The unnamed boy narrator has fallen for Mangan's sister, and in a big way. He's still young and incredibly naive when it comes to dealing with the opposite sex. Mangan's sister stirs up all kinds of exciting feelings and emotions, so much so that he develops something of an infatuation with her. And when a young boy, inexperienced in the ways of love, becomes infatuated with a girl, he's liable to do all kinds of things that he really shouldn't do—things that can lead to hurt and disappointment.

In "Araby" the object of the narrator's puppy love provides him with a glimpse into a world of fantasy, one far removed from the drab, humdrum environment that he normally inhabits. Having set foot in this fantasy world, the boy doesn't want to leave. The Saturday bazaar has come at an opportune moment; it allows him to keep the fantasy of adolescent love going just that little bit longer. He's going to go there and buy Mangan's sister a little gift, a token of his boyish crush. But he arrives there too late, just as the bazaar is closing. Although we cannot be sure of what happens next, there is a strong suggestion that the boy's sudden disillusionment with his experience of "Araby" will be followed by a similar loss of innocence in relation to the juvenile obsession he's developed for Mangan's sister.