Just as in the story “Araby,” Joyce uses the color brown to signify the dreariness of Dublin. However in this particular story, he also contrasts it with the new red houses that are being built on Eveline’s street. So here, brown represents Eveline’s childhood image of Dublin, and red represents the changes that have happened in Dublin since Eveline has become an adult. This contrast from brown to red is a change, but it is a very small one. Eveline knows that Dublin is changing, but the changes are tiny in comparison to the changes that moving to an entirely different country would present.
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Brown and Red Symbol Timeline in Eveline
The timeline below shows where the symbol Brown and Red appears in Eveline. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Eveline
...that it smells like “dusty cretonne” (heavy fabric used for upholstery) and that she is tired. There is hardly anyone outside, but she notices a man who lives in the last...
(full context)
