Mr. Duffy finds romance -- love, even -- but he is too unaware to realize what this could mean for him and for the woman he realizes he loves too late. Both Mr. Duffy and this would-be lover are isolated, caught in their own middle-aged loneliness through what are essentially a series of cowardly choices, while Araby's hero is somewhat brave if ultimately ineffective (Corrington, 182). The differences between these two protagonists and the stories themselves are made more interesting by the many similarities they share. Both characters end up regretting the decisions they made regarding love and romance, and end up feeling their loneliness and isolation more sharply than they had before. Despite their difference in ages and situations, both characters also end with little seeming hope of correcting their mistakes and finding true love. In fact, it is suggested in both stories that there is no really way to know or understand another human being, and thus no way for love to ever be fully and...
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