Archetypal Examples In Araby

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Araby: The Archetypal Journey to Adulthood
James Joyce’s Araby is the archetypal tale of an early teenager and his coming of age. Through a series of feats, the protagonist learns about himself and the adult world around him. As the narrator’s journey progresses, it becomes evident that he is progressing towards maturity. Joyce uses archetypal imagery and symbolism to embody the protagonist’s journey towards adulthood. In this story, the author uses the narrator’s journey and immaculate love interest to develop the narrator’s revelation about maturing.
A transcendent love interest often initiates the archetypal journey In Araby, the mainsprings for the protagonist’s expedition stem from Mangan’s sublime sister. The protagonist’s interest in Mangan’s sister is more than a juvenile, fleeting crush. She symbolizes a profound passion and purpose for the …show more content…
At the Araby, the narrator meets a merchant who is more interested in trifling with young men than she is with a potential customer. This emulates the narrator’s conduct towards Mangan’s sister and as he realizes how conventional his passion for her is, he completely loses faith in love. Additionally, the deserted Araby is emblematic of the struggles and disappointments of adulthood and represents the mature world shutting the narrator out. When the young merchant decides against prioritizing the narrator, he realises how insignificant he and his journey are to everyone around him: “I knew my stay was useless, to make my interest in her wares seem the more real” (41). Nevertheless, the journey and the hero’s efforts led to his coming of age. Alone in the empty bazaar, the narrator realises that his quest was a vain desire for change and that his infatuation with Mangan’s sister was, too. “Vanity, anguish and anger” wash over the narrator as he comes to a conclusion about adult life

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