ENC 1102 Essay: A Comparative Analysis of Love in 'Araby' and Poetry

This essay provides a personal commentary on the phenomenon of adolescent infatuation, drawing insights from the short story "Araby" and the poem "Veronica's Poetry." The author explores the themes of love, loneliness, and disillusionment, reflecting on the blindness of love, the end of innocence, and the illusion of the "eidolon." The essay also offers a character description and personal estimation of Gordon in "Veronica's Poetry," portraying him as a shy individual who struggles with his feelings and societal expectations. The analysis suggests that love can be a source of both enchantment and confusion, particularly for young people navigating the complexities of their emotions. The essay concludes by examining how the characters' experiences shed light on the nature of love and its impact on individuals.

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Araby and Veronica’s poetry
Teenage love is one of the greatest and most fascinating events in one’s life. It is a stage
in life when an individual is going to venture in a completely new word of confusion and a whole
turn around in feelings. Being a very sensitive stage in life, it takes a lot of concern by the people
around the teenager to help go through the process of self- discovery.
In the short story, Araby, we encounter a young boy who just hit the adolescence age.. In
my own opinion, when the boy noticed Mangan’s sister, he was afraid to approach her and even
express his feelings towards her. This did not happen because the boy might not have had an
opportunity to open up to anyone before. Falling in love with this girl served as an eye opener to
the boy who has now found something to adore. He spends most of his time thinking about her
and this always preoccupied his mind to an extend that he does not have anything else to do. He
no longer plays with his friends as he used to, he even waits for her to leave her house then he
would follow closely without speaking. This is the kind of loneliness he goes through all for
love. This boy fell in love with Mangan’s sister who he doesn’t know. This affirms how love is
blind and is unseen. The girl is not able to tell that he is in love with her while the boy is hoping
that he could attend the bazaar and would buy something nice to show how much he loves her.
However, this does not happen and the boy feels disillusioned. What he thought was going to

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help him convince the girl about his love for her failed because he could not make it there on
time. This affirms that love is overrated for young people. What we think is love, is not really
what it really is. This story tells us that love is a fantasy and as long as one party feels love for
the other, if not confessed, the other party might not be in a position to notice or feel the same.
According to Veronica’s poetry, I understand the character of Gordon as a very shy
person who is only showing off when he is in company of his friends but deep inside he is not
that brave. His pretentious habit is a mechanism he uses to hide his true feelings. He cannot
allow himself to be intimidated by the fact that he is actually in love with veronica. He keeps
listening to what his friends describe as the type of a girl he likes which is a total contradiction to
how Veronica looks. It is clear that this hurts him deep inside but he cannot come to terms with
the fact that he loves her.
Gordon is indecisive in that he cannot take a stand on his own considering matters of the
heart. He only wants to go as per the standards set by his peers who also happen to be as
confused as he is. The young boy cannot handle the pressure of his feelings towards Veronica
and he cannot allow himself to read the poems written by Veronica. He probably can’t bring
down his ego.
Confusion creeps in when he learns that the girl he loved was actually seeing someone
else. Gordon runs away from all this and he even relocates over summer holiday to stay with his
family friends. This happens because he could not come to terms with the fact that he had lost
the battle even before the kickoff.