An Analysis into Joyce’s Narrative Devices and the Realization of Epiphany in “The Dead”

Abstract

“The Dead” is the last piece in James Joyce’s Dubliners. Epiphany is the basis of his renowned stream of consciousness. It describes the sudden revelation which is the climax of people’s psychological activities. The realization of the climax of Epiphany in his work not only relies on the characterization and symbolism, but also on the application of various narrative devices. The realization of Epiphany in “The Dead” is linear in protagonist’s mental activity. Joyce mainly uses two narrative devices to promote the mental process of realizing Epiphany, one is the alternation of focalization, the other is the transformation of narrative movements. These two narrative devices are both closely connected with the realization of Epiphany. Studying the process of realization of climax of Epiphany in “The Dead” from the perspective of narratology is not only conducive to exploring its narrative strategy in depth, but also beneficial to exploring the literary value and novel art of “The Dead” in form of expression.