Counterparts

by

James Joyce

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Themes and Colors
Resentment, Anger, and Indignity Theme Icon
Fantasy, Reality, and Escapism Theme Icon
Masculinity Theme Icon
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Counterparts, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.

Resentment, Anger, and Indignity

James Joyce’s “Counterparts” follows a hapless legal clerk names Farrington, who comes to resent the (perceived or real) injustices inflicted upon him. He is, at least in his mind, bullied and hounded by his boss, Mr. Alleyne, into copying a monotonous contract. He is ignored by a woman in a pub on whom he has his eye. He is beaten in an arm-wrestling match by an English “artiste” named Weathers

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Fantasy, Reality, and Escapism

In “Counterparts,” Joyce depicts Farrington, the story’s protagonist, as an escapist and a fantasist. From the story’s start, Farrington longs to go the pub instead of working in his office. His mind keeps wandering away from his desk (at one point he even physically leaves the office to have a quick pint), and he fantasizes about how happy alcohol, the pub, and gossiping with his friends will make him. And when he makes…

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Masculinity

Throughout the story, Farrington engages in activities typically associated with a pronounced, stereotypical masculinity: drinking and getting drunk, fighting (in this case, arm-wrestling), showing off, and flirting. However, all of Farrington’s efforts are exposed to eventual ridicule. Throughout “Counterparts,” Joyce criticizes traditional masculinity by showing how it imposes an ethic of humiliation or victory and of mastery or defeat, making it a primary source of Farrington’s anger and resentment. In the end, subscribing to…

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