James Joyce’s only play (published in 1918 by Grant Richards) is often slated as being flawed, a drawing room drama not on a par with the innovative style of his other writings, poor in comparison with the (post-)modern developments in twentieth-century drama from Beckett to Pinter, and showing all too deliberately the influence of Henrik Ibsen. When considered on its own merits, however, the play is not without interest or dramatic force. It has a psychological intensity—and tension—which Joyce called “collective practical realism” and which has a high symbolical meaning. Thematically,

is integral to Joyce’s work. It features all of his themes—passion, betrayal, spiritual and artistic freedom, idealism in art and life, nationalism—in a compact microcosm that,…

879 words

Citation: Van Mierlo, Wim. "Exiles". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 04 December 2009 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=5240, accessed 27 November 2024.]