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Araby Research Paper

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According to Isaac Newton, an object will stay at rest unless acted upon by an opposing force when it will begin to move. When the object rejects this force, for a brief moment in time, it is called the moment of inertia, where the object, despite the acting push or pull, remains motionless. Many times, this moment of inertia can be translated into a person’s life as they deal with change, and for some, the moment lasts a life time. Within the collection of short stories entitled Dubliners by James Joyce, the evolution from immaturity to maturity of the main characters begins to show the ultimate timelessness of a paralyzed mentality towards change. Beginning in the short story “Araby,” Joyce describes the events leading up to a young boy’s trip to the market. Youthful and excited about the prospect of love for Mangan’s sister, this nameless narrator expects to buy something for her at the market after she hints that while she cannot go, “It's well for [him].” After this, the boy is unable to think of much else as he goes about his lessons, waiting to go to this exotic bazaar. He waits for his uncle to come home so he can get money, but arrives at the bazaar too late as it is just closing up. At this moment, the magic of Araby is gone, replaced with an immature view of …show more content…

Despite time and incentive, the main characters in both “Araby” and “Eveline” become unable to overcome simple challenges of the day. They are essentially trapped in a modern day world that holds them hostage in a fabricated bliss. Eventually it is society that creates these characters to be so placated with their lives, unaware that reality is passing them by until it is already gone. By living in a make believe world, these characters find themselves caught inside their own heads without the strength to break free and make their own

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