Kevin Nguyen
Honors Freshman English

Araby

Plot: During the beginning a young boy has a crush on Mangan's sister. For example, “When she came out on the doorstep my heart leaped. I ran to the hall, seized my books and followed her”, that is one of the examples how Joyce shows that the boy has a crush on her. Then the climax is when the boy finally talks to the girl. She can't go to Araby but he might. He tells her that if he does end up going, he'll get something for her. Towards the ending of the story the boy was planning to go the bazaar. But when his uncle comes home late the bazaar is starting to close. When the boy goes to Araby everyone is closing there shops up. A lady asks if he would like to buy something but he rejects her offer. He realizes that he'll never be with the girl that he likes.

Setting: The setting of the story is in a regular old neighborhood in Ireland. Joyce explains how the young boy would be out in the streets with his friends. Also how he would always watch Mangan's sister walk out the door and he'll follow her. Another example is “We walked through the flaring streets jostled by drunken men and bargaining women” shows how busy the streets were there. Those were a few ways how Joyce explains the setting.

Tone: During the story , it features a tone that seems depressing and gloomy. For example, “The former tenant of our house, a priest, had dies in the back drawing-room.” is an example on how Joyce described a depressing setting. But at some parts, there is a change of tone from gloominess to joyfulness. As an example, “Her image accompanied me even in places the most hostile to romance” Joyce shows how cheerful the boy gets when he watches Mangan's sister. After that the story just gets depressing again, especially when the boy gets to Araby only to find it closing. This where he realizes that the is nothing between the girl he likes. Those were a few ways how Joyce explained the tone of the story.

Irony: During the end of story, the boy experiences irony. He knew that he had to go to Araby to get something for Mangan's sister. Waiting for his uncle for such a long time had only made him to the bazaar. When he reached the place he was only there to realize that the bazaar was closing. He then gets depressed that he couldn’t get anything for Mangan's sister. That is how Joyce shows the irony.

Foreshadowing: There are many parts in James Joyce's “Araby” where it shows foreshadowing. In the beginning of the story, the young boy would always watch Mangans sister's front door. Whenever she walked out he felt cheerful and full of bliss. This foreshadows that he has a crush on her. Another example is when he says, “If I go, I will bring you something” is an example of foreshadowing. This kind of tells you that he is going to Araby so he can get the girl a gift. The last way of foreshadowing is when the boy's uncle comes home late. He had forgotten about Araby. This foreshadows that if the boy ends up going, he's going to show up late and the bazaar would start to close. Those were a few ways of foreshadowing.

Characterizing: The narrator characterizes everything in kind of a dark way. But when it comes to Mangan's sister, everything becomes very blissful. An example of a way he describes her is when he says “Her dress