Gabriel the emotional

"The Dead"

James Joyce

Two sisters, Julie and Kate, hold the Morkan Annual dance every year in Ireland. The dance started when their brother passed and they moved to Usher’s island and started the dance. As Julie and Kate were upstairs getting ready their caretaker Lily lets in the guest. They were especially excited when Gabriel Conroy and his wife Gretta showed up, their favorite nephew.
This story has many characters but Gabriel is the main character who has a “riot of emotions”(Ali 85) In his first emotional conversion while he is taking off his goloshes and coat he begins to question her about school when she replies “O no, sir,” “I’m done schooling this year and more.” (Joyce 298) Gabriel then asks her a “well – meant question”(Ali 83) about planning to wed soon Lily answers him back in a bitter tone, which shocks Gabriel, and he is colored. I don’t think Lily intentionally answered him that way but she was just astonished with his question as he was her answer.
In Gabriel’s next emotional encounter, he talks with Molly Ivors. He is partnered with her for a dance and during this she starts their conversation with “ I have a crow to pluck with you.” (Joyce 303) She questions him about a newspaper that he writes for. He never put his name on the paper just his initials G.C. Molly talks about how she is ashamed of him for writing for the newspaper and then says, “I didn’t think you were a West Briton.” (Joyce 303) Gabriel never lets his thoughts aloud about what Molly had said but continues to think about what she had said and that he did not consider himself a West Briton just because he wrote for the paper. Molly then takes him across the room and while she and someone were talking about his paper and she asks him to come on an excursion to the Aran Isles that she will stay a month there. In this conversation she questions him about why he doesn’t want to go and he tells her that he goes other places like France, Belgium and Germany. Molly says “ And why do you go to France and Belgium instead of visiting you own land?” (Joyce 304) They get into intense conversation and he answers her nervously when he sees that their neighbors are listening “ If it comes to that, you know, Irish is not my language.” (Joyce 304) As he becomes angry she questions him about his country and finally he replies, “ I’m sick of my own country, sick of it.” She says “Why?” “ Why?” “ Of course, you’ve no answer.” (Joyce 304)
In the last conversation Gabriel and his wife Gretta are in their hotel room when she mentions the song “The Lass of Aughrim” and after he asks her what she is thinking. Gretta is upset about this song because it brings up memories about her love of seventeen. Gabriel didn’t know this about his wife. Gabriel learns a few things about his wife and that she had loved another many years ago, this was a shock to him and kind of angered him. After hearing Gretta’s story and her falling asleep he reminisces the conversation between them and how she had loved another.
This story was interesting and Gabriel’s encounters with the many people at the Morkan dance kept me interested. In the beginning he was scared to talk to Lily and didn’t understand why she was mad, with Molly he let his anger out more and with Gretta he let some feelings be made known but still held some inside. I don’t think he should have thought Gretta had loved more she was just upset about the past.




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