How Does Joyce Present Infatuation With Mangan's Sister?

From the beginning of the story, Joyce uses the narrator’s infatuation with Mangan’s sister to show the narrator’s transition from childhood to adulthood. He begins isolate and hide himself and the only thing that now exists in his mind is her. He thinks of nothing but his love for her. For example, “ Every morning I lay on the floor in the front parlour watching her door. The blind was pulled down...so that I could not be seen. When she came out on the doorstep my heart leapt.” This shows the narrator’s infatuation with Mangan’s sister because of the way he talks about his heart leaping for her, though he has never physically spoken to her. It also shows his infatuation because of the way he is watching the door waiting for her to come out. Another example that shows his infatuation for Mangan’s sister is when the narrator

For instance, “...her figure defined by the light from the half-open door… The light from the lamp opposite our door caught the white curve of her neck, lit up her hair that rested there and, falling, lit the hand up on the railing.” This image uses light as physical symbol to allude to the symbol of an Angel’s halo because the light from the lamp emphasizes the white curve of her neck and lights up her hair. The narrator’s description of Mangan’s sister makes his attraction to her seem more physical than spiritual. “Her name was like a summons to all my foolish blood… Her dress swung as she moved her body and the soft rope of her hair tossed from side to side.” The narrator’s desire and lust for her is irrevocable and indisputable. In order to defend his love for her and make it acceptable to society, he tries to make it seem that his love is actually pure when in reality he is actually deceiving himself although he does not know it. Concluding