Fall From Innocence, a Fall

¶ … fall from Innocence, a Fall From Eden: The Structure of "An Encounter" and "Araby"

Both "Araby" and "An Encounter" come relatively soon in the chronology of James Joyce's text Dubliners. This is appropriate, given that thematically and structurally both of these tales demonstrate a fall from innocence or grace on the part of the protagonist. The young boy goes from a youthful and naive, but simplistic understanding of his world, into a state of greater wisdom and maturity about the nature of literature and life.

In the case of the young boy of "An Encounter," the young boy experiences this fall into maturity from ignorance and innocence as a positive thing. From the childish world of the wild, wild west dreams of the comic books he adores but feels guilty about reading, he comes to understand through "An Encounter" with a learned man that a greater potential exists in human relations with literature than the wildness of the American West or the staleness of Irish Catholicism, as embodied by Father Butler, earlier in the tale. In "Araby," however, the slightly older adolescent protagonist experiences a fall from his innate understanding of women. The pure, convent-attending woman turns out to have a darker side, despite his idealized image of her, and despite the simulation she is able to convey of purity to most of the world.

Immediately, the protagonist, of "An Encounter" gains a sense of his 'specialness' from the man he encounter upon the road that he has largely lacked throughout the story, except for his slightly sense of guilt at reading comic books. But the old man he and his best friend encounter are like no one else they have ever met. The man "said he had all Sir Walter Scott's works and all Lord Lytton's works at home and never tired of reading them. 'Of course,' he said, 'there were some of Lord Lytton's works which boys couldn't read.' Mahony asked why couldn't boys read them - a question which agitated and pained me because I was afraid the man would think I was as stupid as Mahony." (3) the construction of the man's question indicates that Lord Lytton may write 'racy' material. However, the child, in this case, is mainly interested in seeming more mature than his friend Mahony, and reads the comment about literature only in terms of goodness or badness, intelligence and ignorance -- these are the terms with which he has been taught to view the world.

Structurally, the scene with the wandering yellow-toothed man parallels that of the first encounter with an older man in the tale. The first such encounter reveals he protagonist in a state of concern in front of Father Butler because his interests in comics and the west would seem ungodly. Butler wishes the boys to remain ignorant, rather than knowledgeable about violence and America. Now, before another authority who judges life and literature by different standards, the boy wishes to seem more learned, just as he wished to seem more pure and Christian before. The structure of the boy standing before a received authority upon text and life is the same, but the means of judgment have shifted from secular to sacred, from valuing ignorance to despising it, indicating a shift in the boy's consciousness. The boy has begun to understand something different about the nature of literature -- goodness is not the only standard by which to judge others, at least the goodness of the Church.

The man, however, only smiled. I saw that he had great gaps in his mouth between his yellow teeth. Then he asked us which of us had the most sweethearts. Mahony mentioned lightly that he had three totties. The man asked me how many I had. I answered that I had none. He did not believe me and said he was sure I must have one. I was silent." (3) the boy feels, however, that he is lacking in front of his friend Mahoney because he lacks for female affection. Desiring to seem different in all ways from Mahoney, he comes up short. Yet the older man, by identifying a different means of measuring the moral nature of life, has changed the protagonist's consciousness. His eyes, essentially, are now different than Mahony. The boy has proceeded from innocence to maturity, ignorance to knowledge -- the faith of the Father is not the only source of moral authority in the world. The boy has entered adolescent, the stage of life portrayed in "Araby."

The adolescent protagonist of "Araby" likewise begins idealizing something in a holy fashion, in this case a woman, the sister of a deceased priest. "While she spoke she turned a silver bracelet round and round her wrist. She could not go, [to the fair at Araby] she said, because there would be a retreat that week in her convent." (2) the boy nearly misses the fair, however, because of religious obligations, his first (ignored) indication that faith and desire are not always synonymous, or even goodness because he is torn between his promise to his potential sweetheart and to his faith and family. Finally, however, my aunt said to him energetically: 'can't you give him the money and let him go? You've kept him late enough as it is.' (3)