We learn soon what old Cotter is referring to: Father Flynn, the narrator's friend, is dead. Old Cotter is talking about a theory he has, about some event being 'one of those. A family friend called old Cotter has stopped by for a visit the narrator finds old Cotter tiresome, and hates his dull stories. One night, the narrator, who lives with his aunt and uncle, comes down for supper. The word has a strange sound to the narrator. For some time, the narrator's friend has been paralyzed. The young narrator passes by his friend's window every day, waiting for the day when he will see two candles in the dark: the sign that his friend has passed away, for two candles are put at the head of a corpse. Little Chandler’s dreams are much like the “ Little Cloud” of the story’s title: small and fleeting, drifting away just as quickly as they appeared.The young nameless narrator speaks of his friend, a man who has had his third stroke. In the end, Little Chandler experiences an epiphany that he is a “prisoner for life.” He is trapped by the mundane world of work and domesticity that he fell into through his fearful inability to pursue his passion. Annie chastises Little Chandler harshly, and the story ends with him in tears, once again resigned to his sad, small existence. Charged with caring for his infant son, he bungles this job badly and makes the baby cry hysterically.

These feelings only increase when Little Chandler returns home. Their meeting leaves Little Chandler resentful and thwarted, as he feels that he’s more deserving of success than Gallaher is. Gallaher’s manners and appearance are coarse, and his time away from Dublin has only worsened his already questionable morality. However, upon meeting Gallaher, Little Chandler is somewhat let down.

He grows to feel more empowered, imagining success and personal reinvention as a professional writer. As their meeting approaches, Little Chandler becomes lost in dreams of a more exciting, meaningful life. Gallaher left Dublin eight years before to pursue a more adventurous life as a journalist in London. With a “melancholy,” passive, resigned personality, Little Chandler has drifted along in life, vaguely dissatisfied, until one day his old friend Gallaher visits Dublin and invites him to meet at a fancy restaurant. He dreams of success and recognition as a poet but has been too timid to bring his dreams to fruition. Little Chandler works an unfulfilling job as a clerk at King’s Inn, a legal institution in Dublin, Ireland. He is nicknamed “Little Chandler” because of his below-average height and delicate, well-groomed appearance.

He is Annie’s husband and an old friend of Ignatius Gallaher. Thomas Chandler is the main character of the story.

A little cloud james joyce