Araby" by James Joyce is a short story in which the protagonist gained a consciousness that was beyond him. The main character is initiated into new reality and truth of which he was not previously aware. In the story, the character was experiencing an initiation or awareness of new actualities that was outside of him. The main character painfully learned that this initiation was beyond his control. It was impossible for he to ignore the new realities, which he came to understand. The newfound awareness was so powerful that it changed the boy's entire outlook and he began to see the world through new eyes. .
The type of initiation the character had was a distressing journey from innocence to knowledge and experience. The narrator had different attitude and reaction to the initiation experience. In this story, the reader learns of the boy's initiation in the final sentence: "Gazing up into the darkness I saw myself as a creature driven and derided by vanity; and my eyes burned with anguish and anger." The character had a negative reaction to his new awareness. His realization caused him to have feelings of shame, anguish and anger. He was possessed and controlled by his passion for Mangan's older sister. His ideals of the girl were not realistic but were futile and vain. The girl drew out feelings in him and he discovered that feelings must be reciprocated and the downsides that love can also be painful. He had a difficult time accepting his own weakness. He was in distress because he had stopped for a moment and gazed up into the darkness and realized that his previous feelings were wonderful but the only reality existed in his feelings. It had no existence beyond how he felt and the understanding of this was painful for the character. .
The boy's pride took over his feelings for the girl that were destructive and almost destroyed him. The girl had a negative influence on him as she occupied his mind taking him away from his sleep and school work.