The Dead By James Joyce Literary Analysis

“The Dead” is a short story written by James Joyce about Gabriel, a man who is facing troubles with his wife, Gretta. Gabriel stumbled upon Gretta in an intense trance, while a certain song is playing. Gabriel soon finds out that Gretta had a past lover who had died for her, and he understands that she still shows emotion for him. Gabriel feels alone and troubled for the first time in his life. This story shows his great suffering in the marriage and how it came to be. “The Dead,” written by James Joyce, is a short story that is embodied with character shifts, psychological mourning, troubled relationships, and emotional states of fragmented masculinity. James Joyce was born on February 2, 1882, in Rathgar. He is a well known twentieth century
In the beginning of the story, Joyce uses the snowfall as a component for the setting, but it will later be a romantic feature of the story. Throughout the Christmas party, Gabriel speaks about snow twice. One reference is during the party, when Gabriel goes up to a window and talks about how nice the cold snow must be outside (105). The next reference is during his speech after the dinner. After the night is over, Gabriel and Gretta go in the actual reality of the snow. The snow is very watery and impure, a total opposite of what he pictured the snowfall to be like. His thoughts of snow now seem to be glorified and unrealistic. Not only is the snow thought to be unrealistic, but he also seems to be unrealistic about Gretta herself (106). Once Gretta tells of her story, Gabriel understands the meaning of his limits emotionally, and the actual meaning of snow
The main one is called “The Lass of Aughrim.” The song is about a woman and her child trying to enter Lord Gregory’s castle. Gregory’s mother turns the woman away while he is asleep. When he awakes, he sets off to find his love and the child. This represents the harsh treatment Gabriel’s mom gives to Gretta (Henigan). “The Dead” is a story written by James Joyce, who is one of the most famous twentieth century writers. It is about Gabriel, who was once a self-centered man, but became an emotionally dead and understanding person. This happens through the marriage between him and Gretta, his wife. She told him of her dead lover and he became very understanding to everyone. This is shown through the symbolism of snowfall throughout the story. Gabriel realized it is better to live a short and fulfilled life, than a long and drawn out one with no