Human Identity in The DeadThe short story "The Dead" is the final Dubliners story, but it is characteristic of a number of previous stories. In the first story, “The Sisters,” a young boy is faced with the death of an influential figure in his life. The women of “Eveline” and “Clay” are haunted by death: Eveline, by the memory of her mother, and Maria, by the omen of her own death. “A Painful Case” is the story of the tragic death of a rejected woman. A deceased political figure is behind "Ivy Day in the Committee Room." All these stories revolve around the characters' pain and experiences facing death. “The Dead” by James Joyce shows the ability of a person's death to discourage one in future relationships and experiences. This short story expresses the emotions of a husband whose romantic connection between his wife and a man who died years ago forces him to realize that he is a chapter in his wife's life in which he has no part. Gabriel Conroy and his wife, Gretta, attend the annual "Miss Morkan's Dance", hosted by his two aunts, Kate and Julian Morkan. At the ball, Gretta twice remembers her past love, Michael Furey. First, a friend invites Gretta and Gabriel to Galway, the place where she had her relationship with Michael. Second, a song sung by Mr. D'Arcy, "The Lass of Aughrim", reminds him of the song Michael had sung to him on their long walks across the country. Gabriel, oblivious to her affection and anticipating a romantic evening, takes her to a hotel realizing that "they had escaped from their lives and their duties." When he questions Gretta's apathetic mood, she tells him the tragic story of Michael's illness and how ...... middle of paper ...... reward for their courage. Gabriel is faced with this question when he imagines his aunt Julia and Michael Furey. Michael died with passion, while his aunt Julia slowly withered away. Gabriel fears that he could have a fate, die a common death. Dubliners is important in various literary and intellectual respects. A separation between author and story occurs in some stories, such that the author must show details in his words and actions, rather than making comments, to evoke the intended images and messages. One must draw on personal experiences in order to establish one's own feelings about the meaning of the experiences of the characters in the stories. James Joyce makes universal generalizations about human identity through his knowledge of a city, Dublin