Eight Guineas
The eight guineas symbolize both Mrs Kearney’s desire for social status and the outdated beliefs that ultimately undermine that status. When Mrs Kearney and Mr Holohan draw up a contract for Kathleen’s performance…
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Brown
In “A Mother,” Joyce uses the color brown to symbolize the dullness and decline of turn-of-the-20th-century Dublin, particularly the aspects of Dublin that have not changed in so long that they show signs of decay…
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Artistes
The word “artistes” symbolizes Mrs. Kearney’s upper-class pretensions and lack of genuine regard for Irish Nationalism. The French term appears in italics nine times throughout “A Mother,” and only Mrs Kearney ever…
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