... for a comedy. But there is nothing comic about Joyce's vision, for each of the three principal characters are trapped in a web of social expectations and constraints from which it proves impossible to escape. For example, society expects Mrs. Mooney to be the passive spouse in a patriarchal household. Even ... reproach, even as it makes that goal unattainable. Society also expects Polly Mooney to marry and raise a family of her own. But, as Joyce notes, the boarding house is "beginning to get a certain fame," and therefore inducing a respectable man to propose to Polly would be difficult...

• Word Count: 2723
• Approx Pages: 11
• Grade Level: High School