James Joyce, Exiles

Wim Van Mierlo (University of Loughborough)

The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.4: Irish Writing and Culture, 400-present.
Vol. editors: Paul Delaney (Trinity College Dublin), Anne Markey (Dublin City University), Ian Campbell Ross (Trinity College Dublin), Sinéad Sturgeon (Queen's University Belfast)

Dates

First circulation or publication 1918

Places

Ireland, Republic of (Eire) (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Play

Resources

James Joyce’s only play (published in 1918 by Grant Richards) is often slated as being flawed, a drawing room drama not on a par with the innovative style of his other writings, poor in comparison with the (post-)modern developments in twentieth-century drama from Beckett to Pinter, and showing all too deliberately the influence of Henrik Ibsen. When considered on its own merits, however, the play is not without interest or dramatic force. It has a psychological intensity—and tension—which Joyce called “collective practical realism” and which has a high symbolical meaning. Thematically, Exiles is integral to Joyce’s work. It features all of his themes—passion, betrayal, spiritual and artistic freedom, idealism …

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879 words

Citation: Van Mierlo, Wim. "Exiles". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 04 December 2009 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=5240, accessed 26 November 2024.]

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