A portrait of the artist as a young man (Joyce)

development of Stephen Dedalus from a bright, young student to an artist

-> set in Ireland at the turn of the century

-> catholic family

Childhood

timid child, doesn’t socialize easily:

• Stephen is bullied on the playground because of his small size and shy demeaner

• when his glasses are broken due to an accident, he’s beaten by a teacher

Youth

• romanticizes prominant political figures and phantasizes about the nature and landscape of the after-life

• school authorities want him to become a priest

• Stephen’s family changes home several times during his youth (due to father’s financial irresponsibility)

  
  

“Late Youth”

• visits prostitutes in Dublin -> increasingly difficult to reconcile with his potential priestly calling (-> guilt)

• climax: Stephen decides to become an artist

• finally: Stepehn declares his artistic ambitions

The foreignness & estrangement of anguage

• “The language in which we are speaking is his before it is mine.” (= acquired speech)

• language is always cited, borrowed, second-hand

• use of English language as an Irish writer

Not-belonging (to a group)

• Stephen is bullied as a child

-> also “writing from the outside”, Joyce is not in Dublin while writing about it

= about a seperation from traditional ways of writing

• roughly 1910s and 30s

• expression of new sensibilities

• focus on the process: ways of “world making”

-> in search for style; novel writing in the modern world

Stephen = the protagonist

• highly sensitive child

• inner conflict: impulse to experience life at its fullest vs. impulse to lead a virtouos life

Simon = father

• desolute patriarch

• alcoholic

• source of stress and instability -> irresponsible

Mary = mother

• takes care of Stephen

• attempts to discipline Stephen (physically & emotionally)

Cranly = Stephen’s closest friend

• knows Stephen well

• receptive to Stephen’s eccentricities than others