Premium Content Motionless Citzenry: A Look at the Theme of Paralysis in James Joyce's Dubliners
By Loren Cappelson - March 31, 2007
Every night as I gazed up at the window I said softly to myself the word,
paralysis. It had always sounded strangely in my ears, like the word gnomon
in the Euclid and the word simony in the Catechism. But now it sounded
to me like the name of some maleficent and sinful being. It filled me with fear,
and yet I longed to be nearer to it, and to look…
This excerpt of the essay is provided for free. To read the complete essay of 3625 words or to get access to our full library of Literature Essays, please subscribe below or log in if you are already subscribed.
Join Now - Choose a Membership Level
GradeSaver provides access to quizzes, 2862 literature essays, 833 sample college application essays and ad-free surfing in this premium content, "Members Only" section of the site! Membership includes a 10% discount on all editing orders.
We have been mentioned in the Washington Post, the Economist, and many other papers around the world for our exceptional essays. GradeSaver has reviewed each essay for quality; these essays are the very best on the Internet and many have been written by students of Ivy League colleges.
| 3-Day Trial (recurring) | $2.95 * |
| 30-Day Trial (recurring) | $6.95 * |
| 1 Month Membership (one-time charge) | $12.95 |
| 12 Month Membership (one-time charge) | $49.95 |
* After your trial period, you will be billed a monthly fee of $6.95 with the option to cancel at any time. Questions? Read our FAQ.
Existing Users
Dubliners Essays and Related Content
- Dubliners: Study Guide
- Dubliners: Major Themes
- Dubliners: E-Text
- Dubliners: Questions
- Dubliners: Purchase the Novel and Related Material
- James Joyce: Biography
- A Little Cloud and Counterparts: Two Faces of Paralysis
- The Irish Ballad: Past, Present, and Future Time in Joyce's "The Dead" and Eliot's "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock"
- "Excuse Bad Writing Am In Hurry": Joyce's Women in Dubliners, Portrait, and Ulysses
- The Erotic in Joyce's "A Painful Case"
- The Erotic in Joyce's Short Stories
- Paralysis and the Need for Escape
- Disillusionment of Life
- "Respectability and Escape: Unrealized Potential in The Dead"
- Why James Joyce Rewrote The Sisters
- Paralysis and Entrapment
- Naivete as a Source of Mystery in The Sisters
- Symbolism of Snow in Joyce's The Dead
- Alienation: A Modernist Theme
- Counterparts
- Small Town, Big City, Same Old Story
- The Crush: A Psychoanalytical Look at "Araby"
- "Clay": A Microcosm for Ireland
- Duality and Paralysis in "Two Gallants"
- Duffy as the Übermensch
- Motionless Citzenry: A Look at the Theme of Paralysis in James Joyce's Dubliners
- Hardly Joyous: Servitude in Hardy and Joyce
- Resignation to a Fate of Clay
- The New Manly Woman: How Female Strength of Self is Achieved through Expression and Ownership of Sexuality in Joyce
- Eveline as Ireland: a realistic and symbolic approach
- Mortality in 'Dubliners'
- Characterization of Jimmy Doyle in "After the Race"
- Social Commentary in "A Mother"
- Financial Despair in the Modern Era
