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I read James Joyce's short story "Eveline", after finally finding a story that didn't look familiar. It basically tells the story of a woman, Eveline, reflecting on her past and in order to see if her present choice to leave her home is a wise choice. On the second page, it's hinted that her father was abusive to her brothers, although I couldn't figure out if it was literal or metaphorical, which made the text slightly confusing. Also, that he hadn't started going after her until her mother died. Eveline eventually begins to go out with a sailor by the name of Frank, whom offers to take her along to an unknown country where Eveline believes her life will be better (she'll be treated with more respect, and not like her mother). Her father of course disapproves of this, saying "I know these sailor chaps". Eventually, it's revealed that her current choice to leave is going against her promise to her mother to keep the family together.
Also, Eveline notices that her father had lately been getting "old" and "sometimes he could be very nice". Towards the end, Eveline is in a conflicting state of terror to escape her home and unhappiness to leave that home (" Why should be unhappy? She had a right to happiness. Frank would take her in her arms, fold her in his arms. He would save her."). In a surprise ending, Eveline ends up not leaving with Frank (I’m pretty sure that's what happens, occasionally I got confused with the text, but of course, I also tend to multitask.).
I thought the omnipotent viewpoint was probably the best way to do this short story, but it would've been interesting to see this from one of the character's point of views, perhaps the brothers which are barley mentioned (it would shed more light on the past of Eveline's family from a different perspective). I thought the ending was what made the story standout, other than the slightly murky past of Eveline’s family, which added mystery and a number of possibilities for the causes of certain things: Eveline’s choice to leave but ultimately staying home, the father’s behavior, the brothers, and how Eveline’s friend eventually all died by the time she was older. The ending could’ve easily ended with a convenient or happy ending, but the fact that it didn’t made Eveline a more potent character who made a much more realistic choice (realistic choice being that second thought herself and was in conflict for a majority of the time she had made the choice).
1 Comments:
http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~wldciv/world_civ_reader/world_civ_reader_2/mckay.html
http://www.english.emory.edu/LostPoets/Dulce.html
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