Identity in James Joyce's "The Dead"

In life, one's identity is the basic foundation of one's character. Who we are is often based on the people around us, our environment, and the things that are said about us. In "The Dead" by James Joyce, Gabriel is a seemingly happily married professor and writer who is attending an annual party hosted by his aunts and Kate and Julia. Throughout the story Gabriel's true identity is masked and he never reveals his the true nature of his character. However, in the end he has to reevaluate his entire existence. Although he leads a seemingly normal life, he is unable to truly connect with his culture and heritage, his loved ones and most of all himself.

Initially, Gabriel is portrayed as a man to be admired. He is tall, fashionable and well liked. He is the pride and joy of his two aunts. They long for his arrival at their party. Once he arrives at the party, we see that he is popular and seemingly self-assured. However, Gabriel is not as confident as he appears to be. Gabriel asserts his superiority with the people he believes he can control, his wife and kids. His domineering nature is symptomatic of his desire to control and prey on those weaker than himself. Gabriel believes that he is intellectually superior to most and questions the intelligence of the individuals at the party: "He was undecided about the lines from Robert Browning for he feared they would be above the heads of his hearers" (Joyce 24). Despite this assertion of superiority, Gabriel still cares what these people think of him and feels inadequate in front of them: "He would fail with them, just as he failed with the girl in the pantry" (Joyce 24). Gabriel is unsure of himself and is very much concerned with appearances.

At one point in the evening, Gabriel is questioned by Miss Ivors, a political radical and fellow teacher, about why he works for The Daily Express, a British paper. During their encounter, she calls Gabriel a "West Briton," implying that his loyalties lie with the British as opposed to his native Ireland. Miss Ivors is threatening to Gabriel because she is not afraid of confrontation. She has a grasp on her identity as an individual and as a member of her society and culture. Because she is also a teacher, Gabriel is concerned about his appearance before her: "he could not risk a grandiose phrase with her" (Joyce 31). Miss Ivors stands for everything that Gabriel rejects: nationalism and feminism. She believes that Gabriel should use his talents uplifting his own people. She questions his identity as a "real" Irishman. Although Miss Ivors dismisses her comments as a joke, Gabriel is still embarrassed and troubled by her remarks. This is often the case with Gabriel: "he continually allows minor events to marginalize him and deprive him of his self worth" (Schwarz 106). His inability to separate himself from the thoughts of others manifests itself in his fragmented identity.

Miss Ivors, probes Gabriel even further by inviting him to the western lands of Ireland to vacation. Gabriel eventually responds: "Oh, to tell you the truth, retorted Gabriel suddenly, I'm sick of my own country, sick of it!" (Joyce 32). Once again Gabriel is unable or unwilling to give a reason for his feelings, despite Miss Ivor's constant and detailed questions: "He is a man of words without the ability to communicate" (Schwarz 107). To Gabriel, Western Ireland and Connacht represent poverty, and his mother's disapproval. He is fearful of his mother, and is guilty over his marriage with Gretta, which his mother disapproved. This is just another example of Gabriel's inability to embrace his heritage. Despite his reactions during the incident, afterwards, Gabriel becomes condescending in his thoughts about Miss Ivors: "Of course the girl or woman, or whatever she was, was an enthusiast but there was a time for all things" (Joyce 33). Gabriel is somewhat degrading Miss Ivors by referring to her as a child. This is ironic because he feels that she has done the same thing to him. However, Gabriel is not man enough to address Miss Ivors directly. She threatens his masculinity by berating him in public. And the fact that she is a woman adds fuel to the fire. Gabriel can not handle having his flaws pointed out, especially in public and most definitely by a woman. Gabriel's failure to his culture allows him to remain disconnected with himself, escalates his inability to connect with others.

The final blow to Gabriel's faltering identity comes at the end of the story, when he learns of the relationship between his wife Gretta and Michael Furey. After the party, Gretta tells Gabriel how the song "The Lass of Aughrim" reminded her of her former love. She also tells him how Michael died after coming to visit her. This news completely shatters Gabriel. First, to know that Gretta loved someone before him is incomprehensible to him. Then he fears that all this time, Gretta has been secretly comparing him to Michael. Gabriel begins to question his entire relationship. Knowing that Gretta has loved someone else brings him to the realization that he has never truly known love or known himself: "Generous tears filled Gabriel's eyes. He had never felt like that himself towards any woman but knew that such feeling must be love…His own identity was fading out into a grey impalpable world…" (Joyce 59). This discovery leads Gabriel to question his existence and he realizes that he has not truly been living.

Gabriel's fragile identity is reminiscent of the troubles that author James Joyce experienced. Although not entirely autobiographical, the story does reflect some of the issues that Joyce and some of his characters dealt with: namely the relationship between man and country. Like Joyce, Gabriel often grappled with the balance of allegiance to his mother country and his job. This basic crack in his identity serves as the foundation for all of the questions that arise about who he really is. Gabriel is ultimately unable to resolve his issues and in the end is left feeling more isolated than ever before.

Works Cited

Joyce, James. "The Dead." The Dead: Complete, Authoritative Text with Biographical and Historical Contexts, Critical History, and Essays from Five Contemporary Critical Perspectives. ed. Daniel R. Schwarz. New York: Bedford Books, 1994: 21-58.

Schwarz, Daniel. "Gabriel Conroy's Psyche: Character as Concept in Joyce's "The Dead." The Dead: Complete, Authoritative Text with Biographical and Historical Contexts, Critical History, and Essays from Five Contemporary Critical Perspectives. ed. Daniel R. Schwarz. New York: Bedford Books, 1994: 102-124.