Two Gallants

by

James Joyce

Walking Symbol Analysis

Walking Symbol Icon

Walking represents the general sense of aimlessness and unbelonging that plagues the story’s characters. Walking is commonly thought of as a way to get to a particular destination: from point A to point B. But walking, in “Two Gallants,” is not so purposeful. Over the course of the story, Corley and Lenehan meander through Dublin, and their route traces a rough circle through the city. Rather than traveling from one place to the next, the two men walk for hours and end up basically where they started: they go nowhere. Further, the story ends, significantly, as the two men walk along Ely Place—a real road in Dublin that’s actually a dead end. Walking, in the story, is therefore not a symbol of purpose or direction. Quite the contrary, it symbolizes a lack of purpose, a lack of direction, and the impossibility of having either in Ireland.

Walking is also an emblem of the two men’s lack of belonging. They seldom stop, and never stay anywhere for long. Lenehan gets food, talks to friends who seem distracted and disinterested, watches Corley from afar, feels lost when Corley goes off with his lover––but throughout all this, he continues walking. He walks because he can think of nothing else to do, has nowhere else to go. Walking has no destination in “Two Gallants,” and represents the men’s itinerate, unfulfilling lifestyle, in which the two men never truly belong or have the possibility of settling down.

Walking Quotes in Two Gallants

The Two Gallants quotes below all refer to the symbol of Walking. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Ireland’s Decline Theme Icon
).
Two Gallants Quotes

Most people considered Lenehan a leech but, in spite of this reputation, his adroitness and eloquence had always prevented his friends from forming any general policy against him.

Related Characters: Lenehan, Corley
Related Symbols: Walking
Related Literary Devices:
Page Number: 44
Explanation and Analysis:

—Well...tell me, Corley, I suppose you’ll be able to pull it off all right, eh?

Related Characters: Lenehan (speaker), Corley, The Maid
Related Symbols: Women, Walking
Related Literary Devices:
Page Number: 46
Explanation and Analysis:

He knew that he would have to speak a great deal, to invent and amuse, and his brain and throat were too dry for such a task. The problem of how he could pass the hours till he met Corley again troubled him a little. He could think of no way of passing them but to keep on walking.

Related Characters: Lenehan, Corley, The Maid
Related Symbols: Walking
Page Number: 50
Explanation and Analysis:

He knew Corley would fail; he knew it was no go.

Related Characters: Lenehan, Corley, The Maid
Related Symbols: Walking
Page Number: 53
Explanation and Analysis:
Get the entire Two Gallants LitChart as a printable PDF.
Two Gallants PDF

Walking Symbol Timeline in Two Gallants

The timeline below shows where the symbol Walking appears in Two Gallants. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Two Gallants
Ireland’s Decline Theme Icon
Restlessness, Lack of Belonging, and Discontentedness Theme Icon
On a balmy August Sunday, two men named Corley and Lenehan walk past Rutland Square in Dublin. Corley is telling Lenehan a long story while walking in... (full context)
Ireland’s Decline Theme Icon
Restlessness, Lack of Belonging, and Discontentedness Theme Icon
Women and a Lack of Gallantry Theme Icon
Money, Transaction, and Relationships Theme Icon
Betrayal Theme Icon
As the men walk through the city crowds, Corley regularly smiles at girls they pass. But Lenehan becomes absorbed... (full context)
Ireland’s Decline Theme Icon
Still walking through the city, Lenehan asks Corley if he can “pull it off.” Though what, exactly,... (full context)
Ireland’s Decline Theme Icon
Restlessness, Lack of Belonging, and Discontentedness Theme Icon
Women and a Lack of Gallantry Theme Icon
Money, Transaction, and Relationships Theme Icon
Now walking past Trinity College, Dublin, Corley is about to meet up with the maid for a... (full context)
Ireland’s Decline Theme Icon
Restlessness, Lack of Belonging, and Discontentedness Theme Icon
Still walking, Lenehan and Corley see a harpist playing “heedlessly” while glancing around at his listeners and... (full context)
Ireland’s Decline Theme Icon
Women and a Lack of Gallantry Theme Icon
Money, Transaction, and Relationships Theme Icon
Betrayal Theme Icon
...his woman—he only wants to look at her. Corley is satisfied and says Lenehan can walk by as he talks to the maid. Corley walks off to meet her, agreeing over... (full context)
Ireland’s Decline Theme Icon
Women and a Lack of Gallantry Theme Icon
Lenehan walks past Corley and observes the maid dressed in her “Sunday finery.” He notes her heavy... (full context)
Ireland’s Decline Theme Icon
Restlessness, Lack of Belonging, and Discontentedness Theme Icon
Money, Transaction, and Relationships Theme Icon
...and “the air which the harpist had played began to control his movements.” His feet walk in time to the melody, and his fingers “swe[ep] a scale of variations idly along... (full context)
Restlessness, Lack of Belonging, and Discontentedness Theme Icon
Money, Transaction, and Relationships Theme Icon
After paying his bill, Lenehan walks out into the street again. He meets some friends and stops to talk to them,... (full context)
Money, Transaction, and Relationships Theme Icon
Betrayal Theme Icon
...Lenehan is initially thrilled to see them, but then he notices that the couple is walking quickly and not speaking. Immediately, he thinks Corley has failed. (full context)
Ireland’s Decline Theme Icon
Restlessness, Lack of Belonging, and Discontentedness Theme Icon
Women and a Lack of Gallantry Theme Icon
Money, Transaction, and Relationships Theme Icon
Corley begins to walk away, and Lenehan races after him, calling his name. Lenehan asks Corley eagerly if he... (full context)