An easy one to begin November: What's your favorite story in Dubliners and why? (Don't feel you need to wait until the end of the collection to post - write whenever you feel inspired about a particular story!) For this post, feel free to answer the question as is; in other words, it's OK to respond here on an emotional/ personal/subjective level, as I'm asking for your favorite story, rather than the "best" story. I am, however, interested in the "why." (Incidentally, if your answer is "none of them," then please refrain from posting...)
19 comments:
My favorite story in Joyce's Dubliners thus far is "Counterparts." The character of Farrington is highly developed despite the concise nature of the story. Farrington displayed frustration over the monotony of his job, temporary happiness once his alcoholic cravings had been satisfied, pride over standing up to Mr. Alleyne, and rage at his son for allowing the fire to die out. I ultimately enjoyed riding this character's roller-coaster of emotions. Although I disagree with many of Farrington's choices, such as his decisions to publicly insult his employer and to physically abuse his boy, these "black and white" actions make it easier for me to develop strong opinions of Farrington.
Then, the more of his personality that is illustrated, the more I can relate Farrington to individuals in the real world. For instance, Farrington's harsh treatment of Tom reminded me of the abusive parents in the A Child Called It series. Overall, Counterparts is my favorite story due to its very real text, deeming Farrington authentic rather than fictional.
My favorite of Joyce’s stories so far has been The Sisters. It is probably most memorable to me because it was the first one that was in the sequence. I liked how the story played out. It was one of the ones that were easier to understanding, so grasping the concept made it more enjoyable for me. I think that it was relatable when the boy was upset about old Cotter because at one point or another every teenager has suffered at the expense of an adult and tried to be “brave” about it. I thought the entire priest issue was comical because it is something that is still talked about today, so much so that it has become a stereotype. I go to church every weekend, I believe in a higher power, but at the same time I see the church as being so corrupt (talking about money at least every other weekend) that it disgusts me, and I think Joyce alluded to the dishonesty very well.
I have to disagree with Lauren. I thought that Counterparts so far was the worst story yet. I thought that After the Race was extremely boring, but this one was just downright cruel. Granted it is easier to form a negative opinion of Farrington's actions, but who doesn't know that it is bad to hit your children? Then to continue to do such even when your child is earnestly trying to pray to get out of your clutches, how horrible of a person are you to not stop. I also have to disagree with Mr. Cianflone about how he said this story was in the maturity category. I do not see any signs of maturity here. Though Farrington is married, and he has a job, but so do I, and I am definitely more mature than he is. Sneaking out of his office to get a drink is something that one would expect an addicted teenager to do. When a person matures it means they have more responsibilities, but the maturity part lies within how you go about those responsibilities, which Farrington could not handle. Not having an outlet is not an excuse to throw away money and harm another human being because you are having a pity party.
P.S. Does this count as a separate blog entry?
Honestly, I'm pretty torn as to what my favorite story is, between "The Sisters" (due to its inconspicuousness), "Counterparts" (for reasons much like Lauren's), "An Encounter", (which I'll get too) and "A Painful Case" (the reason is far too complicated to describe). They all strike me in one way or another, and it is hard to choose would. However, at the moment, I think I would have to say that my favorite out of those (and thus the entire collection) currently is "An Encounter." To me it was one of those stories that sticks in your head no matter what. The character of the old man was so deranged and perverted that he was imprinted on my memory. As I was reading the story became about him, and not about the narrator. The entire scene where the boy describes what the priest was saying about whipping gives me the chills, which in a strange way is why I like the story so much. I feel that a story must be powerful to make me feel that way as I was reading it, and out of the collection, "An Encounter" had a power over me the most.
And as a side-note, I also like the final quote of the story: "And I was penitent; for in my heart I had always despised him a little." The quote reminds me of A Separate Peace, which I love. It perfectly describes the relationship between Phineas and Gene, which is a relationship much like the one between the two boys in "An Encounter."
I wanted to post this before we got a chance to totally go over The Dead tomorrow--since that is definitely my favorite story. My interpretation may be wrong on this, but going against the ominous title I thought the story was very warm and comfortable. In the simplest sense it was a Christmas party amongst some friends who were enjoying the quiet snowy evening together. At the end, I was of course surprised by Gabriel's conversation with his wife, but I thought the usually morbid exchange was lessened by the fact that there was a sliver of hopefulness for the future. That was a fact that was absent from Joyce's other stories and it drove me crazy--that a character's story would have all these opportunities to get better and once the chances had past there was no hope and the story ended. Dismal. I thought that the conversation could easily have turned violent (through Gabriel's jealousy for Michael and his anger that his wife had kept it a secret) but it remained a simple matter of a man who, despite all he thought to be true, learned a lesson from his wife, and I believe that after hearing of a man who had died for her, , Gabriel will try to improve his relationship with his wife but also improve his life in general. That's a happy note that didn't happen in the other Dubliners stories.
My first comment of the month...michelle, is there any story that you did NOT like in dubliners? And oh my god. i liked "A Separate Peace" a lot too (i dont know how to italicize here, so i know it shouldn't be in quotes).
Anyways, my favorite story in Dubliners, by far, is "A Little Cloud." Alone, I felt that A Little Cloud perfected the realization that your dreasm will never come true. That moment where Little Chandler is trying to read the poem while his child cries is a perfect ending to that story. The characters also seem extremely complex in this story. We do not understand the envy that Little Chandler sees in Gallaher, and we don't understand why Chandler does not write for himself. There is not true protagonist in this story because we cannot side with anyone. Gallaher escaped the somewhat paralytic clutches of Dublin, yet he is still pulled back and used as a toy in Europe because of this heritage. Chandler has such big dreams that he realizes will never come true, but he wants to meet the dreams not for himself, but for the recognition. And we feel bad that his wife runs out and leaves him with the baby right when he arrives home. It is clear he is trapped in a loveless marriage. The best stories are the ones where we are torn as to who to side with.
I know what Lauren's going to say, that Counterparts was better. But another reason why I liked A Little Cloud so much was because it made Counterparts. Without this story, Counterparts would not have been as good, because it just intensifies EVERY scenario that occurs, all the way to the father and child at the end. Another reason why I like it so much is its relation to the later Clay. We see the effort Joyce put in to making this a collection. The song is missing the line about life, just as the story and the collection is missing life. And the words clay draw attention to the lack therof of that word anywhere in the story Clay. This text is the most realistic because of its undertones, as opposed to its intensifications (is that a word?).
My favorite story would have to be "The Dead". This story has an incredible take on life and death. Gabriel is able to have this epiphanic revelation of love and life. He started out as such a shallow man and only wished to celebrate and have a good time. However, as the story progresses, you are able to see this change within Gabriel. His sarcastic/ironic remarks are no longer spoken and they do not express his feelings. His wife is in a hypnotized-like state and at first Gabriel can only respond with rude remarks. He is eventually able to just let go,this becomes a pivitol part of the story. I think that this story truly depicts a man's change in thoughts and ideals. It is incredible how Gabriel, who has only been a selfish shallow man, now feels a type of pain for another man and for his wife. It was as if while reading the story you could feel the change of emotion while experiencing the growth of Gabriel,to me that's what makes a great story. If I am able to feel a character's emotion or change then the author has certainly done his job. I feel as if this story has deffinatly sold me on Joyce.
Out of all of Joyce's stories in Dubliners I have to say that, my favorite is "Two Gallants." I went to Ireland this summer, and spent a few days in Dublin. I recognize the places that Corley and Lenehan were walking. I went and visited Trinity College, which Lenehan mentions passing by. I loved reading “Two Gallants” and actually being able to visualize the streets that they were going down, it really helped me to understand what was going on. I could actually picture Lenehan walking past city hall. I think if I hadn’t been there I would have been kind of confused about where they were going.
After reading all of the stories in Dubliners, my favorite would have to be "Araby". I felt so sad for the little boy at the end of the story when he realizes that everything he has been looking forward to is just a big let down: the bazaar, the girl, etc. His "love" for his friend's sister is really just childish but he does not realize it until its too late. The boy's life is completely consumed with this girl he barely knows. His epiphany at the end of the story is really relatable. Everyone at least once in their life has held a person or object on a very high pedestal, only to be dissapointed in the end. Overall, "Araby" is my favorite story because I felt that I could connect to it very easily.
My favorite story in Dubliners was "The Dead". In every other story, the characters always stop pursuing what they desire abruptly and without explanation. This story however, offers a more specific explanation for Gabriel's actions. We see a real change in Gabriel throughout the story. In his speech at the dinner, he commented on the division between the past and the present, the dead and the living. By the end of the story though, after hearing how the memory of Micheal Furey lives on, he realizes that the division he spoke of was wrong. "The Dead" taught more of a lesson while the other stories were just that--stories.
I liked "A Mother" a lot, but I think it was for all the wrong reasons! As I was reading it, I was always taking Mes Kearney's side. I thought that it was only fair that she get the money that she was owed and i could feel the frustration that she was experiencing. All of the other characters were ignoring and deriding her; I thought that was the great injustice of this story. Then she decided to leave without any payment and without letting her daughter sing; all of her planning and anticipation was all for nothing, that was the paralysis of this story.
Then when I reread the story I realized that Mrs. Kearney was quite a selfish ***** because she was using he daughter for money. The audience clearly loved her daughter's patriotic performance, but Mrs. Kearney, instead of waiting to get paid later, decided to forsake her daughter's talent and the glorification of Ireland for a trifling amount of money. She and Mrs. Mooney from "the Boarding House" are both "Madams" with their daughters, caring only for themselves, while disquising ther selfishness as concern for thier child's best interest.
My favorite story in Dubliners would have to be "Counterparts", just like Lauren's. My reason for this is that Farrington seems to be the most believable out of all of the main characters in the other stories. Either they are just too passive (Eveline in "Eveline", Duffy in "A Painful Case"), too over-dramatized (Mrs. Kearney in "A Mother"), or are just not believable enough for me. Farrington, on the other hand, seems so much more believable with his flaws of having a short temper, or his alcoholism. It may also be that I have known people that have had similar flaws to Farrington in my past, and as a result I can simply understand him better and see him as a more realistic character than many of the other characters throughout Dubliners. Also, the scene at the end of the story, where he is beating his kid, also makes the entire story more fixed in reality, because I see that scene as being the most emotionally charged scene in the entire collection, both on the page (Farrington's frustration and his son's despair and pain) and off the page (the varied, highly polarized, personal responses to this scene).
My favorite story was definatly "The Dead" because its whole idea of death-in-life and life-in-death is something that is still applicable to modern day and societies around the world. But, honestly "The Dead" could be a story on its own, so of the other ones I think my favorite was "A Painful Case." The story was kind of ironic how Mr. Duffy is the paralyzed character and Mrs. Sinico is offering to give him life but he refuses. By being such a dead person, he induces the death of the only person that ever cared about him. Mr. Duffy cannot break from the orderliness he has and then her death shocks him and almost wakes him from his paralysis when in the end he sees the two lovers and is jealous that "he had been outcast from life's feast"(118). He no longer has the desire to remain a recluse. She brought him alive when she was dead. I like the sort of carpe diem philosophy Joyce is pushing, where all his characters do not attack life to the fullest and remain dead until they are shocked out of their slumbers and realize it is too late for their happiness. Mr. Duffy could have had love and companionship, but he choose to remain a dormant man in a cyclical life.
even though i really dont like any of the stories in Dubliners i would have to say that my favorite is the dead. I basically just love the plot, how this man is trying to hard to make his wife love him, and then he finds out that she really wants to be with this boy who died for her a long time before. its a sad story but i love how Gabriel looks inside himself and realizes that he would never be able to give his own life for his wife, so he could never love her as much as the other man did. i do feel bad for Gabriel because he is trying to get her attention and her love, and this news comes as a shock to him. out of all the stories i felt like this was the most complete and the easiest for me to understand.
Well I see that I'm the first person here to choose "Eveline" as my favorite story in Joyce's Dubliners(although "The Dead" was a close second). I did think that the story was more simplistic than some of the other ones, however, that was what I appreciated the most. There was basically one character, unlike "The Dead" or “Ivy Day in the Committee Room” or “Counterparts”. Eveline, who so longed to escape the monotonous life she had lived since she was born, is conflicted by her duty to stay at home. The story line was easy to understand, but at the same time, had symbolic meaning underneath it. When Eveline was faced with leaving her home, she was paralyzed and unable to leave with Frank. The paralysis she expereinces is a theme throughout all of the stories as well.
I also just enjoyed the story, because in certain ways, I could relate to it more than the others. In addition, it was genuinely sad. After reading, I wished that Eveline had taken the opportunity to escape her past. She should be able to move on, and create a new life for herself instead of dealing with the old.
My favorite story in Joyce's Dubliners is "An Encounter." I like how Joyce applies symbolism and repetition to reveal the realization that a new adventure in life is not always the best thing. This proves that the narrator suffers from a personal paralysis.
Also, i like how the old man with the green eyes seems to be a metaphor for Ireland. The old man seems to have a nature much like how Joyce viewed his country and country men.
i love fluff (not just the kind you eat w/ peanut butter, example i'm watching Tristan & Isold @ the moment) so i'd say my favorite story is Eveline. i'm not saying is doen't have substance but it is a nice easy read. I also liked it because it is a good classic story of the girl who leads a hard life and falls in love with a man who is going to take her away from it all but then she doesn't go and it's so ironic i love it!
My favorite story would have to be "The Dead" because I really liked Garbiel's character. When we were first introduced to him, I reminded me a bit of The Great Gatsby...I guess because of Gabriel's arrogance and pride. I thought it reflected some of the main themes embodying the Great Gatsby (I like really liked that novel.). Joyce fooled me in the sense that I was mistaken in understanding the character of Gabriel. As the story unfolded and progressed, I realized he was not at all the person who I thought he was (especially after his epiphanic moment). He turned out to be a character that you can almost pity.
Hey,so yea it is like 11:03 and i'm posting my second blog...but you know what. That is okay, because it'll be a meaningful blog.
For my research paper I'm not exactly focusing on one story in particular to explain my thesis. So naturally, after rereading and researching about multiple stories in Dubliners I realized that I really like the two gallants.I love how the story is so ambiguous. I initially felt stupid reading it because I didn't know what to make of the coin in the end...whether he was a male prostitute...whether she was a prostitute...whether he used her...you know? But now after rereading it I realized that's kind of what the beauty of the story is. The paralysis is evident the whole time as they walk and walk and walk and talk and then when you get to the alleged climax, you don't even get it. I guess some people would be turned off by that aspect of it, but it just kind of interests me. I like being able to determine what happens on my own. Its like being a sleuth...he lets you pick apart the whole thing until you come up with your own conclusion and its satisfying.
I really don't care that that story is a prime example of paralysis, I had a fun time reading about them wandering around Dublin.
Allie, thats crazy-cool that you've been there. =)
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