be victims in one way or another. No doubt, all the stories depicted by James are usually taken from middle-class society, which is experiencing daily problems. Their life is similar to a circle, which is moving them around. For example, in a story Eveline we see a young woman who, being complete desperate about her life in Ireland and having lost her mother, is about to leave Ireland with a sailor. She has nothing what would make her stay in Ireland – she has lost her mother and brother, she may be beaten by her father, and her sales job seems to bring more pain rather than happiness. The whole story is soaked through with sorrow, despair; everything seems to have an imprint of ‘organic grinder’, which reminds Eveline of the funerals of her mother. She made a promise to her mother to t ake after the house, but the feeling that she is about to break the promise is killing Eveline inside. The reader can see that Eveline is stuck in a tight corner, being frustrated with her present life, at the same time having no enthusiasm about her future life in a new country.   Ã‚  Even though Eveline has nothing left in Ireland, she fails to leave her motherland anyway. Eveline is a true example of a circular journey, where a protagonist decides to come back to its routes, to the origins of his life, being completely disappointment with his possible future journey. At the same time we see Eveline suffer throughout the story – she is tortured by her thoughts and her future plans, which are tightly interweaved with the reality she does not want to abandon. It is common knowledge that the life of the middle-class people in Ireland, especially in the beginning of the 1900s was far from ideal one. The whole nation was trying to find its real roots, to fight for its culture. In his stories James wants his characters to understand by trials and errors what kind of life they actually have. In Araby James is telling a story of a failed dream, of a ruined miracle and bitter maturing. The story arises in a rather poor neighbourhood, which at first sight is very gloomy and depressive. However, we came to understand that actually the gloomy and boring North Richmond Street is illuminated by the imagination of children. The narrator, a boy, is leaving with a dream to visit Araby bazaar, all his thoughts of Araby come to be like of some magic place, a place where dreams come true, and a place, which illuminates boring life. Nonetheless, we can see the boy’s disappointment, when he visits Araby – it is far from what he had been dreamin g of, and such disappointment makes him furious. This boy becomes another victim of the Dubliners stories – another disappointment in love and dreams, another fail. Undoubtedly, it is rather hard to interpret the life, which leaves much to be desired, in a favourable way. James did not want to create a fairy tale, he wanted to show the very reality, to let the reader not remain indifferent, he wanted the reader to understand the main character and get some knowledge he may need in future. Another story, the Sisters, is also a bright example of James’s intentions. A nameless boy loses his friend and mentor Father Flynn; we see all the feelings, which are overwhelming the boy, come throughout the story. The boy is haunted by the images of Father Flynn, the only dream he has is to escape to some mysterious world. Frankly speaking, the whole story is soaked through with very gloomy and dark colours, from the very first moments when we see Father Flynn sick, we realize that the story is not going to tell anything cheerful. Nevertheless, with such a start James Joyce is preparing the reader to a harsh reality, which we face later. We feel sorry for a boy who, despite having a family, seems to be left alone. Again, with no obvious ending, James lets the reader ponder over what could happen next. The whole book Dubliners is nothing but a long story of people who, willing to escape to another life, having bright dreams and being ready to some huge changes, come to where they actually started their life from. All the characters are returned to reality from their dreams or ideas of a better life. James Joyce shows its characters that Ireland is their home, and it cannot change itself, though people may change it if they want. He does not want his characters to live in an imaginary world; he wants them to become elder and stronger. James is convinced that only difficulties may make a person stronger. Each and every character faces disappointment in one way or another, we may consider it cruel, however, may be due to these trials James’s characters do change and become stronger? Reference Joyce, James. Dubliners. Delaware: Prestwick House, 2006.

Psychological Factors Of The Vietnam War - 1064 Words

The Vietnam War was a distinctive conflict that had a particularly strong psychological impact on those who fought in it. It was a complicated event that often had an unclear objective. Many of the young men who were sent into combat lacked the type of patriotism that would have been an important motivation. The confusion about their mission and the nature of their elusive enemy made the mental toll much more pronounced. When they returned home, they faced a non-accepting society that failed to welcome and support them. The Things They Carried gives a vivid image of how the nature of the war in Vietnam contributed to a more intense mental toll on Veterans. Post Traumatic Stress Disorder occurs when someone loses their personal identity as a result of distressing event in which their own life is at risk (Hochgesang 2). The two major factors that contribute to the mental toll of war are pre-war vulnerability and the severity of combat exposure. The latter has a more important impact on how soldiers react immediately following the war. Pre-war psychological factors, on the other hand, may affect the long-term persistence of PTSD (Dohrenwend 12). The amount of mental stress that soldiers experience has also been linked to how the war violates their personal beliefs and goals . People have pre-existing meaning making systems that allow them to feel a sense of purpose, and certain actions during combat may disrupt them (Stegar 3). The distress after war requires people to beginShow MoreRelatedThe Vietnam War Has Far Reaching Consequences For The United States1710 Words   |  7 PagesFailure is a hard word, and no matter how you analyze the Vietnam War, that is precisely what it was. The War was a personal failure on a national scale. From its covert commen- cements, through the bloodiest, most tenebrous days and determinately to the acrid end, this ten-year period of American history is a national disgrace. 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Information Environment free essay sample

It is also the dimension where physical platforms and the communications networks that connect them reside. This includes the means of transmission, infrastructure, technologies, groups, and populations. 2. Comparatively, the elements of this dimension are the easiest to measure, and consequently, combat power has traditionally been measured primarily in this dimension. B. The Informational Dimension. The informational dimension is where information is collected, processed, stored, disseminated, displayed, and protected. . It is the dimension where the C2 of modern military forces is communicated, and where commander’s intent is conveyed. 2. It consists of the content and flow of information. Consequently, it is the informational dimension that must be protected. C. The Cognitive Dimension. The cognitive dimension encompasses the mind of the decision maker and the target audience (TA). This is the dimension in which people think, perceive, visualize, and decide. It is the most important of the three dimensions. This dimension is also affected by a commander’s orders and other personal motivations. We will write a custom essay sample on Information Environment or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page 1. Battles and campaigns can be lost in the cognitive dimension. 2. Factors such as leadership, morale, unit cohesion, emotion, state of mind, level of training, experience, situational awareness, as well as public opinion, perceptions, media, public information, and rumors influence this dimension. Three dimensions and of the information environment and its actors It is important to know who plays important roles in the information environment. A. From JP 3-13 (pg I-1) we see that leaders, decision makers, individuals and organizations have significant roles in each dimension. B. Another, more specific list of examples includes (FM 3-13, pp. 1-2 and 1-3): 1. Foreign governments 2. U. S. governmental agencies 3. Nongovernmental organizations 4. Agencies that coordinate international efforts 5. Social and cultural elements and their leaders 6. Leaders of other services, multinational partners and adversaries 7. Individuals able to communicate with a worldwide audience 8. The news media

Should There Be Gun Control Essay Example For Students

Should There Be Gun Control Essay GUN CONTROL Gun Control can be called the acid test of liberalism. All true liberals must favor stricter gun controls. After all, doesnt the United States have the most heavily armed population on the earth? Are we not the worlds most violent people? Surely these facts must be at least casually connected. Therefore the apparently desperate need to do something about the vast quantity of firearms and firearms abuse is obvious. Guns are employed in an enormous number of crimes in this country. In other countries with stricter gun laws, gun crimes are rare. Many of the firearms involved in crime are cheap handguns, so-called Saturday Night Specials for which there is no legitimate use or need. The public is polarized on the issue of gun control, Anti-gun control activists believe that it is each and every Americans individual right to bear arms. After all, the Second Amendment to the Constitution states that: A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed. Advocates of gun control say that even with 20,000 gun control laws already in existence, the serious problems due to firearm misuse continue. Obviously, the controls that have been designed have not been sufficiently effective. Therefore the pro-gun controllers argue, we need more uniform legislation, more extensive gun controls, and effective enforcement. Various pro-gun control organizations disagree on methods of gun control needed. For example, there are individuals who would ban all handguns as well as those who take a less radical stand and who would simply increase the controls on firearms. The moderate gun control groups propose measures such as requiring an individual to successfully complete a firearms safety course before being allowed to possess a gun, or to wait for a mandatory period of time before taking possession of a gun. Today, there are approximately 20,000 different gun control laws in existence, ranging from those enacted by municipalities and states, to those enacted by the federal government. Gun control is ineffective and tougher sentencing of criminals and stricter parole policies would do far more to combat crime. Statistics show that Canada is less violent than the United States. Fewer guns are only part of the story. The inner-city slums of the United States are murderous, bombed-out-looking places. American visitors to Canadas big cities often ask where the slums are. The answer is that there really arent any slums, and the lack of violence there reflects it. Canadas more generous welfare benefits and universal health insurance have made for safer cities. The contrasts between extreme wealth and extreme poverty are fewer and less striking. Poor inner-city families do not disintegrate to the extent they do in black American ghettos. Canadian murder rates in big cities are about the same as in isolated rural areas. According to THE ECONOMIST magazine; Blacks, 12% of the United States population, account for 48% of murders, mostly when inner-city blacks kill each other. (The Economist July 10-16,1993, pg 38) Few of these guns if any are purchased from retail gun stores. Gun laws will not keep guns out of these ghettos. The founding fathers included Second Amendment to the Constitution because they were very aware of the fact that there might once again come a time when American Citizens would have to fight for their freedom. Patricia Lee of Balch Springs, Texas was running for the Texas House of Representatives in 1992 when she wrote the following about gun rights. When the British marched toward Concord in 1775, it was not to collect taxes or suppress the press; it was to institute gun control. They were not after hunting or target shooting guns; they were after military cannons (clearly assault weapons, with no sporting purpose). How did the citizens of Concord and Lexington respond to this reasonable, moderate gun control proposal? With their guns! With a battle that killed hundreds of people and began years of vicious war! Why were our ancestors so unreasonable? Because they knew that once their guns were taken, the rest of their rights would soon follow. History has proved them right time and again; the citizens of Hitlers Germany