“Eveline”

James Joyce

Characters

Eveline (a girl over 19 years), her father and brothers (Ernest, eldest who is dead now- Harry,
who is into church decorating business and always travelling), 2 young children under her
charge (may be children of her sibling), Miss Gavan, Frank (her lover), mother dead.

Symbols

a) Dust
 “in her nostrils was the odour of dusty cretonne”- at the beginning of the novel
Eveline is thus presented as sitting at the window tiredly watching the evening setting.
 “She looked around the room, reviewing all its familiar objects which she had dusted
once a week for so many years, wondering where on earth all the dust came from”.
(usual female woe/worry)
 “leaning her head against the window curtain, inhaling the odour of dusty cretonne”

Dust - associated with female who do not do their duty like keeping the house clean. This
process of dusting keeps the women engaged all the time. So, it can be interpreted as a
weapon of the society so as to subjugate women.

b) Home

Often represented as a safe haven for women where they are supposed to toil their entire life
for the welfare of their family. “In her home anyway she had shelter and food; she had those
whom she had known all her life”. They are fed with the idea that they should never try to get
away from home. Yet they are expected to remain unquestioning there. For example, even
though it is Eveline who keeps the home clean, she does not know the name of the priest in
an old photograph on the wall.

Home becomes so much a part of women’s existence that even when it becomes unbearable,
many find it difficult to leave it as is evident from Eveline’s remark, “She had hard work to
keep the house together and to see that the two young children who had been left to her
charge went to school regularly and got their meals regularly. It was hard work— a
hard life— but now that she was about to leave it, she did not find it a wholly
undesirable life”.

At the same time, once she escapes one home; another home, her future husband’s, is
“waiting for her”. Thus, a woman’s life is a journey from one home to another.

She had promised her mother on her death bed that she would “keep the home together as
long as she could” (symbolic of a woman’s responsibility). When one woman leaves the
scene, another has to invariably take up that role.

Parting/signalling her decision to leave home:

 “Everything changes. Now she was going away like the others, to leave her
home.”
 “Perhaps she would never see again those familiar objects from which she had never
dreamed of being divided.”

Hopes about future home- “In her new home, in a distant unknown country, it would not be
like that”.

c) Blessed Margaret Mary Alacoque

A French nun beatified in 1864 and canonized in 1920. She recovered miraculously after
being paralysed for 4 years. Eveline is equated to her as she suffers from a kind of
psychological paralysis in her struggle to escape oppression (theme). Finally, when she is
unable to go with him, she turns to Frank with a cold expression (“white face”) as if
paralysed and devoid of emotions.

Themes

1) Nostalgia about Past/ Childhood

“One time there used to be a field there in which they used to play every evening with other
people’s children….” - thinking of carefree life as a child. How the field in which they
played was bought by a man named Belfast who built houses in it so that they could not play
there anymore (development affecting children and little joy in life)- The children from
different families like the Devines, the Waters, the Dunns, little Keogh the cripple, Eveline,
her brothers and sisters used to play together in that field. Her older brother Ernest did not
play with them as he was grown up (how with age innocence and simple joy gets diminished
and people go for other pleasures or become serious). The image of her father hunting for
them with a stick was their biggest concern then. Still, they were happy as father was better in
character then compared to the present because then their mother was alive.

She thinks about the good times spent with Frank like watching the movie The Bohemian
Girl. Those are the only simple things that she wishes for in life.

Her memories about her mother leaps up in her mind the evening she is to leave home.

2) Women’s predicament in a family and society dominated by men

Eveline had to take charge of her family after her mother’s death. The household chores like
dusting are carried out by her along with business and not her brothers. These duties
“naturally” fall on women and they cannot expect any help from others in any of the work.
She earns 7 shillings a week by working in Stores but she has to surrender that money to her
father who feels that she is not capable of managing money and will squander it. Her brother
Harry, on the other hand, has the choice to sent some money home while keeping the rest for
himself. Some women like Eveline are also made to go outdoor and shop for stationery. In
such circumstances, their arriving home late is “acceptable”. The rules imposed by the
society are often manipulated by the same society to suit its whims and fancies. In addition,
the usual remarks against women are, as the father charges Eveline, “she used to squander the
money, that she had no head, that he wasn’t going to give her his hard-earned money to throw
about in the streets, and much more”. Thus, they are considered devoid of any self-respect.
Men’s behaviour towards women are often defended on the basis of their varying moods
while in the case of women, they are always expected to be in good temperament. Eveline
understands that her father is out of temper mostly on Saturdays.

She only knows that the man in the old photograph on the wall is a school friend of her father
and that he is in Melbourne now from what her father tells to the visitors. Ironically, Joyce is
pointing at the state of many women in families who have to know about the things in their
family from others or only by overhearing when it is disclosed to visitors. They are never
expected to take part in decision making. The pathetic situation aggravates when women too
consider this as normal and learn to accept and adjust.

Even when she decides to leave her house to go with the man whom she loves, she is in a
dilemma because she is brought up to believe that “home” is where a woman’s life belongs. It
is only her “duty” (not a man’s) to take care of the home and its members so that it does not
fall apart. This becomes a burden on many women who turn out to be rebels in the end due to
their pent-up frustration arising out of their inability to fulfill their dreams or lead a happy life
where they also equally participate in making choices rather than always being victims of
false judgement. Such suppressed women are unable to make a decision on their own even if
it concerns their future. Eveline is doubtful whether it is a “wise” decision to elope.
Considering the uncaring nature of her father who even abused her physically, this decision
should not have been too difficult for her. Still, the lessons taught to her as a girl is ingrained
so deep in her mind that she is torn between her family and her love/her choice.

They are only entitled to good food and shelter which they receive at home. Other than that,
if they try to dream big, they would be condemned by the society. The fear of the society and
the desire to get societal approval for their deeds is another concept that rules women’s life.
Their life is always under the critical observation of the society that they are part of. Any
attempt on woman’s part to break the rules imposed on them by the society, would prove to
be detrimental to their life and existence. Eveline is also worried about the hypocritic and
unsympathetic society’s reaction to her decision to choose a life on her own. This involves
risk as women are taught that they cannot fend for themselves and might be cheated. If so,
they will not be offered a second chance. Hence, their life will be devoid of any pleasure and
that will be the end of their life itself:

“What would they say of her in the Stores when they found out that she had run away
with a fellow? Say she was a fool, perhaps; and her place would be filled up by
advertisement”. Miss Gavan, a woman in her neighbourhood, who is critical of her in front
of others would be glad on her elopement because she was a lady who loved to gossip.
Eveline worked in Gavan’s “Stores” and when the customers were kept waiting, Gavan
would tease Eveline for not looking lively and active, “Look lively, Miss Hill, please.”
(Eveline’s maiden name)

As a single woman, life is more challenging for her. That is why she feels that once she gets
married, things would be better in her life. She would be respected by others. At the same
time, here, Joyce points towards the predicament of women who are made to believe that
their identity is only complete once they become a wife. In the case of women like Eveline’s
mother, married life is also a torture due to abusive husbands.

Even in the relationship between Eveline and Frank, how he used to address her as
“Poppens” for fun which could be a variant of “puppet”, a doll. This points to her
future role as a doll in his hands. Thus, what she considers as a happy prospect now is
actually a continuation of her present ordeal. Each woman hopes that her life will be
better than her mothers’ but finally everyone ends up with the same fate because the
society that they inhabit does not change.

When her father comes to know of her courtship, she is forced to meet him secretly. Later,
when she decides to leave her family for Frank she wishes only for a life; not love. When she
mentions that perhaps he might love her, Joyce portrays the mature adult Eveline who,
though seems to be in a dream world, is inwardly aware of the fact that Frank might also not
offer her his selfless love but, at least she hopes that he would treat her better than her father.
This vividly brings out the sad plight of woman who are not even free to desire love but have
to be satisfied with a meagre life that is offered to them by men.

Whatever injustice is meted out to them, women are trained to love the men in their lives so
much so that Eveline thinks how her father would miss her in her absence. She is reminded of
some rare instances from the past when her father used to be nice like when she was ill one
day, how he read a ghost story to her and made toast. When as children they had gone for
picnic, how he played with them. On the other hand, despite all the sacrifices made by
women, if they commit any error even once, they would be crucified and indicted by the
patriarchs without any sympathy. Eveline’s final inability to take a decision regarding her
future is suggestive of tragic female predicament. As her mother mumbled in her death bed,
the women are made to believe that for them “the end of pleasure is pain” so that they would
never try to come out of the shackles. Joyce aptly conveys this message through this short
story. Eveline’s final attempt to escape from oppression remains unsuccessful as the chains
that bind her are stronger. Similarly, though women try hard to be independent and live a life
of their choice, it may not be easy for them and involves a lot of setbacks that would leave
them as “helpless animals” in many circumstances. As the story ends, Eveline is presented as
neutral with “no sign of love, or farewell or recognition” which points to the state to which
women are subjected. If women have to survive, they have to learn to hide their emotions.
Otherwise, their journey of life will not be an easy one.

3) Eveline’s hopes about future as a married woman

She hopes that her life after marriage will be better than her mother’s. Frank, her lover is a
kind, manly, open-hearted man according to her. She was to go away with him by the night-
boat to be his wife and to live with him in Bueonos Ayres.
“She must escape! Frank would save her. He would give her life, perhaps love, too. But she
wanted to live. Why should she be unhappy? She had a right to happiness. Frank would take
her in his arms. He would save her.”

4) Eveline as Ireland

Eveline is unable to let go of the past and her memories and instead clings to the barrier as
though literally clinging to old Ireland and the past which is dead and gone but which she
cannot leave behind. Her struggle to escape from her abusive and domineering father can be
compared to Ireland’s struggle against England for independence. Just like Eveline’s father’s
controlling presence in her life, England had ruled Ireland directly and indirectly for long.
Also, through Eveline James Joyce sheds light on the male domination and discrimination the
women of his time had to endure in Ireland. In many ways, Eveline typifies the difficulties
faced by many Dubliners at that time. Eveline changes her mind at the last moment because
of various reasons like her love for her homeland, nostalgia for the past, filial duty, and
sometimes it could have also resulted out of her doubtfulness regarding Frank’s affection and
the fear that sometimes she might also end up like her mother. This is what ultimately the
patriarchal society does to women— they are forced to view all relationships with suspicion,
especially marriage.

Narrative/ Point of view

Third person point of view- story narrated from an outsider’s point of view to reveal the
thoughts of a young Irish woman who plans to leave her miserable life in Ireland and
emigrate to Argentina to seek out a happy life with her lover.

Vocabulary

Cretonne- heavy cotton or linen fabric used for upholstery or furnishing

Keep nix – Keep guard/watch