Joyce's The Dead Commentary
The Dead Commentary Romeo and Juliet Comparison The characters Gabriel and Gretta, of the story “The Dead”, from James Joyce’s The Dubliners, show a strong resemblance to the characters Romeo and Juliet from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. The first time this is evident is on page 126 when Gabriel compares his wife Gretta to a painting. To him, she is an image, so beautiful that she is not of this world. This is similar to the way Romeo view Juliet. To him, she is perfect. These two men hold their women on pedestals making their relationship an unrealistic one. The painting that Gretta is compared to is of a scene from Romeo and Juliet. This is Joyce’s way of helping us make the couple’s connection to the Shakespeare classic. Another moment in the story when Gretta is placed on a pedestal by Gabriel, is on page 144 when she is coming down the stairs. She is listening to a song that is being played on the piano and has an expression of excitement on her face. She has “color on her cheeks…her eyes were shining”. As Gabriel admires her, he gets the feeling that she is imagining him, and desires him.