In James Joyce's "Araby", readers are drawn into a young boy's quest for discovery. The beginning of the story paints a picture of Dublin, a place described as rather dark and lonely. This is a coming-of-age story, which peers into the mind of a boy teetering on the edge between adolescence and adulthood. The main theme of this story shows readers the struggles of a boy on a journey to discover reality versus fantasy, as well as darkness versus light. The story, being mostly pessimistic or indifferent, shows a transition from darkness to light as Mangan's sister enters and exits the picture. This is a boy's journey to find the light, as far as its form is concerned, in an otherwise dark existence. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay From the beginning of the story, we see Dublin as a dark and somewhat isolated place. The first line reads: “NORTH RICHMOND STREET, being blind, was a quiet street except at the time when the Christian Brothers' School released the boys” (Paragraph 1). The narrator goes on to say, “When the short days of winter came, dusk fell before we had had a good dinner. When we met in the streets the houses had become gloomy… the street lamps raised their feeble lanterns” (Paragraph 3). A clear picture of what Dublin looked and felt like for the boy is portrayed throughout the story. The darkness and isolation he experiences lays the foundation for his desire for excitement and adventure, which gets lost in what is reality and fantasy. The boy's infatuation with Mangan's sister draws him further into this fantasy. Describing how he would observe her, he says, “She waited for us, her figure defined by the light from the half-open door” (paragraph 3). Interactions with Mangan's sister, whether direct or indirect, begin his desire to find light in his dark world. There are many rhetorical figures present in “Araby”. Alliteration can be seen with the text "...at the back gates of the dark dripping gardens" (paragraph 3). This draws the reader's attention to focus on the dark images described. Another example of alliteration is shown in “… a large hall surrounded half its height by a gallery” (Paragraph 17). Reading this line, the alliteration stops readers for just a moment to absorb the description of the bazaar. As the narrator describes the dark stables the boys encounter, a metaphor is used as the coachman says he "shook the music from the fastened harnesses" (paragraph 3) of the horses. In describing his confused adoration for Mangan's sister, he uses a simile when he says “but my body was like a harp and his words and gestures were like fingers running on strings” (Paragraph 6). Personification is seen in “All my senses seemed to desire to veil themselves” (paragraph 6). Finally, hyperbole is used with the text: “After an intolerable delay the train slowly left the station. He crawled forward…” (paragraph 16). Due to the strong desire and rush to get to Arabia and the impatience he felt, the boy had the feeling that the train was moving slowly when, in reality, we know that this was not the case. Maintaining a rather solemn and somber tone throughout the story, the narrator only deviates from this when Mangan's sister is introduced. As long as the narrator is focused on her, the mood remains optimistic and bright. It becomes his emotional escape from his boring existence; his trip to Arabia becomes his physical escape. Once he arrives in Araby, he is greeted with disappointment and the mood of the story becomes 2014.