"Eveline" - James Joyce

"She set her white face to him, passive, like a helpless animal." (p. 222)

    This is the image I get in my head when I think of Eveline. She knows that danger awaits her if she remains in her old life just as the deer knows that it will be hit by a car if it stays in the middle of the road. Eveline's imminent danger in her life is the abuse with which her father has previously threatened her. She has never been physically abused like her brothers, but she may very well have it in her future if she stays where she is (which she does). Like the deer, she realizes that if she leaves her current position as a clerk in a store, she will be safe. However, she does not have the courage to leave. She can't summon the will to abandon her younger siblings for whom she promised to care and protect. Before her mother passed away, Eveline agreed to be their advocate and guardian. She cannot force herself to abandon this responsibility despite her longing to start a new life with Frank in Buenos Aires.