Written on 2/18/2013

‎”Her name sprang to my lips at moments in strange prayers and praises which I myself did not understand. My eyes were often full of tears (I could not tell why) and at times a flood from my heart seemed to pour itself out into my bosom. I thought little of the future. I did not know whether I would ever speak to her or not or, if I spoke to her, how I could tell her of my confused adoration.” – James Joyce, “Araby”

There is a sensual quality to this passage which really connects us to the protagonist. By the time he utters these words we are connected to him; maybe it is because of the girl being teased or maybe it is because of the well defined surroundings. I like to think it is because the situation is identifiable. Everyone, at some point in time, has experienced this and the realization the boy acquires by the end of the story.

I want to draw a connection from this to an outside source but am having trouble.  I guess it can be aligned to any sort of romantic comedy when someone has to buy something for another person, falls comically short. But the realization the boy has at the end, where he has a disdain for the creature driven vanity of his situation, makes it feel like he opposes the initial feelings i quoted at the top of this. The immediate contrast in the work  makes it hard to compare.