Eveline

In the story “Eveline” by James Joyce, a young teenage girl, Eveline, has the opportunity to leave her “trapped” life and start a new journey with the man of her dreams, Frank. As Eveline sat at the window reconciling all of her memories, her thoughts of her abusive father leave her to ponder the prospect of leaving and freeing herself from her life to reside in Buenos Aires with her lover. As she reviews her decision to stay with her abusive father or embark on a new, free life, Eveline faces the guilt of leaving her father as she promised her mother to dedicate herself to maintain the home and take care of her father. In James Joyce’s “Eveline”, Eveline does not really have the option of feeling free, because she would be locked into a relationship with Frank, and not have the freedom in a “new life with frank” ( ), therefore she chooses to stay home in her not so “wholly undesirable life” (5).

As Eveline views Frank as a “rescuer” from her unhappy life and saving her from her domestic situation, she faces the uncertainty of the lack of freedom she can have in her new life. As Eveline would feel freedom with leaving with her lover Frank and living in Buenos Aires, she would face an uncomfortable uncertainty in a new country. Eveline would have to start a whole new life, and would only depend on Frank, as he would be the only one she would know. As Eveline thinks about her relationship with Frank as the author mentions, “She must escape! Frank would save her. He would give her life, perhaps love, too.” (6). As the Joyce mentions the word “perhaps”, Eveline clearly would depend on everything Frank would have to offer which would limit her freedom by leaving her father. When the boat arrives and it is time to sail of with Frank, Eveline prays to god “to show her what was her duty” (7), but in the end her duty points out that her life with Frank would be like her mother's life with her father.

The fate that is brought upon Eveline while pondering on the