Illusion and Reality in "Araby"

In James Joyce's short story "Araby," written in 1905, but first published in 1914 in Dubliners (Merriam Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature, p. 611) a young boy experiences his first sexual awakening, and finds himself endlessly fantasizing about "Mangan's sister," who lives in a house near his own. As Joyce describes Mangan's sister, from the boy's perspective "Her dress swung as she moved her body and the soft rope of her hair tossed from side to side." He cannot pull his image of Mangan's sister from his mind, even long enough to say his prayers. Thoughts of Mangan's sister interfere impede his concentration at school. Without understanding why, the picture inside his head of Mangan's sister, distorted or real, takes on iconic significance, substituting for reality in a way far more, in fact deliciously, exciting. However, by the end of the story, the young boy's axis...
[ View Full Essay]