Counterparts

by

James Joyce

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Farrington Character Analysis

Farrington is the protagonist of the story and Mr. Alleyne’s employee. He works in a legal office as a copy clerk, meaning he copies legal contracts by hand (in Ireland in the early 1900s, typewritten documents weren’t considered official or legally binding, so contracts had to be handwritten by a clerk). Even though he clearly has his faults—like spending all of his money on alcohol or taking out his pent-up anger on his son Tom—Farrington is constantly emasculated and insulted throughout the story, especially at the hands of his boss, making him a somewhat sympathetic, even comic, character. However, as the story unfolds, Farrington shifts from a hapless office drone who simply detests the monotony of his job to a man who is deeply troubled in many other aspects of life. He is progressively exposed as a fantasist, imagining himself attractive to women in the street while Joyce continually draws the reader’s attention to Farrington’s drink-sodden ugliness (his moustache is flecked with saliva and beer, his face is “wine-dark,” and he moves around “heavily”). He also clearly has a problem with alcohol, as he plans his days around drinking and even pawns his watch so that he has money to spend at the pub. By the time he arm-wrestles with an English man named Weathers, it is clear that Farrington is a man who is drunken, frustrated, and angry—not just a bored man working a tedious job. Besides underscoring Farrington’s deep discontent in life, the arm-wrestling scene also paints Farrington as the embodiment of Ireland who is being repeatedly squashed—and downright humiliated—by Great Britain (Ireland didn’t declare independence until 1919, 14 years after Joyce originally penned “Counterparts”). The final part of the story, when Farrington beats his son Tom for seemingly no reason, drives home the intense frustration, anger, and despair boiling up inside of Farrington. Unable to adequately take his anger out on his oppressors, Farrington lets his discontent fester and infect every inch of his life.

Farrington Quotes in Counterparts

The Counterparts quotes below are all either spoken by Farrington or refer to Farrington. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Resentment, Anger, and Indignity Theme Icon
).
Counterparts Quotes

The bell rang furiously and, when Miss Parker went to the tube, a furious voice called out in a piercing North of Ireland accent. “Send Farrington here!”

Related Characters: Mr. Alleyne (speaker), Farrington
Page Number: 82
Explanation and Analysis:

A spasm of rage gripped his throat for a few moments and then passed, leaving after it a sharp sensation of thirst. The man recognized the sensation and felt he must have a good night’s drinking.

Related Characters: Farrington, Mr. Alleyne
Related Symbols: Alcohol
Page Number: 83
Explanation and Analysis:

His head was not clear and his mind wandered away to the glare and rattle of the public-house. It was a night for hot punches. He struggled on with his copy, but when the clock struck five he had still fourteen pages to write. Blast it! He couldn’t finish it in time. He longed to execrate aloud, to bring his fist down on something violently.

Related Characters: Farrington
Related Symbols: Alcohol
Page Number: 86
Explanation and Analysis:

He felt strong enough to clear out the whole office singlehanded. His body ached to do something, to rush out and revel in violence. All the indignities of his life enraged him […] he knew where he would meet the boys: Leonard and O’Halloran and Nosey Flynn. The barometer of his emotional nature was set for a spell of riot.

Related Characters: Farrington, Mr. Alleyne, Paddy Leonard, O’Halloran, Nosey Flynn
Page Number: 86
Explanation and Analysis:

“You—know—nothing. Of course you know nothing,” said Mr. Alleyne. “Tell me,” he added, glancing first for approval to the lady beside him, “do you take me for a fool? Do you think me an utter fool?” The man glanced from the lady’s face to the little egg-shaped head and back again; and, almost before he was aware of it, his tongue had found a felicitous moment: “I don’t think, sir,” he said, “that that’s a fair question to put to me.”

Related Characters: Farrington (speaker), Mr. Alleyne (speaker), Miss Delacour
Page Number: 87
Explanation and Analysis:

He came out of the pawn-office joyfully, making a little cylinder, of the coins between his thumb and fingers. In Westmoreland street the footpaths were crowded with young men and women […] the man passed through the crowd, looking on the spectacle with proud satisfaction and staring masterfully at the office-girls.

Related Characters: Farrington
Related Symbols: Alcohol
Page Number: 88-89
Explanation and Analysis:

“So, I just looked at him—coolly, you know, and looked at her. Then I looked back at him again—taking my time, you know. ‘I don’t think that that’s a fair question to put to me,’ says I.”

Related Characters: Farrington (speaker), Mr. Alleyne, Miss Delacour, Paddy Leonard, O’Halloran, Nosey Flynn, Higgins
Page Number: 89
Explanation and Analysis:

Weathers was showing his biceps muscle to the company and boasting so much that the other two had called on Farrington to uphold the national honour. Farrington pulled up his sleeve accordingly and showed his biceps muscle to the company. The two arms were examined and compared and finally it was agreed to have a trial of strength.

Related Characters: Farrington, Weathers, Paddy Leonard, O’Halloran
Related Symbols: Arm-Wrestling
Page Number: 91-92
Explanation and Analysis:

Farrington’s dark wine-coloured face flushed darker still with anger and humiliation at having been defeated by such a stripling.

Related Characters: Farrington, Weathers
Related Symbols: Alcohol
Page Number: 92
Explanation and Analysis:

He was full of smoldering anger and revengefulness. He felt humiliated and discontented; he did not even feel drunk; and he had only twopence in his pocket. He cursed everything. He had done for himself in the office, pawned his watch, spent all his money; and he had not even got drunk.

Related Characters: Farrington, Weathers
Related Symbols: Alcohol
Page Number: 93
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Counterparts LitChart as a printable PDF.
Counterparts PDF

Farrington Quotes in Counterparts

The Counterparts quotes below are all either spoken by Farrington or refer to Farrington. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Resentment, Anger, and Indignity Theme Icon
).
Counterparts Quotes

The bell rang furiously and, when Miss Parker went to the tube, a furious voice called out in a piercing North of Ireland accent. “Send Farrington here!”

Related Characters: Mr. Alleyne (speaker), Farrington
Page Number: 82
Explanation and Analysis:

A spasm of rage gripped his throat for a few moments and then passed, leaving after it a sharp sensation of thirst. The man recognized the sensation and felt he must have a good night’s drinking.

Related Characters: Farrington, Mr. Alleyne
Related Symbols: Alcohol
Page Number: 83
Explanation and Analysis:

His head was not clear and his mind wandered away to the glare and rattle of the public-house. It was a night for hot punches. He struggled on with his copy, but when the clock struck five he had still fourteen pages to write. Blast it! He couldn’t finish it in time. He longed to execrate aloud, to bring his fist down on something violently.

Related Characters: Farrington
Related Symbols: Alcohol
Page Number: 86
Explanation and Analysis:

He felt strong enough to clear out the whole office singlehanded. His body ached to do something, to rush out and revel in violence. All the indignities of his life enraged him […] he knew where he would meet the boys: Leonard and O’Halloran and Nosey Flynn. The barometer of his emotional nature was set for a spell of riot.

Related Characters: Farrington, Mr. Alleyne, Paddy Leonard, O’Halloran, Nosey Flynn
Page Number: 86
Explanation and Analysis:

“You—know—nothing. Of course you know nothing,” said Mr. Alleyne. “Tell me,” he added, glancing first for approval to the lady beside him, “do you take me for a fool? Do you think me an utter fool?” The man glanced from the lady’s face to the little egg-shaped head and back again; and, almost before he was aware of it, his tongue had found a felicitous moment: “I don’t think, sir,” he said, “that that’s a fair question to put to me.”

Related Characters: Farrington (speaker), Mr. Alleyne (speaker), Miss Delacour
Page Number: 87
Explanation and Analysis:

He came out of the pawn-office joyfully, making a little cylinder, of the coins between his thumb and fingers. In Westmoreland street the footpaths were crowded with young men and women […] the man passed through the crowd, looking on the spectacle with proud satisfaction and staring masterfully at the office-girls.

Related Characters: Farrington
Related Symbols: Alcohol
Page Number: 88-89
Explanation and Analysis:

“So, I just looked at him—coolly, you know, and looked at her. Then I looked back at him again—taking my time, you know. ‘I don’t think that that’s a fair question to put to me,’ says I.”

Related Characters: Farrington (speaker), Mr. Alleyne, Miss Delacour, Paddy Leonard, O’Halloran, Nosey Flynn, Higgins
Page Number: 89
Explanation and Analysis:

Weathers was showing his biceps muscle to the company and boasting so much that the other two had called on Farrington to uphold the national honour. Farrington pulled up his sleeve accordingly and showed his biceps muscle to the company. The two arms were examined and compared and finally it was agreed to have a trial of strength.

Related Characters: Farrington, Weathers, Paddy Leonard, O’Halloran
Related Symbols: Arm-Wrestling
Page Number: 91-92
Explanation and Analysis:

Farrington’s dark wine-coloured face flushed darker still with anger and humiliation at having been defeated by such a stripling.

Related Characters: Farrington, Weathers
Related Symbols: Alcohol
Page Number: 92
Explanation and Analysis:

He was full of smoldering anger and revengefulness. He felt humiliated and discontented; he did not even feel drunk; and he had only twopence in his pocket. He cursed everything. He had done for himself in the office, pawned his watch, spent all his money; and he had not even got drunk.

Related Characters: Farrington, Weathers
Related Symbols: Alcohol
Page Number: 93
Explanation and Analysis: