Extended Essay Does James Joyce use his characters' mental paralysis to negatively portray failed Irish nationalism and the Irish people's inability to achieve independence in the late 19th century? Word count Abstract: James Joyce’s Dubliners consists of a series of short stories offering naturalistic depictions of the hostile realities of Irish life in Dublin during the late 19th century. Joyce is said to have written Dubliners in order to depict the challenges many Irish individuals faced while living under British rule, and to further criticize the oppression of the British regime [insert reference]. Furthermore, Joyce aims to emphasize the Irish nationalists’ failure in achieving independence [insert reference]. During the time of the 19th century, the Irish were struggling to revive both their culture and language, prompting the development of several nationalist movements. The country underwent a period of stagnation where Joyce believed its society, people, and culture froze into a state of paralysis, or significant inaction. His collection of short stories aims to reflect this idea and is a critical analysis of lower and middle-class Irish life, featuring Dublin as the geographical, emotional, and psychological center1. Throughout this time, Ireland became one of the poorest countries in Europe, allowing for the central motif of paralysis to be present throughout each story. By dividing the collection into four sections - childhood, adolescence, maturity, and public life - Joyce heavily implements external themes of paralysis, death, and corruption2, with paralysis being the most prevalent. Throughout the course of the collection, many characters experienced [insert adjective here to describe type of desires] desires, faced struggles, and relented their actions. These repetitive actions display the characters’ consistent inability to 1 https://digilib.uinsby.ac.id/69/5/Bab%204.pdf 2 https://www.jstor.org/stable/25476081 control their lives and remedy their hostile situations despite their epiphanies. The characters eventually return to their initial states, mourning their lost opportunities. This regular theme allows Joyce to use his characters’ closeness to achievement but ultimate failure in order to depict their uncontrolled states and therefore criticize the Irish people’s failures in achieving independence. Table of Contents Introduction -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Extended Essay ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------o “Eveline:” Mental Paralysis and Irish Stagnation --------------------------------------o “A Mother:” Kathleen’s Paralysis and Failed Irish Nationalism ---------------------o “Clay:” Maria’s Prolonged Paralysis -----------------------------------------------------o “A Little Cloud:” o “The Dead:” Conclusion --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Works Cited -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Introduction: While the country of Ireland was under English rule in the 19th century, the state was experiencing turmoil; its culture and language were in great danger. Under the inhibiting British rule, the Irish had limited representation and lived in fear of losing their cultural identity, leading Irish nationalists to seek independence and challenge British colonization and the corruption of the Catholic Church. Irish nationalist Charles Stewart Parnell, a politician, created nationalist protests and movements in an attempt at preserving the Irish culture and language, however these attempts were futile, leading Ireland into a state of despair, tragedy, and paralysis as described by James Joyce [insert reference]. In Dubliners, Joyce incorporates fifteen stories with tragic protagonists in order to depict Ireland’s state of paralysis – as defined by inactivity, passiveness, and mental submission of the characters. The characters’ paralysis is represented through their epiphanies, or life-changing realizations, and their failure to react to them to better their situations. Joyce’s characters and their states of paralysis are representative of Ireland’s failed nationalism, and subtly critique the Irish people’s inability to fight against British tyranny and the Catholic Church. Through the use of comparative-historical analysis and identifying parallels between Dubliners and Ireland’s attempt at gaining freedom, this discussion investigates the characters’ tragic discoveries in specific short stories and how Joyce’s use of the theme of mental paralysis criticizes the Irish people’s failed nationalism. “Eveline:” Mental Paralysis and Irish Stagnation Falling under Joyce’s section of “Adolescence,” the short story Eveline discusses paralysis through the lens of patriarchy and societal oppression. The story revolves around Eveline, a young Victorian woman who recently experienced her mother’s death, forcing her to adopt the role of the household matriarch. Unhappy with her stagnant new lifestyle, Eveline expresses interest in aspiring for a better life, and hopes to marry her loved one, Frank, and move away to Buenos Aires. The city’s name, translating to “good air,” is symbolic of hope, optimism, and rebirth, emphasizing the positivity of the change. The intentional choice of this city serves as a stark contrast from Dublin, where the city appears to be degenerating; Eveline’s reports of inhaling “the odor of the dusty cretonne” (29) suggests that although she is disturbed by continuing in the footsteps of her late mother, it seems as if she is doomed to repeat her “commonplace sacrifices closing in final craziness” (33). As a result, Eveline is met with the strength and courage to attempt “to explore another life with Frank,” leading to independence from the oppression of her society, and a chance for liberation that serves as an analogy to Ireland’s freedom (31). However, during the crucial moment of Eveline’s ascension onto the ship to Buenos Aires, she hesitates; Frank leaves without her. Eveline’s character is back to her initial state of longing, and her character’s paralytic tendencies are emphasized, and is further portrayed as a dormant prisoner to her patriarchal society. Eveline’s apparent passivity and uninspiring self negatively portray Ireland’s passive will to gain independence from the British. In the late 19th century, the Irish were not allowed to enter the House of Lords and “had very limited power in politics” (Xinwei Yang and Yu Sun, 213). In an article, “Introduction: The Significance of the Prison in Irish Nationalist Culture,” Liam Leonard discusses Ireland’s struggle for independence, representation, and the abuse the Irish nationalists endured from the Catholic Church and British forces who opposed their independence (Leonard). The Irish nationalists' desire for liberation stemmed from the growing fear that their language and culture were being stripped by the English, but the Irish people’s uncertainty of their ability to defeat the British along with their political division made them weak. From this, it is evident that there exist parallels between the story of Eveline and the narrative surrounding the Irish; both involve the attempt at societal advancement but inhibiting factors lead to resulting failure. Furthermore, Eveline’s repetition of her mother’s life represents her struggle with identity loss and impersonalization surrounding her lifestyle. Her fractured identity results in her failed attempt at escaping her immobile lifestyle, preventing her from achieving true freedom. In order to gain her liberation and a true sense of womanhood, Eveline must separate herself from the constraints linked with her mother’s death, even defying the command of her father who “found out the affair and had forbidden her to have anything to say to [Frank]” (32). As Eveline is unable to honor her emotions towards Frank, it is apparent that she lacks a foundation on which to construct her true self. Eveline’s capacity to adopt the “specialization” of her character is defined by the socially constructed gender role that she preserves despite her obvious resentment. Similarly, Irish Nationalists lacked the foundation to gain their independence because of the long-standing British and Catholic influences, resulting in a fractured cultural identity alike Eveline’s personal identity. An example of a failed attempt at gaining Irish freedom exists in a discussion of deportation. During the British regime, many Irish nationalists were threatened by deportation and imprisonment (Leonard). These political threats intimidated the Irish, weakening their cause of independence and consequently coercing Irish nationalists to remain stagnant. People chose the safety of their immobilized state rather than risking their future. Similarly, Eveline chooses her predictable and insulating role as a domestic woman instead of risking her life and moving abroad. Finally, it is apparent that Eveline’s plight is similar to her broader Irish culture; her identity and will of freedom were fragmented by years of living under a monotonous life in Dublin, as is left helpless under the dehumanizing impacts of her mental paralysis, unable to even mourn the loss of her beloved Frank or her lost opportunity to escape her restrictive life. Instead, she mourns the loss of her own self. [insert example 34]. Paralyzed by fear, she chooses status quo over freedom, denying herself a better future. In a futile attempt at consolation, Eveline resorts to prayer and allows divine intervention to control her. However, the church within Dubliners is corrupt, as shown by the priest Father Flynn’s acts of simony and public loss of faith in another Joyce’s short story “The Sisters” [ (1) insert reference]. Ironically, it is only after her prayer that she feels the power of her uncertainty: “Her distress awoke nausea in her body, and she kept moving her lips in a silent fervent prayer” (34). Eveline’s impetuous obedience to religious belief and its ability to instantly cure her are the results of a cultural indoctrination and only accentuates her inability to act on her own accord. “A Mother:” Kathleen’s Paralysis and Failed Irish Nationalism Despite how Joyce portrays the authoritative character Mrs. Kearney as a powerful and influential woman challenging Victorian stereotypes, her daughter, Kathleen, remains passive. In her attempt to secure a discussed payment for her daughter’s performances, Mrs. Kearney, an ambitious and overly determined mother, faces difficulties with her unconventional behavior in a society that values highly submissive feminine behavior. Mrs. Kearney’s control over her daughter’s life initiates Kathleen’s sense of mental paralysis. Kathleen’s stagnancy is emphasized by the repetitive examples of her blindly following her mother’s every word, rather than making her own choices. In approaching the story’s climax, Mrs. Kearney’s ongoing dispute with the committee stalls the concert, with it later continuing despite Kathleen’s absence. Mrs. Kearny talks more about Kathleen than she talks abut herself, regardless of the fact that both the concert and payment concern her more than anyone. During Mrs. Kearney's arguments with Mr. Holohan, Kathleen remains silent, “looked down moving the point of her new shoe” revealing her state of mental paralysis (Joyce, 144). She is left without any control over her own events for most of the story. Similar to Eveline, Kathleen’s sense of identity is fractured by her mother’s decisions over her. Ireland’s fragmented culture in the text is criticized by Mr. Holohan’s inexperience in organizing the Eire Abu Society. Translating to “Ireland to Victory” in Irish, Joyce conveys the ineffectiveness of such groups in the Irish nationalist movement through the narrative of paralysis. Mr. Holohan organizes a music concert showcasing local musicians to celebrate Irish culture and language, but the concert itself seems to be in a state of paralysis. It is described in a negative fashion as a disorganized affair with poor attendance, an indecorous audience and mediocre musicians. Mr. Holohan’s incompetence and the poor management of Eire Abu Society reflects the ineffective Irish nationalist movements. In “The Burden of Factionalism in Nineteenth-Century Irish Nationalist Movements,” Josh Robison argues that the lack of enthusiasm was not the only impeding factor in Ireland’s failed nationalist movements. Instead, Robison argues that the poor organization – similar to Mr. Holon’s Eire Abu Society – also played a role in the movement’s failure. At the beginning of 1847, the Young Irelander Rebellion, a political organization composed of Irish nationalists, was established to reclaim the Irish government from the British [insert reference]. The rebellion transpired around the Great Irish Famine, the period of starvation that plagued Ireland, eventually leading to the Ballingarry Insurrection, during which young Irelanders attempted a failed rebellion by organizing a “handful of starving Munster peasants into armed conflict with British government officials,” ending the movement in a “disaster” (Robison, 5). The fact that Irish nationalists selected a group of weak, famished people against the powerful British army shows the ineffective decision-making behind Irish nationalist attempts at preserving Irish cultural identity. Robison states that Irish nationalism’s lack of success stems from the Irish people’s lack of passion, as well as being too politically divided to establish a strong movement against the British forces [insert reference]. Joyce indicates a possible reason for the movement’s failure in his text “Other,” discussing political class division through the example of wealthy Dubliners misusing their opportunities for societal gain (reference). Joyce represents this idea in Mrs. Kearney's apparent lack of interest in Eire Abu society and Irish culture, instead focusing on profit and wealth. Mrs. Kearney's constant demands of her unpaid money, seen by her as "asking for my rights," shows that her priorities are not within the realm of Irish cultural Irish cultural revival and nationalism (reference). It can be argued that Mrs. Kearney's interest in having her daughter play piano is not within the scope of cultural revival and is instead associated with social status and wealth. Mrs. Kearney’s obsession with money pushes her to stop her daughter from attending the music concert. She does not care that Kathleen has the potential to communicate Irish culture and language through her music. At the end of the story, Mrs. Kearney gets paid half the amount of the paycheck and she whisks her daughter away from the concert, displaying her lack of interest in her daughter’s contribution to communicating Irish culture. This scene highlights Mrs. Kearney’s indifference in reviving Irish culture altogether. Ireland’s internal paralysis can also be symbolized by Mr. Holohan’s bad leg, which acts as an irony to his failed Eire Abu Society that is also in a state of paralysis. In the first paragraph, where Mr. Holohan is being described, his “game leg” is characterized as one of his most conspicuous features, contributing to his limp. As he represents the Eire Abu Society in concert advertisements, his leg foreshadows the limping start of the performances while also implying a hobbled state for the Nationalist Movement. By the end of the story, Mrs. Kearney observes Mr. Holohan as a predator, limping around the concert. adding a negative image to Ireland’s state during the nationalist movement. “Clay:” Maria’s Prolonged Paralysis Clay's initial depiction of the life of a spinster, a woman who will not marry yet, is ironically named Maria, induces paronomasia focusing on identity loss while thematically emphasizing its sclerosis. Maria is a middle-aged woman who works as a kitchen maid for Dublin by Lamplight, a laundry committed to helping wayward women. This story shares many similar features with that of Eveline: both discuss the story of a woman who had to care for others without prioritizing themselves, depicting Ireland’s identity loss and inevitable inability to escape the oppression of the British. Like Eveline, Maria is condemned to remain an old maid until an unmarriable age while also taking care of her two brothers, Joe and Alphy. Assuming the role of a "substitute mother," she will never explore her true self and identity. She will not have her own children and is destined to continue her job at an all-female laundry. Her daily responsibilities are monotonous, as the routine and repetition of her tasks indicates a sense of paralysis for Maria. This, once again, emphasizes Ireland’s state of hopelessness and dormancy, the prolonged passivity of the Irish people, and the failure of Irish nationalist movement to make changes to Ireland's bleak fate. Joyce’s negative depiction of culture and language in Maria’s society shows how the Irish language and culture have similarly become affected by the British influences and reinforces the theme of paralysis. Maria's control over her life and her efforts at creating harmony are heavily challenged by her life in the Dublin laundry, from the disorganized kitchen to nursing and visiting the Donnelly brothers. The world is not as amiable as she wishes, and its language is not pure either. Meanwhile, she uses words such as "nice" and "genteel" as an incantation, describing people and things around her in her own empty language. Even her initial monologue is composed of only those words repeated more than five times: "Joe's wife was ever so nice with her," "What a nice evening they would have," "she thought they were very nice people," the gentleman she meets is "very nice," as well as the matron who "was such a nice person to deal with, so genteel." Maria’s language has been fragmented by her desolate life in Dublin, and even her language is dying. Similarly, Under British influences, the Irish language itself was dying, and there was a growing concern from Irish nationalists that Ireland would lose its native language. Ultimately, Maria's selection of clay in the game symbolizes her metaphorical death rather than a literal one, where she feels lost and empty living an uneventful and repetitive life. Just like the Irish’s prolonged despair under British Rule, where Irish people’s inability to make change left the Irish cultural identity dying out. The use of clay as a medium also represents her stillborn state of life until now, looming between the state of existing and dying, where her interactions with her environment remain only superficial at best. She is unable to realize the monotony behind her days, indicated by her reiteration of the song, continuing to let life control her in an endless state of paralysis, only furthered by her imposed job. The symbolism of Maria’s metaphorical death can also allude that her identity is dying. Some aspects of her will certainly die as she is lost in her cycle of life. “A Little Cloud:” Joyce again reinforces Ireland’s paralysis through Thomas Chandler’s inability to make changes to his bleak lifestyle, no matter how much he believes his life of poetry to come true. A Little Cloud explores the life of Chandler, an unhappy clerk who longs for a different life in which he can pursue his true passion: poetry. Chandler never writes himself but spends much time fantasizing about his hypothetical fame and poetic pieces. He is too shy even to read his collection of poems to his wife and is stuck repeating them to himself. He further pictures his possible career as a poet of a Celtic school, imagining being praised by critics to the point that he even mythologizes himself. With this idea of becoming a poet so heavily ingrained in his mind, he believes that the only way to achieve it is to escape Dublin as Gallagher did, leaving behind his family. While Chandler's dreams of a poetic career serve as an escape, his responsibilities at work and home constitute a greater barrier. However, like other characters, he finally encounters an epiphany, realizing that his life will never change. One day, upon viewing a picture of his wife after a night at the pub, he realizes the dull life that he has been living all this time. Even when he tries to read his poems, he is interrupted by the wailings of his child, producing a tragic discovery: he is the "prisoner" of his home. Despite acknowledging his paralysis, Chandler is still imprisoned by it, no matter how much he fantasizes about his life as a poet. In the end, he is left in the same state in which he was in from the beginning of the story: a longing for his unrealized ambitions. Chandler’s lack of agency represents the failed Irish nationalism during the late 19th century in many ways. His aspirations to write poetry are shallow, and he spends most of his time just fantasizing about his fame as a poet and being surrounded by English critics. His inability to act emphasizes Irish nationalists’ failure to make changes to Ireland’s hostile condition and the country’s paralysis. “The Dead:” "The Dead" displays the extreme power by which paralysis numbs one’s senses, preventing characters from achieving satisfaction, and blocking understanding of essential human truths, initiating a form of spiritual and developmental death. Differing from the other stories, “The Dead” explores the impacts of paralysis when one truly acknowledges it instead of ignoring it. Gabriel Conroy is a Dubliner beset with the paralysis assimilated by the city, causing his continuous self-obsession and solipsism. He is a scholar serving as a professor while also reviewing books, and lives and thinks within the bounds of his inner self. However, he feels alienated from society, questioning his identity after a series of external factors leading him to his epiphany. The progression of the narrative slowly uncovers more insight into Gabriel's character, revealing his perceptions of Dublin, and how his superficial behavior overcomes his will to revive Irish language and culture. Joyce uses Gabriel as a satire of the Irish people who were brainwashed by British ideals and influences. Gabriel's mental paralysis is caused by his denial of his Irish roots, as he points out that he doesn’t identify with the language itself and isn’t involved in the movement that seeks to restore and revive the culture. Gabrielle makes it clear in his lack of interest in Irish nationalism when he tells Miss Ivor that “Irish is not my language,” (reference). He goes to extremes in opposing Irish Nationalism, expressing his distaste by writing for a conservative newspaper, and declining to visit his homeland. Miss Ivor, on the other hand, is an ardent supporter of Irish culture, and calls Gabriel a West Briton, an Irishman who identifies with the British and a traitor to his own culture and country writing for a conservative newspaper. Joyce uses Gabriel to satirize the Irish people brainwashed by British influences and ignorant of their own culture and language. In addition, Gabriel’s identity loss is shown in his over-concern with his external factors, in which he is already partially dead, and living without actually understanding himself. He is disconnected from his surroundings, all without recognizing it. His paralysis has conditioned him to the point where his "true," determined, and delicate self has faded, replaced with one purely affected by his environment(Reference) similar to the self-fading of the Irish people who were affected by the external factors of British Influences and their cultural identity. Gabriel’s Epiphany is highlighted when he searches for Greta, and he finds her leaning across a staircase. Gretta bursts into tears, replying with how she remembered the song and how it reminded her of another person who sang it. As the conversation continues, Gabriel learns she was remembering a man she was close with, who died. Gabriel asks her: "and what did he die of?" Gretta responds, far from his expectation from famine, "I think he died for me." This shocking statement and genuine, heartbreaking admittance serves as an epiphany, awakening Gabriel to the figurative paralysis in which he has been confined, the stagnant state he has unknowingly lived. A "dead man" has just proved to have more of an impact on Gretta than Gabriel's whole living existence, realizing that "he knew that such a feeling must be love." In this stage of the epiphany, snow begins falling, linking Gabriel's paralysis with its actual manifestation. The snow acts as a metaphor for the irrationality of natural affection, a conception that he still does not know. Having the chance to connect with his wife, he recedes inwards, causing feelings of guilt, shame, and insecurity to fill him. Despite his awareness and selfassessment, Gabriel remains incapable of communicating with the outer world, unable to make changes to his empty state even after having an epiphany just like Eveline and Maria. He has realized his inability to evoke passion but cannot link that with "the solid world itself" and the "region where dwell the vast hosts of the dead" (reference). He has experienced the epiphany but his paralysis lies too great to trigger an internal change. Conclusion: Joyce does not fail to draw obvious parallels between Ireland’s hostile condition in the 20th century and his characters’ paralytic state and their inability to act and make changes to their hostile situations. Throughout many of the stories, the characters acknowledge an option to escape their lives of discontent, yet retreat. Unfortunately, the significance of these moments either sparks or intensifies the characters’ paralysis, to the point that they are unable to proceed – either literally or figuratively. Gabriel endures a severe emotional setback, only to retract from his surge of emotion, surrendering to his self-centeredness and ignorance to his Irish roots. Eveline encounters a chance to escape her mother’s momentous and dreadful fate when offered to leave with Frank, only to retreat and submit to patriarchy. As in the cases of Eveline and Maria, their entrapment in their domestic lives is what prevents them from escaping; their obligation to their set duties is too strong to avoid. Kathleen, who serves as a representation of Irish’s cultural identity and revival, ends up being whisked away by her mother, depriving her from having her own voice and acting on her own will. In addition, Joyce effectively represents hostile images of Ireland and Dublin in the late 19th and 20th century. The Irish people also confronted paralysis, in which they couldn’t escape the oppression of British rule. Besides that, Joyce describes a variety of reasons Irish nationalism failed, such as lack of interest, political division, and incompetent organization in his text. Holohan's inexperience in organizing Eire Abu Society, an establishment created to play an important role in Irish cultural revival, ridicules the failed nationalist movement composed of ineffective organizations. These stories collectively either reflect Ireland’s paralysis state and the Irish people’s inability to make changes to their hostile conditions. Through this, Joyce attempted to call attention to the dreadful hardships Ireland faced under British’s tyrannical rule and the significant setbacks that transpired during Ireland’s vital moment of rebirth. Works Cited Leonard, Liam. 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Web. 23 Oct. 2022. <https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0032885510389532>. Robison, Josh. The Burden of Factionalism in Nineteenth-Century Irish Nationalist Movements. n.p., n.d. Web. 2 Nov. 2022. < https://www.eiu.edu/historia/Historia2009Robison.pdf>. Yang, Xinwei, and Yu Sun. "Analysis of Emotional Paralysis in Dubliners in terms of Personality Structure." International Journal of Languages, Literature and Linguistics. n.p., 2017. Web. 15 July, 2022. < http://ijlll.org/vol3/135-LC1018.pdf>. Fuller, Louise. "Identity and political fragmentation in independent Ireland, 1923–83." Irish Catholic identities. Manchester University Press, 2015. Web. 7 Aug. 2022. <https://www.manchesterhive.com/view/9780719098376/9780719098376.00030.xml>.
