Analyis of "Araby," by James Joyce

"Araby," by James Joyce is a story about a young boy's obsession with a girl. In the story the young boy falls in love with his friends older sister. When the boy first talks to the girl, she asks him if he was going to the Araby. The boy tells the girl that he might go to the Araby, and that if he did that he would get something for her. Once that boy gets to the Araby, he can not find anything for the girl. The Araby eventually closes with the boy still empty handed, and is also left with a felling of hopelessness. Joyce's story reveals how love can sometimes get people to undergo impossible missions.

In the story the main character is the young boy who out of love accepts an impossible mission. During the story tells how he watches the girls door step every morning. He also explains that once she comes out of her house, his heart leaps. This shows how deeply in love the young boy was. If the young boy was never in love with the girl, he may have not volunteered. It is the simple fact that that he loves her, which makes him go on the mission to purchase the girl something.

The central conflict of the story lies within the main character. The young boy struggles to find something at the Araby for the girl. This we find turns out to be impossible for the young boy. He ends up leaving empty handed, and not accomplishing his mission. Also, the young explains, "Gazing up into the darkness I saw myself as a creature driven and derided by vanity; and my eyes burned with anguish and anger." The boys thoughts show how once the lights come off he realizes his mission is over. This makes him angry, because he is in love with the girl. This statement also reinforces the idea, that love sometimes causes people to undergo impossible missions.

The story is written in a limited omniscience narration. The author reveals only the main characters thoughts and feelings. The author does this to show how strong the boy's feelings were for the girl. The boy explains to the audience,