The southernmost of three favorite vacation spots for the Kearney family in “A Mother,” Greystones is situated about 17 miles (27 km) south of Dublin’s city center on the eastern coast of Ireland. It is a small fishing village that became a popular summer holiday retreat when the railroad connected the town to Dublin in 1855. […]
Tag: a mother
Skerries
Located on the east coast of Ireland 18 miles north of Dublin, Skerries is a town comprising part of the coastline and a group of islands in the Irish Sea. The seaside locale is mentioned twice in Dubliners as a vacation destination frequented by the Kearney family in “A Mother:” “Every year in the month of July […]
London
Note: The following text is that of the author’s presentation at the XXV James Joyce Symposium held in London in June 2016. The original, shorter London entry can be found here. Across the Water: Economic and Political Implications of the Dubliners London References Dubliners, the work through which Joyce initially sought to “betray the soul of […]
Queen’s Theatre
The Queen’s Royal Theatre, which operated from 1844 to 1907 and 1909 to 1969, appears in “A Mother” as a venue where one of the artistes once performed. The theatre, often called simply the Queen’s Theatre or the Queen’s, was characteristically known as a venue for comic and musical acts. It was one of several popularly attended theatres […]
Antient Concert Rooms
The Antient Concert Rooms, located at 52 Great Brunswick Street (now Pearse Street) from 1842 to 1921, is the primary setting in “A Mother” and is mentioned again briefly in “The Dead.” In “A Mother,” Mrs. Kearney is unsurprised when her daughter’s skills as an accompanist are solicited by Mr. Holohan for “a series of four […]
Ormond Quay
Ormond Quay is one of many waterfront spans of street lining the Liffey in central Dublin. Situated on the north bank, its upper (western) and lower (eastern) sections are bisected by Capel Street as it becomes Grattan Bridge. In association with Joyce’s works, it’s perhaps most recognized as the location of the Ormond Hotel, the setting for […]
London
Referenced in six stories, London consistently carries connotations of economic dependence or opportunity for the Dubliners who were, at the dawn of the twentieth century, experiencing rather dismal prospects in the marketplace. In fact, much of the paralysis depicted in the collection stems from characters’ vocational or financial challenges. As Joseph Kelly very clearly puts […]
Howth
Cited in both “Eveline” and “A Mother” as a leisure destination, Howth has long been a popular retreat for picnicers, hikers, and fishers. It’s a peninsula northeast of the Dublin city center, reachable today by the DART line and in Joyce’s day by tramline. Howth is never a direct setting in either story but instead […]
Marlborough Street
This week’s featured place is Marlborough Street, where Mrs. Mooney of “The Boarding House” plans to attend mass after her confrontation with Bob Doran: “It was seventeen minutes past eleven: she would have lots of time to have the matter out with Mr. Doran and then catch short twelve at Marlborough Street” (64). “Short twelve” […]