The Boarding House, By James Joyce (1914)

 The Boarding House, By James Joyce (1914)

8/10

 

Although the characters act very calculative and gloomy throughout the whole story, I think this story has a happy ending.

Mrs. Mooney is a cunning woman, forged from a hard life. Jack Mooney is a hot headed and violent, while Polly Mooney is too shallow minded. Bob Doran is a feeble minded man who finds it hard to make choices. None of the characters are even near perfect, and most of the relationships between them are hard to call positive.

However, all these negative aspects of the characters make the story more relatable and life-like.

People tend to fantasize about concepts such as love. We expect it to be dramatic and beautiful in every way. Joyce portrayed Bob’s love with Polly as a clumsy, unexpected affair, like love in real life.

So let us forget about the Madam’s plans, and let us forget about Jack’s mitts. If Polly and Bob loved each other, nothing else matters. Since they are getting married, I would like to bless them a happy life together.

I enjoyed the atmosphere and the ending very much, so I rated it eight out of ten. 

(188 words)

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