Internal Conflict in Joyce's "Araby" and Faulkner's "Barn Burning"
This essay examines the parallel theme of internal conflict in James Joyce's "Araby" and William Faulkner's "Barn Burning." Both stories center on young male protagonists whose idealized inner worlds clash with the harsh realities of their external circumstances. In "Araby," the unnamed narrator conflates romantic fantasy with reality, only to experience a sharp epiphany of disillusionment at the bazaar. In "Barn Burning," Sarty Snopes struggles between his deeply held sense of justice and his blood loyalty to a morally compromised father. The essay argues that both characters undergo an analogous initiation into adulthood, losing their childhood illusions through direct confrontation with a world that refuses to conform to their inner visions.
- Introduction: Parallel Themes of Idealism and Reality: Shared theme of inner idealism versus external reality
- Romantic Fantasy and Disillusionment in 'Araby': Narrator's romantic obsession with Mangan's sister
- The Bazaar as a Collision Point Between Dream and Reality: Bazaar triggers narrator's epiphany of disillusionment
- Justice, Blood Loyalty, and Moral Conflict in 'Barn Burning': Sarty torn between justice and family loyalty
- Sarty's Initiation Into Adulthood: Sarty's choices lead to his father's death
- Conclusion: Analogous Paths From Childhood to Maturity: Both boys lose childhood illusions through harsh reality
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What makes this paper effective
- The paper establishes a clear comparative framework in the opening paragraph, identifying the shared thematic core — the gap between inner idealism and external reality — and then develops each story in parallel rather than in isolation.
- Direct textual quotations are well-chosen and closely analyzed. The discussion of the boy's dismissal of "ugly monotonous child's play" and Sarty's whispered "He was brave!" both anchor interpretive claims in specific language from the texts.
- The conclusion ties the two narratives together without flattening their differences, acknowledging that the specific lessons differ while the structural pattern of disillusionment is shared.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates effective comparative literary analysis: rather than treating the two works separately, it identifies a unifying thematic lens (idealism versus reality) and uses it to read both texts simultaneously. This technique shows how structural parallels across different authors, settings, and characters can illuminate each work more fully than a standalone reading would.
Structure breakdown
The essay opens with a dual thesis establishing the shared pattern and the individual differences. It then devotes two body sections to "Araby" — tracing the narrator's escalating fantasy and eventual epiphany — followed by two body sections on "Barn Burning" that trace Sarty's divided loyalty and ultimate moral choice. The conclusion synthesizes both arcs, reinforcing the analogous structure while preserving each story's distinct lesson.
Introduction: Parallel Themes of Idealism and Reality
The key theme running throughout both James Joyce's "Araby" and William Faulkner's "Barn Burning" is the conflict between the protagonists' inner conceptions of what the external world should be like and the actual reality of their respective circumstances. For the narrator in "Araby," the conflict lies between the seemingly vivid and intense world of his daydreaming and the drab, mundane aspects of his everyday life. Mangan's sister and the bazaar both represent the romantic visions he entertains within the context of his otherwise unromantic existence. For Sarty, his conflict stems from his notions of justice and morality, and the way these ideals contrast with the physical events surrounding his life — most prominently his familial ties to his father. In both stories, the main characters progress toward manhood by coming into close contact with the very real consequences of their somewhat naive understandings of how the world operates. Both short stories thus follow a similar pattern, though they do so through different characters, ideals, and settings.
References
Faulkner, William. (2007). "Barn Burning." Available:
Joyce, James. (1993). "Araby." From Dubliners, edited by Hans Walter Gabler with Walter Hettche. New York: Garland Publishing.
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