Essays on Gretta

The past is buried by newer and more beautiful memories which overshadow our past. The present can cease to exist as a result of people’s social obligations, materials and their authority. People should focus on the present life events and people as well as newer ways of handling matters instead of dwelling on routines. Death is a devastating side of life that is inevitable, yet it helps us to appreciate the present life even more. Gabriel Conroy, the husband of Gretta in the book “The Dead” by James Joyce, tries to control his wife’s feelings throughout their ...

The Dead is an intriguing masterpiece written by James Joyce and bases his storyline in Ireland during Christmas. Joyce invites the reader into his plot by his artistic description of things and scenery in his book. The writer points out the snow on the ground as symbolic of a blanket that covers the bad and the good on the earth. Joyce writes that the snow covers both the dead and the living and unites them into a frozen paralysis (Joyce, 184). The story of the dead encapsulates Gabriel Conroy as viewing himself superior to others due to his intellectual capabilities as ...

In James Joyce's short story "The Dead," Gabriel Conroy, the main character, is depicted as an awkward, self-absorbed and pathetic man, constantly unsure of himself yet confident in his superiority over others. The short story sees him perpetually attempt to navigate social niceties and his relationship with his wife, always lacking the necessary information and awareness to conduct himself accordingly. Gabriel, throughout the poem, finds himself unable to communicate well with others (especially the religious) to the point where his personal relationships fail him. Gabriel himself is a bit of an antisocial misanthrope; he has difficulty relating to and ...