A Safe Choice-But Her Only Choice - James Joyce's short story "Eveline"

The first 200 words of this essay...

Nicole Katalbas

Delgado

Eng 102

26 Sept 2007

A Safe Choice-But Her Only Choice

James Joyce's short story "Eveline" sets the stage for a time between adolescence and maturity. Written in 1914, which was four years short of the women's suffrage in Ireland, the story's protagonist, Eveline, is largely influenced by the feminist issues. Since she has little control over her life, Eveline has grown accustomed to a routine life. She is paralyzed from the thought of leaping into a new path. Eveline faces two extremes: a miserable home life or a dramatic escape to an uncertain future.

Both extremes she deals with involve a man controlling her life. Living in the early 1900s women did not have the opportunity to be independent. No matter which path she chooses, she would still answer to a man. She lives in a male-dominated world in which she is stripped of choice and emotion. She is helpless against the way her life is heading. Considering this, one cannot blame her for choosing to stay home because it was not much of a choice, and she has never made an independent choice of her own. If