The realistic setting of the time and place in the three first paragraphs enables the reader to identify with the protagonist of the story, the young boy. In the opening of the story, James Joyce carefully described the protagonist's neighborhood and surroundings with the use of real names like "North Richmond Street" and "Christian brothers' School". The atmosphere is depicted with the use of allusions to books about deception; "The Abbot, by Walter Scott, The Devout Communicant, The Memoirs of Vidocq and "The Arab's Farewell to his Steed," by Caroline Norton. There is also an allusion to the Irish poet, James Clarence Mangan, from the 19th century that supports the theme of romanticism in the story, the street songs like "come-all-you" who deals with current popular Irish events and heroes and the massive use of insinuation to Christianity. The picture of the somber houses, the macabre atmosphere of death in the description of the priest's room, the darkness of the winter season as well as the contrast between darkness/death and love/romance are all part of the depiction by which James Joyce creates the protagonist.
             The characterization of the boy carries a combination of emotions, beliefs, values, attitudes, desires and ideas in general that turn him into a round character. He has depth and roundness. The boy's character possesses contrast features; contrast between adulthood and adolescence, and between his fantasies and the reality of the adult world. The protagonist in "Araby" has an inner conflict contrasting his adolescence and his sudden entry into the world of adults. He is also capable of self-reflection and judgment as he sees himself at the end of the story as "a creature driven and derided by vanity"(Joyce, 80). All of these features imply the roundness of the character.
             The motif of blindness over the course of the story, help us understand the change and development that the character is going through. The words...