Discussion question 2;
The significance of the water imagery is simply stating that the sea is representing the great unknown and it’s key because at the end of the story Eveline’s decision to leave is a difficult one due to the unknowns of leaving and “all the seas of the world tumbled about her heart’ which is describing her actual heart and the health issues she faces with palpitations. Just Eveline’s thought of leaving her home of Dublin is causing a rollercoaster of emotions and stress and the obvious heart palpitations. The statement of drowning is not drowning for real but the fact is she feels Frank is pressuring her into leaving, and that’s the thought of drowning. The sea also is a clear representation of freedom which she is also afraid of.
I think the main reason for Evelin not leaving has to be because of the promise she had made to her mother before her mothers death and that was that her mother asked her to “keep the home together as long as she can”. This decision to not leave is brought about from her mothers promise and even though her father is abusive she proclaims that it is her job as a women to take care of her father. Eveline is very familiar with death and discusses all the people who have died or left her behind. In conclusion Eveline is in fact not in love with Frank, she just seen him as an escape from her current life and therefore decided to not leave with Frank because of the responsibilities she claimed she had and overall her promise to her mother to never get separated.
Reference:
Joyce, James, 1882-1941. “Eveline”. Dubliners. New York, N.Y. :New American Library, 1991
Peer Response Parameters:
- Posts are at least 100 words
- Posts build upon your peers’ experiences and ideas
- Posts do not reiterate the content of a peer’s initial response
- instead, they add something new to the conversation by expressing a different perspective
In your response, you might incorporate how the author you analyzed also uses imagery and/or setting in their work
