James Joyces Portrayal of Dublin as a Paralyzed Country Term Paper

James Joyces Portrayal of Dublin as a Paralyzed Country - Term Paper Example As Parrinder also states, â€Å"Dubliners betrays fewer illusions about Ireland and Joyce’s manner is rigorously detached and impartial. He is a naturalist to the extent that he allows the paralysis of the Dublin society to betray itself rather than analyzing it or denouncing it openly† (43-44). Moreover Joyce himself claims that, â€Å"My intention was to write a chapter of the moral history of my country and I chose Dublin for the scene because that city seemed to me the centre of paralysis† (Leonard 320). Such a projection of paralysis is also observed in the stories, The Sisters, Eveline and The Dead. 1.1. The Sisters The story is depicted in first person narration illustrating a tale of a Priest’s death named Father Flynn. The narrator was a friend of the priest who depicts the tale of the incidents that take place after his death and struggles to collect clues about the sins of the Father for which the Father had wanted forgiveness. 1.2. Eveline Evel ine reiterates a story of a young woman. Since she was born she had lived an unhappy and a tough life. She had always desired for an escape from her life in Dublin although when fate presents her with that golden chance she does not have the courage to avail it because she is unable to ignore her other responsibilities and leave her past for a new future. 1.3. The Dead The Dead is one of the master pieces of James Joyce because in this story the author has incorporated the concentrate of all the themes that Joyce is observed to be developing in his other short stories. It has a variety of characters from various age groups who have gathered for a musicale. However the basic focus of the story is on Gabriel and the manner in which he deals with the people around him. 2. Projection of Paralysis In the story The Sisters it is stated, â€Å"I softly said the word paralysis†¦it sounded to me like the name of some maleficent and sinful being† (2) this comment can be interprete d as Joyce’s style of establishing his dislike for the condition of his countrymen in the first short story of his collection. The major thematic concerns that reflect this paralysis include religion and criticism of the Church, isolation, decay and escapism. C. A. Malcolm and D. Malcolm state that, â€Å"through his representative characters and carefully crafted environment, Joyce illuminates the forces that determine, but in such a way that we can see those forces as imprisoning, binding, paralyzing† (166). 2.1. Religion Religion is a recurring theme in most of Joyce’s short stories as he condemns the stifling strictures of catholic believes and hence he is observed to be criticizing and questioning the holy sacrament of the Catholic Church. However the characters symbolize the paralytic state of his countrymen who never questioned the actions of Church and wasted away their lives according to the stifling and confining bounds set by the Catholic Church. The manner in which the character of the priest is depicted in the story and the hint of his sins reiterates that although church is holy institution yet even the pious people commit sins although no one would ever voice out such an opinion. As the narrator says that he saw the priest in his dream as mentioned in the tex