The Setting In Araby Essay Sample

In the story Araby, a boy develops a crush on a girl. He tells her he will bring her something back from the town bazaar. He arrives as it is closing and lacks enough money to buy something nice. He realizes that his view of the girl was a fantasy. The setting is described through imagery which highlights the conflict between the boy’s idealized view of the girl and the real person.
The first contrasting images are light vs. darkness. The boy uses darkness to hide. On the first page, the narrator states "If my uncle was seen turning the corner, we hid in the shadow until we had seen him safely housed.” The narrator also uses shadows to hide in and watch the girl from as well as a place to watch his friends play in the light.
The second contrasting images are mundane vs. sacred. Christian structures are important parts of the setting such as the Christian Boy’s School and the girl’s convent. The boy also views the girl as if she is holy and worships her. He states, “Her name sprang to my lips at moments in strange prayers and praises.” He sees himself as mundane and not worthy of her.
The final contrasting images are exotic vs. ordinary. The bazaar represents exotic far off places. It is held in, “a big hall girded at half its height by a gallery”. This is contrasted to the ordinary life the boy lives in Dublin, described with phrases such as, “dark muddy lanes behind the houses,” and “the dark dripping gardens where odours arose from the ashpits.”
In conclusion imagery is used effectively in Araby to represent the conflict within the setting and the conflict between the boy’s idealized view of the girl and the real person.
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