How Does James Joyce Use Figurative Language In Araby

"Araby" written by James Joyce is a short story about a young boy through his journey to adulthood. The story is in first person point of view. But it doesn’t give the impression that a boy is telling the story, instead the narrator gives a sense of being an adult. In his journey the boy falls in love with his friend's older sister and tries to impress her by going to a bazaar and buying her a gift. This will be the main plot of the short story. The author presents the setting and characters by using an extensive use of figurative language like imagery, symbolisms and metaphors through the essay. Figurative language is effectively use to help the readers imagine the feelings and situations of the characters. Joyce used of figurative language in the short story is to created a dramatic, vivid and interesting imagery than just using literal language.
At the beginning the author use of imagery helps the reader get a sense and description of the street where he grew up and the house where he used to live. North Richmond Street is describe as blind, quiet and dark. The neighborhood is presented as isolated, detached and empty. "The other houses of the street,

conscious of decent lives within them, gazed at one another with brown imperturbable faces". The author uses personification, which is a figure speech in which a thing is given human attribute, to set the atmosphere in the surrounding. The houses do not have faces where they can gazed to each other or are conscious of the people living in them. This is not to be taken literally is more to add a deeper meaning to the story. Next the author use more imagery to describe the house. "Air, musty from having been long enclosed, hung in all the rooms..." Joyce use sensory detail to explain the smell of the house "musty" and the sight of "littered with old useless papers".
Symbolism is the use of symbols to signify ideas and qualities by giving them symbolic meanings that are much deeper and more significant.

Joyce uses a few religious symbolism in the short story. First he writes " I imagined that I bore my chalice safely through a throng of foes". A chalice is the cup used in Christian ceremony, which can be a sacred symbol for the church. The author when describing the way the boy thinks of Mangan's sister uses the symbolism of a chalice to describe how much he worships her and how sacred she had become to him. Secondly he uses a religious symbolism to describe the admiration he has for the girl. "But my body was like a harp and her words and gestures were like fingers running upon wires" The harp being a religious instrument in comparison to an instrument of her

love.
Joyce most important used of imagery pattern in the story are light and darkness. Light creates an image of love, hope and joy. The image of light is present at the beginning of the essay. " We play till out bodies glowed", " the light from the lamp opposite our door caught the white curve of her neck, lit up her hair that rested...lit up the hand upon the railing". and " she was waiting for us, her figured defined by the light from the half-opened door". Most of the light reference are for Mangan's sister. The light portray the character as the only light the boy can see in his dark surroundings. Darkness is a reference to a place where he hid when he was still a boy, the feelings of loneliness in the neighborhood where he grew up and when his vision of love had change.At the end of the story the boys arrive at the bazaar and faces the disappointment as the bazaar closes down and he realize how immature he has been.
In conclusion James Joyce did an amazing job at writing this short story. Joyce incredible and skillful used of figurative language gave the readers great details and enhance the story. By using imagery Joyce illustrate the characters and the surroundings. The religious symbolism used was necessary to add personal meaning to the story. Finally the use of light and dark give the ending representation of the feelings of the boy in his journey to adulthood.The imagery of darkness are all shown mostly at the end when the boy is faced with the reality of the adult life that shows only frustration, disappointment and sadness.