Dubliners

When I first began to read this book I thought it was hard to understand, and it didn't seem very interesting. The first chapter was "The sisters." I read it carefully trying to understand everything to build a good foundation to be able to comprehend better the other chapters. But when I finally got to the second chapter, "An encounter," I realized that it had nothing to do with "The sisters." They were two completely different stories. However, the more I read the more I realized that the fifteen stories that comprise Dubliners, while different, contain many of the same themes and settings. Most of the characters in "Dubliners" belong to the middle and low Irish classes of the twentieth century. Something common among all the personages in the book is their inability to decide by themselves. The subordination to England and to the Catholic Church limits their freedom to choose how and where they want to live their lives. Most of the characters feel isolated and unworthy. In "After the Race," Jimmy feels as if he doesn't really fit in the community of the people he is living with. Irish's weaknesses and low motivation to leave the terrible situation they are in tempt them to escape from the real world through things like alcohol or dominance. In Dubliners the use of alcohol as a way of escape is very common among men. At the same time, women try to escape their situation by controlling their daughters' lives. Some examples of controlling mothers are seen in the "Boarding House" and in "Eveline." In the "Boarding House." Mrs. Mooney's (the mother) intentions are to get her daughter married to one of the clients at the boarding house regardless of her daughter's happiness. In "Eveline," the mother plays the role of an unhappy woman who forces her daughter to follow the same steps she did. The stories also have a symbolic meaning. The English dominance and the Catholic Church are sometimes exposed by symbols. For example, in "Araby," the dominance of the father over the family can be representative of the power of the English dominance and the Catholic Church over Ireland. Because of the dominance found throughout the book, the atmosphere in the novel is that of pessimism and darkness. There is a shadowy environment in most of the stories except in the last one, "the dead." The characters of "the dead" are mainly teachers. Their economical situation is better than the other characters' in the book. Christmas time and the white snow are both symbols of hope and progression. Christmas is usually associated with the birth of Jesus Christ and therefore hope. The white snow means cleanliness of the old, which would be progression. This is a novel meant to help you understand the Irish culture in the 1900's. It also will help you experience the feeling of oppression and dominance the Irish people had. Through the characters in the book you'll be able to see life from different perspectives, having always present the pressure of the twentieth century in Ireland, which is the main theme of the book.