New Critical/Formalist Critique
Student Name
Professor Westrick
English 1102
8 October 2017
Professor Westrick
English 1102
8 October 2017
James Joyce’s short story “Araby” is centered around the theme of coming of age. The
author decides to write this story from a first person point of view. However, rather than telling
the story from a present time frame, the narrator tells the story as a flashback. The narrator is
looking back at his past and reflecting on his experience in Dublin. By utilizing this mode of
narration, Joyce is able to portray that the purpose of this story is to show the growth of the
narrator through his reflections on his previous relationships with his setting and other people.
To start off, the narrator describes the setting in which he lived in as a child from a
negative standpoint, believing that it was “an uninhabited house of two storeys [that stands] at
the blind end” (Joyce 243). This suggests that he is very uncontent with his situation at that time
and can be conveyed to the audience that he believes that it is representative of his life. The
narrator thinks that if he were to remain at this dead-end, he would never be able to make
anything of his life. Thus, “Araby” tells and reflects on the story of his failed attempt at escape
from his “blind end” environment and life that ultimately led to his coming of age (Joyce 242).
Moreover, the protagonist’s escape is prompted by his recent infatuation with Mangan’s
sister: “Every morning [he lays] on the front parlor...watching her” (Joyce 243). Thus, he begins
to develop changing attitudes towards school and his relationships with his friends. He now
deems things that used to be of importance to him as “ugly monotonous child’s play” (Joyce
244). This demonstrates that he is no longer concerned with maintaining his friendships. Rather,
he is fully consummated with Mangan’s sister and impressing her. Additionally, over time he
isolates himself from his friends and no longer perceives himself as one of them. For instance,
when he waits for his uncle’s return, he watches his friends and listens as “their cries [reach him]
weakened and indistinct” and he leans “his forehead against the cool glass” (Joyce 244). The
glass window symbolizes the disconnection of the narrator from his former friends.
Furthermore, his development is illustrated through the changes in his attitudes toward
authority figures such as his uncle and teacher. The narrator begins to act more rebellious. For
example, when he is late for the Araby because his uncle had returned home late, he disregards
everything he says and even “did not smile” (Joyce 244). Additionally, when his master criticizes
him for only answering a few questions in class, he completely disregards it. Instead, he views
school as an obstruction that stands “between [him] and [his] desire” (Joyce 245). This
emphasizes that he values his sexual desire for Mangan’s sister more than his grades and future.
The protagonist becomes more and more defiant, which demonstrates that he is beginning to
become independent of his elders, alluding again to his coming of age.
In the short story “Araby”, the author presents to his audience that the narrator is
maturing through his realization that he wants to escape his community, his obsession with
Mangan’s sister, his separation from his friends, and his spite towards adults. However, at the
end of the story, he is left with nothing as he could not obtain a gift for his crush. He also
distanced himself from all his friends and stopped trying at school. He understands that he failed
in escaping his ordinary life and views himself “as a creature driven and derided by vanity”
(Joyce 246). Through the protagonist’s reflection on his experience, the short story conveys that
although he gained experience and knowledge through his growth, it cost him a lot.
Works Cited
Joyce, James. “Araby” Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing, Compact Edition. Ed
Edgar V. Roberts and Zweig. 6 th edition New York: Pearson, 2015. 242-246 Print
author decides to write this story from a first person point of view. However, rather than telling
the story from a present time frame, the narrator tells the story as a flashback. The narrator is
looking back at his past and reflecting on his experience in Dublin. By utilizing this mode of
narration, Joyce is able to portray that the purpose of this story is to show the growth of the
narrator through his reflections on his previous relationships with his setting and other people.
To start off, the narrator describes the setting in which he lived in as a child from a
negative standpoint, believing that it was “an uninhabited house of two storeys [that stands] at
the blind end” (Joyce 243). This suggests that he is very uncontent with his situation at that time
and can be conveyed to the audience that he believes that it is representative of his life. The
narrator thinks that if he were to remain at this dead-end, he would never be able to make
anything of his life. Thus, “Araby” tells and reflects on the story of his failed attempt at escape
from his “blind end” environment and life that ultimately led to his coming of age (Joyce 242).
Moreover, the protagonist’s escape is prompted by his recent infatuation with Mangan’s
sister: “Every morning [he lays] on the front parlor...watching her” (Joyce 243). Thus, he begins
to develop changing attitudes towards school and his relationships with his friends. He now
deems things that used to be of importance to him as “ugly monotonous child’s play” (Joyce
244). This demonstrates that he is no longer concerned with maintaining his friendships. Rather,
he is fully consummated with Mangan’s sister and impressing her. Additionally, over time he
isolates himself from his friends and no longer perceives himself as one of them. For instance,
when he waits for his uncle’s return, he watches his friends and listens as “their cries [reach him]
weakened and indistinct” and he leans “his forehead against the cool glass” (Joyce 244). The
glass window symbolizes the disconnection of the narrator from his former friends.
Furthermore, his development is illustrated through the changes in his attitudes toward
authority figures such as his uncle and teacher. The narrator begins to act more rebellious. For
example, when he is late for the Araby because his uncle had returned home late, he disregards
everything he says and even “did not smile” (Joyce 244). Additionally, when his master criticizes
him for only answering a few questions in class, he completely disregards it. Instead, he views
school as an obstruction that stands “between [him] and [his] desire” (Joyce 245). This
emphasizes that he values his sexual desire for Mangan’s sister more than his grades and future.
The protagonist becomes more and more defiant, which demonstrates that he is beginning to
become independent of his elders, alluding again to his coming of age.
In the short story “Araby”, the author presents to his audience that the narrator is
maturing through his realization that he wants to escape his community, his obsession with
Mangan’s sister, his separation from his friends, and his spite towards adults. However, at the
end of the story, he is left with nothing as he could not obtain a gift for his crush. He also
distanced himself from all his friends and stopped trying at school. He understands that he failed
in escaping his ordinary life and views himself “as a creature driven and derided by vanity”
(Joyce 246). Through the protagonist’s reflection on his experience, the short story conveys that
although he gained experience and knowledge through his growth, it cost him a lot.
Works Cited
Joyce, James. “Araby” Literature: An Introduction to Reading and Writing, Compact Edition. Ed
Edgar V. Roberts and Zweig. 6 th edition New York: Pearson, 2015. 242-246 Print