Dubliners

Dubliners is a collection of 15 short stories by James Joyce, published in 1914. Written largely between 1904 and 1907, the book depicts life in Dublin at the turn of the 20th century, focusing on ordinary men and women navigating family, work, religion, and social expectations. The stories trace a progression from childhood to adult awareness, and are known for their portrayal of paralysis—spiritual, psychological, and social—and for moments of sudden revelation Joyce calls epiphanies. Style-wise, the work is marked by close observation, realist detail, and the use of free indirect discourse.

Joyce encountered obstacles in securing publication; a revised edition was published in 1914 by Grant Richards in London after he modified several stories to satisfy censors and public sensibilities. Although initial reception was mixed, Dubliners came to be regarded as a foundational work of modernist fiction and a major influence on later short-story writers.

Several stories are among Joyce's best known, including Araby, Eveline, and the final tale The Dead, which is often treated as the collection's thematic centerpiece. The collection is arranged to chart a movement from childhood to experience and disillusionment within the city’s quiet routines.

Dubliners has inspired numerous adaptations for stage and screen, including the 1987 film The Dead, directed by John Huston, which adapts the final story and is widely regarded as a high point of Joyce-inspired cinema. The work remains a cornerstone of modernist literature and a frequent subject of literary study for its technique, themes, and portrait of Dublin.