Themes

Identity 

An important theme of the short story “The Dead” by James Joyce is identity.

Gabriel struggles with his personal identity versus his national identity, perceiving the two as incompatible. He prefers to spend his holidays abroad, “partly to keep in touch with the language and partly for a change.” He has no reservations about writing for an anti-nationalistic magazine, and he justifies his actions by claiming that “literature is above politics”. He even says that “ ‘Irish is not my language’ ”, and he is “ ‘sick of my own country.’ ” This shows that, not only is he against nationalistic propaganda, as represented by Miss Ivors, but he goes as far as to deny his own national identity.

However, during his speech, Gabriel praises the “genuine warm-hearted courteous Irish hospitality, which our forefathers have handed down t...