Araby Analysis Essay

James Joyce's "Araby" is about an unnamed narrator who remembers the days of his youth and tells the story of his first love. North Richmond Street is where the narrator would grow up and develop feelings for one of his friend's sister, who is also an unnamed character in the story. The narrator explains how he would spend much of his time thinking about his crush, thinking about her in the most unlikely of times and places. One day, the narrator presses himself to talk to his lost interest, which he does, and he becomes nearly lost in the experience. Here, he offers to bring her something from the charity bazaar, Araby. The day the narrator goes to the bazaar, however, he encounters misfortune after misfortune, such as having his uncle come …show more content…
The way in which "Araby" is written and told is purely subjective and 'firsthand,' which is more effective than if the narrative had been told in an omniscient, third-person point-of-view. The narrator of a story typically knows what all the characters are thinking and feeling, but not in this story. The narrator in "Araby" has no idea how his crush feels about him, he has no idea what she is thinking or feeling – not to mention he has no real information about her either (aside from being one of his friend's sister), but most interestingly, the narrator has no idea what his family or friends (or teachers) think about his disproportionate behavior. The narrator does not seem to be concerned about anyone or anything, aside from his love interest, which is displayed when he says, "Her image accompanied me even in places the most hostile to romance." An older, wiser person would probably be more alert of such surroundings (and would not be so obsessed). So as romantic as the narrator's expressions may sound, it reflects a certain naiveté and lack of experience, which is all too characteristic in the pre-adolescent and adolescent (and even young adulthood)