New York Architecture Walk

The Impact of a Different Setting

The relaxing impact of entering a completely different setting from the one they were in initially gives the book's readers a thrill of connection. He hints to the possibility of seeing a new land where its residents have no knowledge of their history and no shared understanding of their ideas. This may be a comfort to minds that were first deranged from their previous old religion and love. Since all of the past's symbols are gone, it has a dreamy appearance. Due to its lack of connections to the past, the present also starts to feel dreamlike.

Eilis' Move to New York

Toibin depicts Eilis as a biddable daughter. Her movement to New York in the fall of 1951 from Enniscorthy, Wexford County in Ireland was as a result of her energetic elder sister, Rose. This movement was as a result of a job opening that had arisen in America from a priest who had played gold with her sister.Eilis is young, unconcerned and docile, not scared of heartbreaks or reversal of fortunes, and desires not desert her widowed mother, her friends, and her familiar environment. She holds up to her old love and faith passionately and seeks no separation from the memories. However, Rose's plan for her transplant yielded into her submission despite the fact that Eilis thought it would have been better for her adventurous sister than herself. Eilis hoped to live in her birth town like her mother did, knowing the same friend, neighbors, and streets. She imagined having her own family there where she would bring up her children. She felt a sense of being singled out for something she was not prepared for.

Transatlantic Movement and Arrival in New York

The transatlantic movement atmosphere, as experienced by Eilis before flights were affordable involved a cramped and drawn-out voyage by a boat that did not have any form of luxuries and comforts. She was aware that her journey would take weeks and it would be dear. She had built a mentality of prosperity with respect to people who went to work in America at the time. People from her hometown would do ordinary jobs in England and ended up getting paid ordinary money. She associated America with affluence and financial might. In her imagination, she probably visualized her life in some exotic apartment in the Rows of the Washington Square North in New York.

Upon arrival at the Port Washington in New York, she came face-to-face with the glamorous and modernist architecture of the port that was comprised of the William Landsberg-designed structures. Eilis did not take to the plush department stores and stylish Manhattan cafes but instead decided to take a boarding house in Brooklyn. The room she resided in was at the back of the house and had a bathroom across the corridor. The floor was made of boards that would crack while she walked. The doors she passed through were made of light materials. Eilis talks of the noisy plumbing that was loud enough for one to hear as another boarder went to the bathroom. Her surrounding was characterized with bright lighting and brownstones buildings. However, there is no point Eilis seems to be awed by the first view of the Manhattan skyline that was getting crowded with skyscrapers.This environment made her develop great homesickness that was cut short by an Italian-American handsome guy who took her for a date in Coney Island amusement park, Brooklyn. Many New York residents would go Coney Island for fresh air and the expansive sandy beaches. This phenomenon dates back to the 1800s and it led to the construction of the spectacular Brooklyn Bridge to cater for the increased traffic between Manhattan and Brooklyn. Coney Island had a middle-zone 300-foot continental tower that had a telescope that could help people view the whole island and Manhattan in the distance.

Eilis' Life and Work in New York

In New York, Eilis works for Father Flood, a Catholic Church priest who was known to her sister Rose. She worked at a department store and also undertook her evening classes on Bookkeeping. Her work was in a shop where she had to deal with many customers. In her point of view, the shop was the hottest and the busiest she had ever seen. On a daily basis, as she moved from her apartment to her workplace, she seemed to enjoy the morning air and the silence that was associated with the leafy streets. Shops along the streets were normally located around corners and were also characterized by residential building that had two to three apartments inside where she occasionally passed women accompanying their children to school. Her journey would take her through other streets that were wider and busier with more traffic. While along Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn began to wear a strange appearance to her. The organization of buildings along this avenue was comprised of highly spaced while others looked derelict.

Eilis' Studies and Exploration of New York

According to Toibin, Eilis did her bookkeeping and basic accountancy at the Brooklyn College. In her own description, the institution's classrooms were much spacious than what she was accustomed back in Ireland. The buildings around the college were built from light bricks and stone. She also had an opportunity to do her studies in the Elmer Holmes Bobst Library, a highly influential architectural masterpiece of the 20th century. It was made of red sandstone, a revelation of the attempts by the architects to put up a structure that was within the context of the Washington Square. At the time, its height was enormous since it towered above the surrounding building.

In her constant movements around New York, she encountered many fascinating sceneries and structures. For instance in West Villages, she came across the historic Washington Square Arch that was constructed in 1891. The architectural design was inspired by the triumphal arches of the Roman Empire in honor of George Washington's inauguration. It replaced a temporary wooden arch in the nearby vicinity. It was decorated with Washington's sculptures in both his civilian and military attire symbolizing America's devotion to art.

Exploring Ladies Mile

Her walk around Ladies Mile brought her into contact with the affluent shopping spaces. The idea of shopping innovated the department store. For instance, she came across the Jefferson Market Courthouse. This is the only High Victorian Gothic structure that is in existence today in New York. The building has an asymmetrical style that is made of polychromatic items, pinnacles, numerous gables, and windows that are made of stained glass, a style that was common with this nature of buildings. It also has a pyramidal turret that is approximately 172 foot tall and has clocks on its all four sides. It served as a fire watch tower.

Works Cited

Toibin, Colm. Brooklyn. Penguin, 2016.