Araby By: James Joyce

Araby
By: James Joyce

About the Author:

                James Augustine Aloysius Joyce( 2 February 1882 - 13 January 1941) was an Irish novelist and poet, considered to be one of the most influential writers in the modernist avant- garde of the early 20th century. Joyce is best known for Ulysses, a landmark work in which the episodes of Homer's Odyssey are parallel in an array of contrasting literary styles, perhaps most prominently the stream of consciousness technique he perfected. Other major works are the short story collection Dubliners, and the novels. A portrait of the artist as a young man and Finnegan's wake. His complete oeuvre includes three book of poetry, a play, occasional journalism, and his published letters.

Summery of this short story "Araby" :

             In this short story he nameless narrator of the story talks about life on north Richmond street. The former tenant of their apartment was a priest who died. some books have been left behind, and the young boy narrator sometimes looks at them. He is raised by his aunt and uncle. One of his playmates is a boy named mangan, and the narrator develops a crush of his friend mangan's sister. Mangan and the narrator building across the street. the narrator watches her stealthily, waiting for her to leave in the mornings so that he can follow her on part of his way to school.

              One day, the girl finally speaks to him, to ask if he will go to Araby is the name of an upcoming bazaar with an Arabian theme. She cant go, because she is going on a religious retreat that weekend. The narrator, full of romantic notions, says that he will go and find some kind of gift for her. 

               The boy can think of little but the girl, the orientalist bazaar, and the gift he will get for her. He gets permission to go, and for days he cannot concentrate. The day finally arrives, and the boy reminds his uncle that he wishes to go to the bazaar that night. His uncle will have to get home on time to give him the money for a ride to the bazaar, as well as a bit of spending money.

                    that night, his uncle is late. the boy despairs of being able to go at all, but finally his uncle comes home. his uncle has forgotten about the bazaar, and by now it is quite late. But the boy still wants to go, and he takes the small sum of money for the train and heads off.He arrives at the bazaar just as it is closing. Only a few stalls are open. he examines the goods, but they are far too, expensive for him. The lights are being shut off, and the narrator despairs: "Gazing up into the darkness i saw my self as a creature driven and derided by vanity and my eyes burned with anguish and anger" man . i found myself in a big hall girded at half its  height by a gallery. Nearly all the stalls were closed and the greater part of the hall was in darkness. I recognized a silence like that which pervaded a church after a service. i waked into the center of the bazaar timidly. A few people were gathered about the stall which were still open. Before a curtain, over which he words cafe chantant were written in colored lamps, two men were counting money on a salver. I listened to the fall of the coins.

              Remembering with difficulty why i had come, i went over to one of the stalls and examined porcelain vases and flowered tea sets. At the door of the stall a young lady was taking and laughing with two young gentleman. I remarked their English accents and listened vaguely to their conversation.

         'O, I never said such a thing'

         ' O, but you did!'

         ' O, but I didn't!'

         ' Didn't she say that?'

         'Yes , i heard her.'

         ' O, there's a ... fib!'

            Observing me, the young lady came over and asked me did I wish to buy anything. the tone of her voice was not encouraging she seemed to have spoken eastern guards at either side of the the dark entrance to  the stall and murdered.

            'No, thank you.'

The young lady changed the position of one the vases and went back to the two young men. They began to talk of the same subject. once or twise the young lady glanced at me over her shoulder. 

         I lingered before her stall, though I knew my stay was useless, to make my interest middle of the bazaar. i allowed the two pennies to fall against the sixpence in my pocket. i heard a voice call from one end of the gallery that the light was out. the uper part of the hall was now completely dark.Gazing up into the darkness i saw myself as a creature driven and derided by vanity and my eyes burned with anguish and anger.