Mapping: Dubliners
From The Waste Land Wiki
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=Conclusion= | =Conclusion= | ||
| − | Looking at all of the maps helps the reader to draw conclusions that otherwise may have gone unnoticed. First of all, all of the stories follow a linear path, none of them circle back to the place they began. This parallels the growth that each character experiences as a failure to find the love that they desire. This linear path shows that the transformation that each character goes through is irreversible | + | Looking at all of the maps helps the reader to draw conclusions that otherwise may have gone unnoticed. First of all, all of the stories follow a linear path, none of them circle back to the place where they began. This linear pathway parallels the linear growth that each character experiences as a failure to find the love that they desire. This linear path shows that the transformation that each character goes through is irreversible. The young boy in "Araby" realization that his search for love was in vain, the inability of Eveline to leave her "not so bad" life, and Maria's perpetual loneliness are all significant events that the characters must come to terms with. Also, every story begins and ends in the greater Dublin area. Though this is detailed in the story's respective narratives, the maps offer a better view of how Dublin bookends each narrative. Further, the fact that the stories all begin and end in Dublin shows an inability of the characters to leave their home despite their best efforts, with some exception for the young boy in "Araby". The closest any character gets to leaving Dublin would be Eveline until her fear of the world paralyzes her and she consequently watches her love leave without her. Maria's only escape from Dublin would be her foreshadowed death by her placing her hand in the clay when she plays the Halloween game. The significance of these patterns of movement is that they may symbolize James Joyce's own beliefs that because Ireland, at the time, was being oppressed by both Britain and the Catholic Church, Ireland was like an inescapable prison. Overall, having the ability to look at all three maps together helps to draw some in depth conclusions that may have otherwise gone unnoticed. |
| − | Going into this project I was | + | Going into this project I was uncertain of what I would find, but I think the project produced were interesting and insightful. The mapping process although challenging proved to be very rewarding. I would be interested to see all of the stories from "Dubliners" mapped in order to see if the maps supported my conclusions or revealed a different pattern that was no observed in these three maps. |
