In James Joyce's "Eveline" as Frank grabs her hand, "A
bell clanged upon her heart." This "bell" is the reminder of all her promises, both to
her mother and the Blessed Margaret Mary Alacoque. Because of the profound influence of
the Catholic Church's teachings and the religious instruction in school, Eveline feels
obligated to these commitments. In addition to the religious implications of her
obligations, there is the prohibitiveness of her running off with a man when Eveline is
not married to him.
Besides these considerations, Eveline
has been conditioned to be servile. She works hard "at business" and at home, subjugated
to her father's demands as he is physically abusive. That she is conditioned to her
servility is evinced in these lines:
It was hard work--a hard life--but now that she
was about to leave it she did not find it a wholly undesirable
life.
Another consideration
of Eveline's hesitation about leaving home with Frank is the fact that he is a sailor
and she is purportedly going to live as his wife in Buenos Ayres, a thriving city which
attracted many European immigrants and adventurers. However, the phrase "Going to Buenos
Ayres" was also slang for taking up a life of prostitution, so whether Frank who will be
gone frequently will make the best of husbands as a sailor whether Buenos Ayres is a
suitable place to live are both dubious. Therefore, when Eveline experiences her
epiphany and suffers her psychological paralysis, there is, indeed, substance to
it.
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