Attachment and Loss in the Works of James Joyce

Linda Horsnell

• Publisher: Lexington Books
• Year: 2021
• eBook ISBN: 9781978782709
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Literature
• Subtopic: English Literary Criticism
• Index: Literature

Using John Bowlby's Attachment Theory as a frame of reference, Attachment and Loss in the Works of James Joyce critically analyzes James Joyce's representation of grief. Based on cognitive, emotional and behavioral elements, Attachment Theory allows for new and innovative readings to emerge which differ from those offered by Freudian, Lacanian, and Jungian paradigms. Acknowledging the importance of the Theory of Mind and Reader Response, this book uses the concept of internal working models to elucidate how the childhood experiences with which Joyce has endowed his protagonists ultimately leads to how they respond to loss. The texts of Dubliners, Portrait of the Artist and Ulysses, show how central separation and loss were to Joyce's work. It provides examples of such experiences in different age groups, under differing circumstances and at different stages in the grief process. Attachment Theory highlights the complexity of human relationships throughout the life cycle, not only how they can affect the grief process but how grief affects them.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Contents
• Preface
• Acknowledgments
• Abbreviations
• Introduction
• Theory
• The Development of Attachment Theory
• Attachment Theory
• The Representation of Character and Reader Response
• Attachment Theory and Literary Interpretation
• The Portrayal of the Emotional Impact of Bereavement and Ensuing Grief
• Introduction
• “The Sisters”
• Master Dignam
• “Eveline”
• “The Dead”
• Character Traits and Individual Expressions of Grief: Stephen Dedalus, Leopold Bloom, and Molly Bloom
• Introduction
• Stephen Dedalus
• Leopold and Molly Bloom
• Joyce, Religion, and the Portrayal of the Grief of Stephen Dedalus and Leopold Bloom
• Introduction
• Joyce, Catholicism, and Family
• Stephen Dedalus
• Leopold Bloom
• Summary and Conclusion
• Bibliography
• Index
• About the Author