Joyce once referred to Dublin as the "centre of paralysis", a city that he felt was backward and repressive in contrast to the modern capitals of Europe. This idea found its expression in Dubliners, a short story collection that illustrates the effects of this restrictive atmosphere on the city’s population. Join our guide on a walk that visits some of the key locations from both the collection and the author’s life, discussing all the while Joyce’s critical portrayal of the social, religious and political landscape of his home town. This tour also gives some insight into the publication history of the collection, itself a story that creates a sense of Joyce’s artistic mission and his controversial approach to writing about Dublin. This tour ends at O’Connell Bridge.