Language and Identity in James Joyce's "The Dead" Often heralded as one of the greatest short stories in the

Western Canon, James Joyce's complex narrative "The Dead," which serves as his final chapter in the collection of stories making up the book Dubliners, explores the intricate issues of identity and power through the lens of language, patriarchy, and imperialism. These issues are directly tied to the longstanding political turmoil of his native Ireland and the social questions of his day. Joyce, through his text, asserts that words have a power all their own and although the protagonist seeks to align himself with what he views as the superior and powerful identity of a British man he is, in fact, impotent. Despite the intense effort to separate himself from what is Irish and what is feminine, Gabriel Conroy finds that he ultimately fails as he is unable to effectively communicate, relate to or impress his peers, or even to woo his own wife. Joyce draws a parallel between this antihero and the problematic national identity of his native Ireland. The underlying themes of colonialism and patriarchy inherent in the story are highlighted by the tale of a simple holiday party that is laced with the juxtaposition of the archetypal conflicts: "male vs. female," "Irish vs. British," "old vs. young," and "success vs. failure." These oppositional forces create a world in which Gabriel Conroy cannot be truly sure of himself as an Irishman or as a husband. Gabriel arrives at his aunts holiday party as the potential hero of the tale. He is welleducated, well-off, and the favorite nephew. Joyce informs the reader immediately of where Gabriels values lie. He appears in the doorway and answers his aunts who have been searching for him: Here I am as right as the mail, Aunt Kate! Go on up. Ill follow, called out Gabriel from the dark. (Joyce 153). Gabriel has yet to fully enter onto the scene. He is still standing in the dark and yet the reader is informed that Gabriel has deep British ties. In his essay Empire and Patriarchy in The Dead Vincent Cheng argues that issues of gender and imperialism are

1
Megan Applegate

clearly intertwined. The Royal Mail was a notoriously imperial institution (often vandalized by colonial insurrectionists) (Cheng 349). Not only does Gabriel invoke a Royalist institution from the dark hallway, but the synonyms are in play as well: both the empire and the male ego are employed in the activity (the masculist-imperialist ideological formation) of making judgments and hierarchical distinctions between what is central (as right as the mail/male) and what is marginal (Cheng 349). If Gabriels self-righteousness is alluded to upon his arrival at the party it is only furthered by his initial interaction with Lilly, the serving girl. As she is clearly beneath him socially and is in keeping with stereotypical gender roles, Gabriel feels sure of himself in her presence. He flippantly suggests that she should be getting married because she has finished school. Lillys responds harshly: The men that is now is only all palaver and what they can get out of you (Joyce 154). Lilly refuses to play the role of the demure feminine voice, by laughing off his tactless assumption and flattering his ego. It is a role reversal that Gabriel is unprepared for: Gabriel coloured as if he felt he had made a mistake (Joyce 154). While he insists on giving her a tip as a method of achieving the final word, it is her statement that haunts him. He was still discomposed by the girls bitter and sudden retort. It had cast a gloom over him which he tried to dispel by arranging his cuffs and the bows of his tie (Joyce 155). She has had the greater impact; her words have carried more weight. Gabriel begins to be increasingly concerned over finding the right words as the means to regaining his position of authority. It is no surprise that Gabriel believes that language is the key to attaining a sense of power for himself. His status is secured by the fact that he is a published author, a teacher, and has the honor of presenting the speech for the evening. He considers himself far more educated and well-read than many of his peers attending the gala, and this fact serves as both a source of pride and concern for him as he crafts his party speech: He would only make himself ridiculous

2
Megan Applegate

by quoting poetry to them which they could not understand. They would think he was airing his superior education. He would fail with them just as he had failed with the girl in the pantry. He had taken up the wrong tone. His whole speech was a mistake from first to last, an utter failure (Joyce 155). For Gabriel words are inherently dangerous, as evidenced by his frequent and semiprofound embarrassment. This fear of language stems from the very nature of the power of words: the ability to define us. As theorist Ferdinand de Saussure maintained: Without language, thought is a vague, uncharted nebula. There are no preexisting ideas, and nothing is distinct before the appearance of language (966-967). The power of language is then embedded in its ability to define thought, to give rise to stories, culture, and history. Thus Gabriel fears that while language gives him his feeling of superiority, it can also be his undoing. Reflecting Joyces own conflicted national identity, Gabriel does not want to fulfill the English stereotype of the Irish as Catholic, poor, and ignorant (from Critical Writings of James Joyce, qtd. Cheng 167) nor does he want to be labeled West Briton! by the likes of the frigid nationalist Miss Ivors (Joyce 165). Gabriels inability to come to terms with who he is leads to his inability to use language in a meaningful way. This in turn results in his inability to establish himself as a man on a sexual level as well. Despite his intense longing for his wife, aroused towards the end of the evening, the story climaxes not with his seduction of his spouse, but with his discovery that she had been in love before and that suitor had died for love of her. Michael Fury had stood in the rain and sang under her window, caught consumption, and died. At this revelation, A vague terror seized Gabriel at this answer as if, at that hour when he had hoped to triumph, some impalpable and vindictive being was coming against him (Joyce 191). In the end, it is not the archetypal, patriarchal positions of power that hold any sway: it is the romantic, wild, feminine Queen Shive

3
Megan Applegate

of Ireland and Michael Fury who are the true heroes of "The Dead." Gabriels desire to provide himself with a more authoritative identity has in fact stripped him of any real power in his relationships. In his fear of becoming a failure, he has become one. He stands ineffective and ridiculous at the end of the story. Joyces subtle and haunting story of lost love, heritage, and self is a fixture in classrooms and libraries because while it emphasizes the uniquely Irish experience of the author, it also taps into our universal experiences as human beings. Hero or not, Gabriels struggle with selfdefinition is commonplace. We all have been guilty of trying to identify with the popular social and political trends of our day in an effort to feel that we are people of substance: people who matter. Joyces story reminds us that we often achieve what we sought to avoid by pretending to be what we are not.

4
Megan Applegate

Works Cited Joyce, James. Dubliners, edited by Margot Norris, A Norton Critical Edition, W.W. Norton & Company. New York/ London. 2006 Cheng, Vincet J. Empire and Patriarchy in The Dead. Dubliners, edited by Margot Norris, A Norton Critical Edition, W.W. Norton & Company. New York/London. 2006 Saussure, Ferdinand de. A Course in General Linguistics. Ed. Peter Simon. The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism. W.W. Norton & Company. New York/ London 2001

5
Megan Applegate