A Brief Analysis of“Green Eyes”in An Encounter

【Abstract】An Encounter is the second story of Dubliners written by James Joyce. In this story， Joyce uses the image of “green eyes” to endow the story with profound meanings. This essay gives a brief analysis of the symbolic meanings of “green eyes” in An Encounter.

【Key word】green eyes; symbolism; conflicts

【作者簡介】黃昱璋，中國人民大學外國語學院。

1. Introduction of An Encounter

In An Encounter， the author describes an “adventure” of two boys in Dublin. Bored with the tedious daily life， the narrator decided to play truancy from school to get involved in a real adventure with his friend Mahony. They took a detour to their destination， the Pigeon House， lest they be discovered by others， which led to their failure. Before they returned home， they encountered a stranger whose words and behavior disgusted and terrified them， from which the narrator learned that the outer world was not so pleasant as he had thought.

This story does not criticize the spiritual paralysis of Dublin directly. Instead， it reveals the maladies of Ireland through the experience of two boys with the use of symbolism. The image of “green eyes” is a representative example of symbolism.

2. Meanings of “Green Eyes”

The image of “green eyes” is used twice in this story to express different meanings.

First， when the narrator arrived at the river and observed the foreign vessels， he “came back and examined the foreign sailors to see had any of them green eyes”， only to find a sailor “whose eyes could have been called green”（Joyce 12）.

Second， when the narrator talked with the “queer old josser”（Joyce 14）， he took notice of the stranger’s green eyes， which instantly astonished and terrified him.

Actually， according to the ancient Greek and Roman mythology， Odysseus， a great hero in the Trojan war， had green eyes， and the image of “green eyes” in An Encounter originates from the myth. However， the meanings of “green eyes” have changed greatly in the story by Joyce.

2.1 The conflict between aspiration and reality

In this story， the narrator was fed up with his school life. In his school， each student had no choice but to follow Father Butler’s instructions， and even the circulation of popular novels was forbidden. The tiresome daily life prompted his imagination of the outer world and his desire for an adventure in which he could be exposed to new things including “green eyes”.

However， the stark reality dealt a blow to the narrator. First， when he got the opportunity to observe the foreign sailors， the vulgar demeanor of the only sailor who had green eyes disappointed the narrator. Second， the narrator encountered an abnormal stranger when he reposed on the bank. The stranger was indulged in his monologue about the enchantment of girls at first， however， after a short leave， he turned to chastise the romance between boys and girls. It was a shock that such a “queer old josser” should have a pair of green eyes. This adventure disillusioned the narrator from his expectation of the outer world， and he also changed his positive impression on “green eyes”.

From above all， “green eyes” reflect the conflict between the aspiration of the narrator and the reality of Dublin. The great aspiration is destined to fail against the backdrop of an abnormal society.

2.2 The conflict between childhood and adulthood

This story is set in the first chapter Childhood of the whole collection. It presents the readers with the pictures of life in Dublin viewed by children， the most innocent and pure group in the world. As for children in Dublin， they are still endowed with the features of their ages before they are confronted with society： they are full of imagination and curiosity; they take a positive attitude towards the world; they are easily attracted by a variety of myths and stories and try to find evidence for them in real life. It is the same with the narrator of this story. He must have heard of stories about sailors with green eyes and have been excited by the thought of exploring “green eyes” in person. The exploration of “green eyes” is a reflection of the innocence and purity of childhood.

Nevertheless， the transition from childhood to adulthood is an indispensable process. For the narrator， he would be exposed to all the evils of society sooner or latter， and this adventure would serve as the start and the accelerator of his growth. Not only did this adventure awaken him from his dream of “green eyes”， it also cast a shadow on his values and notions of the world. He would gradually realize that dull as school was， the rest of Dublin was even more terrible. The thought of “green eyes” would also lose its glory in his mind.

Furthermore， the appearance of “queer old josser” foreshadows the possible future of children like the narrator. From this story， it is clear that the “queer old josser” was once a child living in Dublin. He was likely to have studied in the same school as the narrator did： he had a good accent and was fond of reading， but his normal desire as a human being was suppressed and tortured by the suffocating and dehumanizing education in Dublin. His green eyes， void of innocence and aspiration， as opposed to “green eyes” imagined by the narrator， would appear on the face of the narrator if the narrator did not protest against spiritual paralysis and strain for the betterment of himself.

2.3 The conflict between individual and society

In this story， the “green eyes” of the “queer old josser” terrified the narrator. However， the real amount of “green eyes” in Dublin would terrify most people. Actually， the production of such “green eyes” is not unusual or accidental. Instead， each and every kind of “green eyes” is created by the maladies of society.

The main problems of Ireland can be attributed to two forms of colonization： external colonization and internal colonization. On the one hand， Ireland had been colonized and controlled by Britain for several centuries. Every inch of the territory of Ireland was saturated with blood and fire. Every Irishman was threatened with poverty and misery. On the other hand， Ireland was haunted by the spiritual control of Catholic Church which dominated Irishmen’s spiritual life. The intangible restriction and ubiquitous infiltration of Catholic Church hindered the development of citizens and exacerbated the spiritual paralysis of the unfortunate country. In this story， the ragged boys and girls encountered by two boys indicate the existence of poverty， and the plot that Mahony was screamed because he was mistaken for a Protestant reflects that even children in Dublin was indoctrinated with the conflict between different religious sectors.

3. Conclusion

The image of “green eyes” has several symbolic meanings in An Encounter， including the conflicts between aspiration and reality， the conflicts between childhood and adulthood， and the conflicts between individual and society. From the analysis of the image of “green eyes”， readers can learn that even details in Joyce’s works do matter. A seemingly insignificant word can also become a miniature of an era.

References：

[1]Joyce， James. “An Encounter.” Dubliners[J]. Ware： Wordsworth Editions Ltd，1999.Print.