James Joyces' native city is a place uncomfortably caught between the past and the future, and the people who reside within its walls reflect the moral and physical decline of Irish civilization and culture. Irish nationalism was at its peak in the early 20th Century, and the country was in a desperate search for some sort of national purpose and identity.

The stories in Dubliners, taken as a whole, fit into an overall design that begins with youthful tales in the beginning of the collection, and ends with the themes of aging and death, culminating with "The Dead." This latter story, a novella in length, is perhaps the most prominent in the collection, and was made into a film by John Huston in 1987. A number of the characters in Dubliners go on to make minor appearances in Joyce's masterpiece Ulysses.

It's obvious by the specific geographic details in Dubliners that Joyce was very familiar with the inner workings of this great Irish city. Dublin is shown through the eyes of a variety of characters throughout the stories in this collection, from the wealthy to the poor, the educated to the illiterate, men, women and children.

Unlike many other influential authors of his generation, Joyce avoids making moral judgements about his characters in Dubliners, instead showing them in a realistic, lifelike setting and letting the reader reach his or her own conclusions. As a result, many of the stories lack black-and-white, traditional resolutions that were common in stories and novels written in the 18th and 19th centuries.

Instead of pat resolutions where the reader is essentially told what to think, Joyce prefers moments of bright illumination, a point in the story where one of the characters experiences a flash of self-understanding or self-awareness. In this respect the author was well ahead of his time, and in fact Joyce was a pioneer in this technique, which would become quite popular as the 20th century progressed.

Joyce also experiments with a variety of character viewpoints and writing styles throughout the 15 stories in Dubliners. A section of "Grace" is written as a sermon, for example, and a part of A Painful Case is written as a newspaper story. Joyce shows his flexibility and versatility as a writer, one who's able to match his narrative style depending on the circumstances of the story.

All in all, Dubliners is an impressive collection of stories, giving the reader a window into early 20th century Irish society and all that went with it. Haunting and lyrical, these tales allow a glimpse into a myriad of human experiences, from a variety of characters young and old alike.