Traditional and cultural domains that hinder the development of the intellectual capacity of the society extensively affect the protagonist in the narrative ‘Jacob’s Room’. Jacob is conflicted in some dimensions as he wades through the journey of masculinity and the affirmation of self-determination to succeed in life. Throughout the stages of his development, Jacob paints a picture of hope in a situation where people are faced with some issues that affect the manner in which they perceive life. In some instance, the women are miserable because of the deficiencies that they face in the society.
Traditions are one of the issues that bind the protagonist, yet in some instance; there is an appreciation that the cultural tenets that existed in the past were better that the experience in the current dispensation. Constraints and entrapments are some of the things that confront the people in the social setting where the narrative is set. Essentially, Jacob and Stephen feel trapped in a society where certain tendencies dominate the well-being of the state. The political and religious dimensions of the text are indicative of the disparities that confine the populace to a particular form of ideology. While Stephen found politics in Ireland a mirage and polluted with inconstancies, Jacob sees the need to engage on certain issues as a consequence of changing the world. Education and the enhancement of moral standings in the society are key principles that are voiced in the novel to the extent that they become the key incentives that propel the protagonists to seek a better life.
