Frankly Speaking, "the men that is now is only all pallaver and what they can get our of you": Migration and White Slavery in Argentina in Joyce's "Eveline"

Authors

M Laura Barberan Reinares, CUNY Bronx Community CollegeFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2013

Abstract

This article analyzes James Joyce’s “Eveline” (1904), looking at the moral panic about “white slavery” in Europe and South America. The article especially focuses on Argentina, the foremost recipient of trafficked women between 1880 and 1930 (and, of course, Joyce’s destination choice for Eveline). By looking at Frank, the sailor who intends to take Eveline to Buenos Aires, this article explores the possible links between Joyce’s story and the sex trafficking industry thriving in Buenos Aires through the Jewish criminal association Zwi Migdal. Frank’s representation allows us to draw this connection because his behavior with Eveline coincides with the seduction and recruiting methods employed by Zwi Migdal procurers. This work adds to Hugh Kenner’s skeptical reading of the sailor and Katherine Mullin’s analysis of Joyce and white slavery discourses by suggesting that, in light of the historical situation in Argentina and Joyce’s hyper-analyzed ambiguities, Frank could be a Zwi Midgal recruiter and Eveline a potential sex slave.