When Henchy enters the Committee Room after canvassing in the rain, he heads straight to the fire to warm up. The narrator captures this moment using a simile and imagery, as seen in the following passage:
The room was silent again. Then a bustling little man with a snuffling nose and very cold ears pushed in the door. He walked over quickly to the fire, rubbing his hands as if he intended to produce a spark from them.
The simile here—the description of Henchy “rubbing his hands as if he intended to produce a spark from them”—accomplishes two things at once. First, it allows readers to “see” how desperately and fervently Henchy is trying to warm up his hands. This—combined with the other sensory imagery (“bustling little man,” “snuffling nose,” “very cold ears”)—helps readers to fully imagine themselves into the scene, making for a richer reading experience.
The simile also captures something important at the symbolic level. In this story, the fire in the Committee Room represents the state of the Nationalist Party—rather than burning brightly (the way it had when led by Charles Stewart Parnell), it is barely providing any light or warmth. This is Joyce’s way of communicating that the “fire” (or spirit) of the Party is dwindling. That Henchy is unable to easily heat up by the fire—and tries to “produce a spark” from his own hands—shows how lackluster the flames are. Henchy himself—as a young canvasser with no moral compass—is part of the reason why the Party’s future is so bleak.
