The Dead
“The Dead” is the final story in James Joyce’s short story collection Dubliners. Because of its length, “The Dead” has frequently been classified as novella. Joyce first attempted to publish the collection in 1905. By the time he succeeded publishing it in 1914, he had already been rejected by 15 publishers. Today it is considered one of the best short stories in the English language and in 1987 John Huston adapted “The Dead” into a film.
Summary of “The Dead”
When the story opens, the Morkan sisters are holding their annual Christmas dinner and dance. Lily, the maid, greets the guests, including the Morkans’ nephew Gabriel Connroy and his wife Gretta. The narrative is told from a close third person perspective, focusing on Gabriel. Throughout the party, Gabriel feels anxious about the speech he must make after dinner, and is portrayed as a well-meaning but pathetic man, who does not actively think about the past. While dancing, Gabriel is flustered by Molly Ivors, an Irish nationalist, when she confronts him about writing for a pro-English paper. At dinner, the guests discuss music and afterwards Gabriel makes his speech. After the party has ended, Gretta walks down the stairs and hears one of the guests singing a song called “The Lass of Aughrim.” Gabriel watches her listening intently, thinking that if he could paint her in that moment he would call the painting “Distant Music.” When the couple leaves, both are deep in thought and deep in memory. Gabriel is lustfully remembering his romantic past with Gretta and looking forward to a sexual encounter at the hotel where they are staying. When they arrive, Gretta breaks down crying, telling Gabriel that the song reminded her of the boy she loved when she was young, living in Galway. The boy, Michael Furey, worked in the gas works but would have studied singing if he had been healthier. Gretta believes that Michael Furey died for her. The night before she was sent away for school, he came to her house in the rain, even though he was sick, and said that he did not want to live. He died shortly after Gretta left. Gretta cries herself to sleep, while Gabriel sits in the hotel room, contemplating the falling snow and his own mortality.
