Araby, written by James Joyce, is a classic story about the confusing nature of love and its power. The story is about a young boy, who is completely infatuated with another girl, the sister of his friend Mangan. He cherishes his few interactions with her, and the first time she actually notices and talks to him is when the foreign bazaar, called Araby, which means Arabic is in town. They chat for a brief moment about it, and Mangan’s sister requests him to bring a souvenir back for her. The boy, extremely exhilarated that she has finally talked with him, promises to bring one back and hurries home. He eats dinner, but there are so many delays with him being allowed to go that it is late when he gets going, and it takes a while to finally get to the bazaar, which at this point is almost closed already, with only a few stalls open. The boy, humiliated, trudges home realizing that his imagined bazaar has been destroyed, leaving the real one behind. This story teaches us the differences between our imagined, idealized world and the real one, and why we have to learn not to change the world in our imagination to fit our expectations and desires.
Our imagination often warps and twists the world to fit our mood, but the reality is nearly always different, and often in a way we dislike. When we believe something, our imagination creates an image that satisfies our every desire for it, but reality doesn’t normally live up to what we may believe. In Araby, the narrator thought of the bazaar as an amazing, foreign experience that would have interesting objects and people, similar to a really amazing circus or fair. However, in reality, it was just a ton of stalls selling common, local objects run by people in the community, that wasn’t very special at all. He was humiliated by the realization of this, the way he had wasted so much of his time and also how he had thought that he had a chance with the girl, but he realized that she was beautiful and he wasn’t as handsome as he had thought, realizing that his vanity had driven him. The way his imagination changed his perspective and how he saw things was extreme. Our viewpoint on the world can change, and it does quite often. We need to remember to trust our instincts rather than our imagination because our emotions can influence how we perceive our environment.
Our imagination, rather than making us just hope for a better world, can cause us to simply act in different ways and idealize our world. Those who use their imagination will perceive their world differently than those who don’t as their imagination has influenced the way they processed their past experiences and therefore how they will experience current and future experiences as well. In Araby, the boy’s attitude towards life changed when he started becoming obsessed over the girl, in major ways. He generated an air of caution, causing other children to veer away. His general opinion of adults was negative, and the few bright spots in his life were Mangan’s sister and the potential of going to Araby, the foreign and exotic bazaar. His relationship towards her didn’t change, despite these major sacrifices that he made for her, because she still didn’t even know he existed. Idealizing the world for ourselves can have severe consequences, especially if we cut ourselves off and become recluses. Imagining a better world won’t change anything, only our actions will, which is why we must work hard and long to toil for a changed, improved world rather than just hoping for one.
When we are coming of age, we become mature enough and experienced enough to make better decisions and our perspective on the world solidifies. Coming of age is a young person's transition from being a young, irresponsible child to being a grown, mature adult. The specific age at which this transition takes place can vary, as can the nature of the change, but it is mostly positive. In Araby, the main character was an immature child, who thought he was superior to almost everyone. However, everyone near him, including himself, was harmed. His attitude as he aged, changed often and immensely. As he looked back on his own life, he saw how vain and idiotic he had been, throwing away everything for a girl who didn’t even like him, and had basically ignored him for almost the entire duration of his life. He realized how he had done so much to get absolutely nothing, and his attitude changed, allowing him to understand more and realize what he had lost. He was very disappointed, but since he had grown, he understood and learned a valuable lesson. When we make mistakes, the important thing is to learn from them and try to prevent others and yourself from repeating it. We have to remember importance as we age and how coming of age can improve us.
Araby is a marvelous story that helps teach us how to avoid conflicts and how to be responsible and intelligent. It shows the importance of how we perceive the world, whether we twist it using our imagination or see reality the way it is. It also shows us how idealizing the world isn’t a solution, it simply exacerbates the problem because no one will try to solve it. Finally, it includes the theme of coming of age, something many people struggle with, and implements and introduces it in an entertaining way. This story helps inform people about the dangers of vanity and how we need to perceive the world in the correct way, and does so through an entertaining storyline and believable characters. It allows kids to become more mature and also be amused in the process. Araby, written by James Joyce as part of the collection Dubliners, is an entertaining and mature book that helps teach kids important life lessons and themes.
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