Love is often one of the most powerful motivators. Love can inspire acts of extreme bravery, break hearts, and can even force a person to move forward and grow. In this novel, Arabia is a mess that conveys a motley mix of pseudo-oriental romanticism and blatant commercialism. For one shilling, as the advertisement said, one could visit "Araby in Dublin" and at the same time help Jervis Street (Stone) Hospital. What does love have to do with a foreign mess? In the short story, a young boy secretly falls in love with a girl and promises to bring her a gift from Arabia. In the end, he fails to bring her a gift and is heartbroken when he realizes that everything was and would have been in vain. Love, and more importantly, the lack of it, is one of the greatest motivators for coming of age and transitioning into adulthood. The story is written from the boy's point of view and allows for an extremely emotional perspective as his deepest feelings are revealed. . The author, James Joyce, includes many details that reference his own past experiences and help connect the story to his own life. It is widely believed that "Araby" is actually an autobiographical experience from Joyce's early childhood. Although Joyce never referred to the short story autobiographically, a number of connections can be made. For example, the boy from “Araby” and James Joyce both grew up on North Richmond Street. “North Richmond Street is blind, with a two-story detached house at the blind end and, down the street, as the opening paragraph informs us, the Christian Brothers School” (Stone). Furthermore, many critics have associated the boy's aunt and uncle with Joyce's parents as they bear striking similarities such as his father's drunkenness, irregular...... middle of paper.. .... is a very strange feeling for an inexperienced young person. feels completely alone in the world, cut off from all connections, uncertain whether the port to which he is heading can be reached, and prevented by numerous obstacles from returning to the one he left. (Brontë). The boy may be temporarily hurt by the experience of realizing his own futility, but it will also inspire him to mature and become a better man. Works Cited Joyce, James. Dubliners.: Modern Library, 1969. Print.Norris, Margot. “The blindness of the narrator.” Bloom's literature. Facts about File, Inc. Web. March 7, 2014 Russell, John. "From style to meaning in 'Araby'." College English 28.2 (1966): 170-71. Print.Stone, Harry. “‘Araby’ and the writings of James Joyce.” The Antioch Review 25.3 (1965): 375-410. Print.Brontë, Charlotte. Jane Eyre: an autobiography. Leipzig: Tauchnitz, 1850. Print.