compare and contrast of araby and boys and girls
In the stories "Araby" by James Joyce, and "Boys and Girls" by Alice Munro, there is a common theme of growing up. In both of these stories the characters came to a realization of who they were and what they wanted to be. They both are of the age when reality strikes and priorities take on meaning. The characters in both stories evolve through rites of passage but the way in which these revolutions occur differ with each character.These stories can be seen as different from each other in many ways. The young boy lives in a house in a suburban area without a mother or a father, but with guardians. He has a group of friends nearby he hangs out with. Though, he has no siblings. His revelation lets him realize the finer things in life, like women. He finds his friends are boring and no longer wants to play. Also, he obsesses over the young girl across the street in an unhealthy way. It almost seems as if he could grow to be a psychopath. He follows behind her on the way to school, waits for her before school, and watches her from his door. The young girl on the other hand, lives in the outskirts of town, if not pure country. She does not play with anybody but a younger brother she has. She worships her father and neglects her mo
In comparing these two stories, you will obviously notice the close ages of these two. Although, the stories never tell of an exact age, their behavior and thoughts put us at a close guess. Both kids seem lonely and in their own realm. They are both going through a time in their life where they are changing. Each character, in his or her own way, came to a realization. The boy in "Araby", found the "finer" things in life. He no longer will be a little kid playing ball in the street, like his friends. He now frowns upon them for being such "children". I think his revolution came when he went to Araby to buy a gift. He was so distraught by being late and having to wait upon somebody else that, he now wants to be his own man. He wants to be in charge of his own self, without having to wait around for permission from other people, especially when their not even his parents. The young girl in "Boys and Girls" by Munro, follows her father around and does the job of a "boy". She was learning to shoot a gun, gave the foxes water, raked the grass after her father cut it and made a canopy for the foxes with it, and anything else her father told her to do. She thought the work in the house by her mother was " endless, dreary and peculiarly depressing." Yet, "Work done out of doors, and in my father's service, was ritualistically important." Whenever her mother gave her "female" jobs to do indoors, she would " run out of the house, trying to
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 972
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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