"Dubliners" is written by James Joyce. It is a volume collection of fifteen short stories,
published in 1914. Some had originally
appeared in magazines before the actual book was
published.
The stories
depict the Irish middle class life in Dublin during the early years of the 20th century. Being the birthplace of James Joyce, he is able to draw his sentiments, a full spectrum of his Irish roots as well as writing it in detail that creates his thoughts and observations of his native city and its people during the time when Dublin was in search of its own identity, so nationalism was at its height. They were in an era of great political and social upheavals and transformations, in the crossroads of history and culture.
At that time, Dublin was inhabited by only about a third of a million people. The city has its own architectural grandeur, therefore allowing its citizens to appreciate their own locale settings. At the same time, throughout the short story collection, we are provided a glimpse of a city full of ambiguities and underlying enigmas.
The work is arranged by Joyce to present Dublin in four of its aspects – childhood, adolescence, maturity and public life, at the same time done with a delicate and sensitive moral candor. The idea of Joyce is to account a time for reflection and self-understanding. The country was teeming with ideas and influences of various kinds and coming from all directions. Joyce captures all these through his characters having their special moments of reflection and self-understanding.
What makes it interesting and special is that the author himself is blended with the Dublin he writes about being a Dubliner himself, so we come to know a bit of the author himself. The collection contains what the author feels to be Irish during that period in time, the start of the 20th century… a Dublin somehow seemingly hopeless and sad, cut off from civilization of the outside world.
It's a brilliant writing. It's also interesting to note that many of his characters here in "Dubliners" appear in his monumental "Ulysses," the novel he is most famous for.