James Joyce (Araby and Eveline)
In "Araby" and "Eveline" Joyce uses religious symbols to show the importance of the Catholic religion in both of the main characters' lives. Both of these stories take place in Dublin, Ireland, a place that is very strong in its belief in the Catholic religion. In "Araby," the imagery of the infamous "Fall" is presented to the reader within the second paragraph to indicate its importance. The themes of religious masses can be found in "Eveline." The concept of the Catholic Ash Wednesday is presented throughout both "Araby" and "Eveline." The second paragraph of "Araby" presents the idea of the Adam and Eve story known as "The Fall." "The wild garden behind the house contained a central apple tree and a few straggling bushes under one of which I found the late tenant's rusty bicycle pump." (21/14-17). In the Catholic religion, the Adam and Eve story is thought to be the time when sin became present in the world. It is the time in Catholicism when the innocent life that Adam and Eve shared in the beautiful garden, violently changed into a life of responsibility, pain, heartbreak, suffering, and most important in the Catholic religion, separation from God. This transformation can not only be seen in the story of Adam and Ev
Finally, the topic of Ash Wednesday is brought up in "Araby" and "Eveline." Ash Wednesday is one of the most important days in the Catholic religion. It is the day of repentance in the Catholic Church, as well as the first day of lent. Lent is a time where a Catholic follower is deprived from one of the most important things in jhor life. Dust is always used to represent Ash Wednesday because in the Ash Wednesday mass, the priest will put dust on the foreheads of everyone there and the Catholic priest says, "From dust you were made, and to dust you shall return." In both of the stories the word dust comes up a number of times. Joyce repeats the words that he finds to be important. Because the word dust is written so many times, it is a good assumption to believe it has some importance. In "Araby" dust is important as a symbol of Ash Wednesday because the main character has to give up something very important to him, which is buying the object of his affection a present from the bazaar. In "Eveline" Ash Wednesday and dust are very important because the two images can be associated with duty and responsibility. Eveline is faced with an important decision between living a carefree life with Frank, or living a life of responsibility and duty. The word "dust" also appears in "Eveline" indicating that the Catholic religion is important to her. She chooses to live the life of duty and responsibility, proving that her belief in the Catholic religion is indeed something she thinks is important; and also when she gives up her chance to escape to a carefree life, she gives up something else important to her, Frank. In
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1101
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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