SOUTH PASADENA HIGH SCHOOL    THE ENGLISH SEMINARAP [NICHOLSON]



James Joyce
The Dead
Directed by John Huston
1987
Cast



Helena Carroll
Ingrid Craigie
Cathleen Delany
Donal Donnally
Rachael Dowling


Angelica Huston
Marie Kean
Donal McCann
Sean McClory
Dan O'Herlihy

Frank Patterson


	The screenplay, by John Huston's son Tony, is based on Joyce's story "The Dead" from 
the collection called Dubliners, probably Joyce's most widely read work.  Although less 
accessible to most audiences than some, the movie won wide acclaim, especially for the 
performances by the all-Irish cast.  John Huston had wanted to film the story for many years, 
and this "family affair" closed out his career, which featured such celebrated movies as "The 
Maltese Falcon," "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre," "Moby-Dick," and "The African Queen."

To ponder:
	1.	The story has no real plot.  What, then, if anything, holds it together?  What structure 
does Joyce impose on his material here in place of a series of causally related events?
	2.	The dinner party (another dinner scene!) takes place in 1904.  What atmosphere does 
Joyce try to create, and what devices or techniques does he use to accomplish the 
task?
	3.	What impressions does Joyce want us to have of the couple and their relationship that 
dominates the second part of the movie, and what devices does he use to convey those 
impression?
	4.	One critic says that the "film celebrates time, place, and atmosphere."  Explain what he 
means by each.
 



 

 


