When his story is told in this subject-less structure, Mr. His refusal to participate in life or undertake any identity at all is a wholly internalized system of oppression for Mr. It is as though he fears punishment for living. Duffy’s description reads like a carefully constructed confession in which the writer is wary of implicating himself in any action whatsoever.

Duffy obviously made the bookcase and clothed the bed, yet any mention of him or his actions is intentionally omitted. The bed was clothed with white bed-clothes and a black and scarlet rug covered the foot.” Mr. The narrator begins, “A bookcase had been made in an alcove by means of shelves of white wood. Duffy’s house that, though clearly expressing his perspective, is entirely in passive voice. To illustrate, the story opens with a free indirect discourse description of Mr. Duffy is fully aware of his “autobiographical habit” and embraces it in his dedication to monotony in every day life. It also diminishes all verbs and actions by putting them in the past tense predicate. Duffy narrates his world minimizes and sense of himself. He had an odd autobiographical habit which led him to compose in his mind from time to time a short sentence about himself containing a subject in the third person and a predicate in the past tense.” The language with which Mr. Duffy “lived at a little distance from his body, regarding his own acts with doubtful side-glances. Joyce makes this artfully apparent in the language of the story, particularly in Mr. He worships monotony and anonymity in such a way that seems to paralyze his very existence.

James Duffy seems to live in a constant effort to minimize his impact on the world.

A painful case james joyce