Music as Memory and Exposure

Dubliners

This flow follows music as a force that carries private memories into public settings and alters how characters understand one another.

increasing

Bearing strength in each event

decreasing

The Harp in the Street The Harp in the Street from "Dubliners". A City Melody An old air A harpist plays “Silent, O Moyle” while Corley and Lenehan walk through the city.

The Harp in the Street from "Dubliners". A City Melody An old air A harpist plays “Silent, O Moyle” while Corley and Lenehan walk through the city.

A City Melody An old air A harpist plays “Silent, O Moyle” while Corley and Lenehan walk through the city. The music briefly interrupts their talk of manipulation and money. Lenehan's response Alone afterward, Lenehan unconsciously follows the melody with his feet and fingers. Music gives expression to a wistful mood he cannot state directly.

Maria's Family Song Maria's Family Song from "Dubliners". A Song of Belonging A familiar performance Maria sings “I Dreamt that I Dwelt in Marble Halls” at Joe Donnelly's home.

Maria's Family Song from "Dubliners". A Song of Belonging A familiar performance Maria sings “I Dreamt that I Dwelt in Marble Halls” at Joe Donnelly's home.

A Song of Belonging A familiar performance Maria sings “I Dreamt that I Dwelt in Marble Halls” at Joe Donnelly's home. She repeats the second verse without anyone correcting her. Feeling beyond accuracy Joe is moved by the song and by the past it recalls. The moment offers Maria affection without requiring her to perform perfectly.

Julia's Bridal Air Julia's Bridal Air from "Dubliners". A Voice at Its Height Julia sings Julia Morkan performs “Arrayed for the Bridal,” and the guests applaud with genuine warmth.

Julia's Bridal Air from "Dubliners". A Voice at Its Height Julia sings Julia Morkan performs “Arrayed for the Bridal,” and the guests applaud with genuine warmth.

A Voice at Its Height Julia sings Julia Morkan performs “Arrayed for the Bridal,” and the guests applaud with genuine warmth. Freddy Malins praises her unusually fresh voice. The sound of passing time Her performance joins present pleasure to a career and youth already past. Later reflections make this music an emblem of fragile vitality.

The Lass of Aughrim The Lass of Aughrim from "Dubliners". A Song Heard from Below Gretta pauses to listen Bartell D'Arcy sings the old air, and Gretta stands in the shadows, absorbed.

The Lass of Aughrim from "Dubliners". A Song Heard from Below Gretta pauses to listen Bartell D'Arcy sings the old air, and Gretta stands in the shadows, absorbed.

A Song Heard from Below Gretta pauses to listen Bartell D'Arcy sings the old air, and Gretta stands in the shadows, absorbed. Gabriel reads her stillness as beauty without understanding its source. Memory moves between people The song awakens Gretta's memory of Michael Furey. A public performance becomes a private passage into the past.

Snowfall and the Final Image Snowfall and the Final Image from "Dubliners". Music Receding Past carried forward Gabriel remembers that old words and melodies can travel toward the present from the past.

Snowfall and the Final Image from "Dubliners". Music Receding Past carried forward Gabriel remembers that old words and melodies can travel toward the present from the past.

Music Receding Past carried forward Gabriel remembers that old words and melodies can travel toward the present from the past. Gretta's account has made music a measure of lives he never knew. A larger silence Snow falls over Ireland and Michael Furey's grave. The closing image carries memory beyond song into a shared landscape of living and dead.

As Corley and Lenehan walk past the harpist

Near the end of Hallow Eve

During the Morkan dance, before supper

Late in the Morkan dance

Near dawn, after Gretta falls asleep