Dubliners is a collection of short stories that revolves around men, women and children focusing on every aspect of their lives in the Irish capital of Dublin. This series of short stories was considered a masterpiece published by James Joyce in 1914, one of the most influential writers of the 20th century. Joyce's unique writing style is clearly shown throughout the stories. This book consists of fifteen depressing and unhappy short stories that form a sequence of longing for escape, diminished faith, and missed opportunities among the characters. These themes are the core Dubliners that apply in one way or another. The structure of each individual story seems to resemble the cycle of human life, from childhood to adulthood and beyond. Despite the differences, numerous common and recurring themes were found between the stories. Escape played a crucial role in Dubliners, acting as one of the central themes presented in the stories "An Encounter", "Araby", "Eveline" and "The Dead". The protagonist of each story had attempted to escape the boring life in Dublin and a change was required, but all without success until they came to a sense of achievement. After going through traumatic experiences, only to discover that everything they thought was possible was nothing more than a simple dream. “An Encounter” proposes that the desire for escape and adventure does not stop the daily routine because it is inevitable. The new experiences that people expect might sometimes be unsettling. The story begins with children playing Wild West with the sole purpose of disrupting school activities. An unnamed boy, who plays the role of the narrator who yearns for a... medium of paper... says that people's expectations far exceed what reality can actually provide, so he feels a sense of disappointment. After falling in love with Mangan's sister, he is no longer that innocent boy. The boy begins to lose focus on everything, including school, and only has one thing on his mind: the girl of his dreams. He emits immense attention towards his very existence, occupied as a way to escape his daunting life in the city of Dublin. Mangan's sister asks him a question for the first time as he stood there completely stunned, it seemed to be a miracle something so unexpected. This moment was so surprising and breathtaking that the narrator forgets to respond. Not knowing how to express all his feelings towards her, he therefore decides to give some of them in the form of gifts. The boy's uncle was an obstacle that stood in his way to the bazaar.