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<p> This article examines the affective impact of interiors and of the objects that furnish them on characters in narrative. It contrasts interiors designed by the characters themselves with interiors with inherited design, as well as euphoric with dysphoric interiors. The cross-classification of these two binaries yields the four categories that are discussed in the article. James Joyce’s short story “Eveline” (1914) stands for a dysphoric inherited design. In this story a young girl is prevented from seeking a new life overseas by the dusty objects of her house, from which she cannot imagine being separated. In Xavier de Maistre’s <i>Voyage Around my Room</i> (1790), the narrator’s imagination transforms forced confinement in a room into a trip offering valuable learning experiences. Two examples of characters who are able to design their own interior are discussed: in one, J. K. Huysmans <i>Against Nature</i> (1884), do-it-yourself design results in a dysphoric interior; in the other, Orhan Pamuk’s <i>The Museum of Innocence</i> (2010), the narrator creates a happy space that he makes into his home. These four narratives are compared and contrasted according to the main character’s attitude toward objects.</p>

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Objects, designs, experiences: euphoric and dysphoric interiors

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年4月5日

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  • Marie-Laure Ryan

摘要

This article examines the affective impact of interiors and of the objects that furnish them on characters in narrative. It contrasts interiors designed by the characters themselves with interiors with inherited design, as well as euphoric with dysphoric interiors. The cross-classification of these two binaries yields the four categories that are discussed in the article. James Joyce’s short story “Eveline” (1914) stands for a dysphoric inherited design. In this story a young girl is prevented from seeking a new life overseas by the dusty objects of her house, from which she cannot imagine being separated. In Xavier de Maistre’s Voyage Around my Room (1790), the narrator’s imagination transforms forced confinement in a room into a trip offering valuable learning experiences. Two examples of characters who are able to design their own interior are discussed: in one, J. K. Huysmans Against Nature (1884), do-it-yourself design results in a dysphoric interior; in the other, Orhan Pamuk’s The Museum of Innocence (2010), the narrator creates a happy space that he makes into his home. These four narratives are compared and contrasted according to the main character’s attitude toward objects.