1 Irish Womanhood in Dubliners: Joyces Stance on Women James Joyces nicely polished looking glass1, Dubliners, sought to reflect

accurately life in Dublin during the first decade of the twentieth century. It is a collection of fifteen meandering tales set in dark, small circumstances, such as houses where doorbells wheeze and hallways are bare. The work is most praised as a frank social representation or as a narrative piece of sheer literary brilliance. A further aspect of Dubliners which is appealing to consider is Joyces representation of women. Critics range in opinion from claiming that the ubiquitous oppression of women is both blatant and discounted, unmistakable and invisible at the same time2 to writing wholly persuasive feminist essays on the work. Thus, it becomes interesting to consider exactly how women are portrayed in the text and whether or not there is evidence to prove both sides of the argument. By considering two of the tales in detail and referencing only momentarily to others, I seek to uncover the exact representation of Irish womanhood in Joyces Dubliners. It seems necessary to uncover the main aspects of their depiction before questioning whether Joyces representations fall into the realm of feminism or not. Furthermore, I intend to uncover such answers using the backdrop of the social representation of Ireland. Considering the works main objective, it is fascinating to consider whether the backgrounds of these women influence their independence. In order to gain a sense of the overall work, we may consider the first and last stories of the collection The Sisters and The Dead. Both frame it successfully, the former being a model for the whole book and the latter drawing to a poetic close the novel as a whole. The Sisters begins with the narrator gazing to the outside of a window while The Dead ends with the main protagonist looking out the one in his hotel room. Also, the interrelationship between the living and the dead may be deemed the central theme of both. Joyces superb attention to detail calls us to reflect on these two stories almost as a pair. Furthermore, and more specific to this particular study, is the abundance of women in both tales, ranging in age and position. Thus, they are two ideal accounts to contemplate when considering the representation of womanhood in Dubliners.
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Cambridge Introduction to James Joyce Page 33 Suspicious Readings of Joyces Dubliners Page 218

2 The first woman to appear in The Sisters is the narrators unnamed aunt. The scene is a domestic and seemingly innocent one she is preparing a meal in the kitchen. However, as is often the case in Dubliners, the simple scene holds many unsaid connotations. The fact that she is engaged in housework is significant. She serves to frame the image of women that will be maintained in the stories that follow. Although a serious conversation ensues amongst the men, she offers no opinion and is merely present to facilitate her housework my aunt was ladling out my stirabout.3 As the plot moves forward, we encounter Nannie and Eliza Flynn, the two spinsters to whom the title of the story is attributed. They serve to further the notion of the domestic female figure. Nannie is consumed with the organisation of the wake and serves drinks to her guests at her sisters bidding.4 She offers crackers to the young narrator whose decline leaves her in an odd sate of disappointment. Both haggard women are drawn as domestically fuelled beings. Such an aspect of women may be extended throughout the novel. It links to the descriptions of the lavish feast prepared by the female characters of The Dead. Joyce has depicted a nation of women who strive through both poverty and affluence to uphold a household. Subordination of women is another notion which Joyce puts forward in his misleadingly simplistic style. They are determined in terms of their belonging to a man. In Araby, Mangans sister is not even attributed a name. Like Nannie and Eliza, she is designated by her relationship to her brother. The two sisters have spent many years taking care of Father Flynn and now, find themselves devastated at the prospect of not having a male figure to look after. His death has left them void of purpose, a fact acknowledged by the narrators aunt who comments Its when its all over that youll miss him.5 Joyces sympathy for these women is beautifully evoked in a discrete manner I noticed how clumsily her skirt was hooked at the back and how the heels of her cloth

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Dubliners Page 3 Dubliners Page 7 5 Dubliners Page 8

3 boots were trodden down all on one side.6 His quiet description of their humble background reeks of a tender compassion and a quiet and unassuming pity. This notion of the subordination of women extends easily to The Dead where the action of the occasion is instigated wholly by a male figure. We are introduced to two relatively vibrant spinster sisters Kate and Julia Morkan and may preconceive a story where these women take the lead. However, such notions are dashed with the appearance of the main protagonist of the storyGabriel Conroy. His arrival is highly anticipated by the sisters as they wondered what could be keeping Gabriel.7 He becomes a substitute paternal figure, sitting at the head of the table, carving the goose and making a speech to the guests. The short story is utterly littered with quiet references that smack of the importance of Gabriels presence, Kate Morkan asserts - Its such a relief... that Gabriel is here. I always feel easier in my mind when hes here.8 Even the minute details of the feast are catered to his attendance with the pudding being brought to the table only when he had finished. Thus, not only are the roles of woman consistently framed by the activity of men, but the events and occurrences of both tales seem to happen around them. As Gabriels presence becomes the centrepiece of The Dead, Father Flynns absence is the instigator of events in The Sisters. This pushes both sets of spinster women mercilessly to the sidelines. This strain of the importance of men over women in Dubliners graduates even to the descriptions of the appearance of women. The afore mentioned woman in Araby, described only as Mangans sister is portrayed in terms of the male gaze, her figure defined by the light...the soft rope of her hair9 , her wrist...the white curve of her neck.10 Thus, even her appearance gives way in depiction to the aspect of a male and we hear only of the parts of her that would attract a mans gaze.

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4 That Joyce has sympathy for women in their subordinate position is clear but he still displays them as lesser figures, marginalised to facilitate male characters. They are domesticated, humble and subject to the instigation of events by men. Yet, this portrayal may unearth whole new concepts if we revert to the original purpose of the book. Joyce was determined to portray Dublin with stark realism. He has attributed as much time to creating the characters of these women as he has to painting portraits of their socio-economic backgrounds. Thus, it extends that we must ask whether these backgrounds influence the independence of the women, how so and to what extent? Though many similarities may be drawn between The Sisters and The Dead, it is when we come to examine their social and economic stances that we see gaping contrasts. In The Dead, the Morkan sisters represent a society far above that of the Flynn sisters especially in terms of an intellectual and artistic sphere. While not affluent, the Morkan sisters are financially independent and maintain a sense of selfhood through their professionalism which is evoked importantly in the opening paragraphs - She had been through the Academy...Julia...was still the leading soprano in Adam and Eves...Kate...gave music lessons to beginners. 11 They are immediately established as part of an artistic circle, such a fact that is reinforced with the account of the conversation at dinner which largely concerns the opera. This is in stark contrast to Nannie and Eliza Flynn whose humble background is suggested in numerous manners by Joyce. The heels of her cloth boots were trodden down all on one side12 and they dreamed of getting a carriage for the day but only if it was cheap.13 Furthermore, two obvious solecisms draw attention to a lack of education, Eliza mentions the Freemans General, referring to the Freemans Journal and then speaks of rheumatic wheels when the correct term she intended was pneumatic. These palpable differences between both tales become important if we consider how they affect the characters. The Flynn sisters are simplistically subordinate and Joyce offers no concessions

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Dubliners Page 138 Dubliners Page 7 13 Dubliners Page 9

5 of freedom in their description. Even after their brothers death they are governed by him. However, in The Dead, the more prosperous society seems to have given way to a more independent strain of women. The most important of these is the vivacious Miss Ivors, a frank and opinionated figure who meets Gabriel as his partner in the dance. The opening description of Molly Ivors sets her apart quite rapidly from the other women. She is deemed nationalistic and self sufficient when we are told that she did not wear a low-cut bodice and the large brooch which was fixed in the front of her collar bore on it an Irish device.14She is university-educated and takes the lead in a conversational teasing of Gabriel, questioning his political convictions and then insisting that she is messing, mollifying him. She embodies a female independence that deconstructs the earlier depiction of women. Molly Ivors seems worlds apart from Nannie and Eliza in their dingy, gritty circumstances, tied to a male whose absence maintains a control on their lives. She reprimands his holidaying abroad and rejection of Irish culture and his meagre response is to blush and glance right and left nervously.15 That a woman can have such influence over the main protagonist of the tale is interesting and inspires us to question why Molly Ivors is so self sufficient and opinionated. She defines a sense of independent selfhood like no other female in the work. Joyces reasoning for this confidence is carefully entwined within his deceptively innocent writings. Gabriel is irked by her teasing but his strain of thoughts highlights an awareness that their careers had been parallel, first at the University and then as teachers.16 He is denied of his usual pompous ability to quieten an irritating figure with an ostentatious phrase because she is his intellectual equivalent. Thus it becomes clear that Molly Ivors confidence and self sufficiency stems directly from her education, which has been fuelled by a certain amount of affluence. Joyce suggests in an intricate manner that the women in his novel are defined in terms of class. Money and education have made Molly Ivors of equal

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6 standing with the most intelligent and important figure in The Dead. Thus, a direct line has been drawn between socio-economic background and independence. Joyces stance on women in his admirably honest portrayal of a sober city is complex and intricate. It seems to graduate throughout the work from a firm description of their subordinate position to the introduction of a passionate self sufficient woman. It culminates in Gretta Conroy whose is reminded of a lost love of the past. This separates her from her husband Gabriel in a burst of sorrowful independence and gains her the place as the central subject of many feminist writings on Dubliners. Joyces portrayal suggests a writer who is bitterly aware of the hardships of women in Dublin and yet, he introduces hope. Amongst the grubby houses, the paralysed minds and the small dark rooms of gritty Irish life, Joyce finds sympathy for the minority class. He is compassionate in his introduction of Miss Ivors and Gretta, suggesting a possibility for fantastically intense women with opinions and educations. His portrayal comes full circle. He maintains an honest yet uncomfortable depiction but upholds a sincere sympathy and a decent consideration for the women who lived their lives in the harsh context of early twentieth century Dublin.

Bibliography: Atteridge, Derek, The Cambridge Companion to James Joyce (Second Edition) (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004). Brown, Richard, James Joyce and Sexuality (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1985). Bulson, Eric, The Cambridge Introduction to James Joyce (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2006). Frawley, Oona, A New and Complex Sensation: Essays on Joyces Dubliners (Dublin: The Lilliput Press, 2004). Henke, Suzette and Unkeless, Elaine, Women in Joyce (London: University of Illinois Press, 1982). Jackson, John Wyse and McGinley, Bernard, James Joyces Dubliners: An Annotated Edition (London: Sinclair-Stevenson, 1993). Joyce, James, Dubliners (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008) Norris, Margot, Suspicious Readings of Joyces Dubliners (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2003). Scott, Bonnie Kime, Joyce and Feminism (Sussex: The Harvester Press, 1984).

Essay Word Count: 1998