An ‘Aesthetic Autobiography’ of James Joyce

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is a semi-autobiographical novel about

the education of a young Irishman, Stephen Dedalus, whose background has much
in common with Joyce’s. However, in determining the genre of A Portrait of the
Artist as a Young Man readers and critics both face a lengthy debate. In terms of
its critical reception A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man has had its share of
detractors and its admirers. As far as its autobiographical elements are concerned
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man can be seen both as a ‘Bildungsroman’
which describes the youthful development of the central character and
as ‘aesthetic autobiography’ or ‘Kunstler roman’. We will now carry out our
discussions on Joyce’s portrayal of Stephen and see how he keeps varying his
distance from Stephen but never does so drastically.
If Lawrence’s personal experiences have shaped the material in Sons
and Lovers or if we find several facts of the life of Somerset Mangham with little
modification or distortion in Of Human Bondage, the same approach Lto Joyce A
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man cannot be reached. The characters in Sons
and lovers or Of Human Bondage seem to enjoy an independent existence; in A
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man they figure mainly in the hero’s reveries and
resentments. And the question if Joyce stations himself in relation to his hero
Stephen is a crucial one. Alike Austen in her Emma both attempts at objectivity
and subjectivity; Joyce’s A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man maintains the
same status. Sometimes the two personae, Joyce and Stephen almost merge but
quite often a distance is kept though it is never too great. This kind of management
of distance allows Joyce to bring irony also in play at places but even that is never
allowed to become too hard-hitting.
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is based on a literal transcript
of the first twenty years of Joyce’s life. If anything, it is more candid than other
autobiographies. It is distinguished from them by its emphasis on the emotional
and intellectual adventures of its protagonist. Joyce’s own life had a direct bearing
on A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Literally A Portrait of the Artist as a
Young Man covers the childhood and adolescence of Stephen Dedalus. We see him,
over the course of the novel, grow from a little boy to a young man of eighteen who
has decided to leave his country for Europe, in order to be an artist. This especially
the case with how he reacted to Ireland and to Ireland’s treatment of Parnell. As
we read the opening section the novel we can easily identify how the ‘betrayal’ of
Parnell was a part of the Irish psyche of those time. The Parnell and the Irish
situation in general have a direct bearing on the Christmas dinner scene. Again
Joyce had a firm belief that the political subjection had led the Irish people to have
a slavish mentality. Joyce had an attitude of deep distrust towards the Irish
political activities and it is obvious in the closing sections of A Portrait of the Artist
as a Young Man. On the exchanges between students in the closing stages of the
novel Stephen says to Davin with odd violence:
Except for the thin incognito of its characters, “Do you know what Ireland
is? … Ireland is the old saw that eats her furrow”. Further there are other aspects
of Joyce’s life that find more or less a direct echo in the novel. Alike Joyce Stephen
too shares a large family. The family’s poverty and its frequent changes of house
both happen in Joyce and Stephen.
But despite of these similarities, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young
Man is not straight autobiography. Joyce was not the weak in health who figures
in the novel. Joyce has drawn it true very largely upon his life and his own
experience, but it is not an autobiography, it is an artistic creation. It is reshaped
for artistic module. In a sense one can say that in offering us the growth and the
development of Stephen Dedalus, Joyce was not exclusively concerned with getting
to the heart of his own young self or an imaginary equivalent of that, but in getting
to the heart of young artist as such. The destiny we are brought face to face with
could be any young man’s destiny in Catholic Ireland. Especially, if the young man
was sensitive and had artistic ambitions or pretensions!
We may again deal with another controversial issue – its title. As the
phrase ‘Portrait of the Artists’ hints at the self-portraitures of Joyce, the other
phrase‘as a young man’ hints at it universal aspects or generalization. Stephen is
young Joyce, “purified in and projected from the human imagination’ of the
developed artist who must, in the words of Stephen, “try slowly and humbly and
constantly to express, to press out again, from the gross earth or what it brings
forth, from sound and shape and colour which are the prison gates of our soul, an
image of the beauty we have come to understand”.
Thus Joyce uses his personal life as a framework for his novel but is
free to revise his biography for artistic purposes or remodeled it, which can assert
the growth of ‘artist’.
What happens in A Portrait is that the autobiographical element,
which is otherwise its very significant ingredient, is consciously and painstakingly
recast into a mode of depersonalization, objectification and presentation of a myth
of an artist borne.

As a Psychological Novel
It will be pointed out some main psychological features of this character that
will further help the reader create and understand the complex teenager that is
Stephen. From the very beginning, Stephen, possessing an undeniably aloof
personality, himself admits that he is in some way different from others. He notes
that is “hardly of the one blood” with his family, indicating that his life is filled
with isolation, a sense of insecurity and growing independence.
At first, as suggested by Foley, while indulging his family’s wishes, appeasing
the religious ideals of the community and church and trying to fit in, Stephen also
tries to identify himself as an individual and goes through various
stages.“…..constant voices of his father and of his masters, urging him to be a good
catholic above all things….When the gymnasium had been opened he had heard
another voice urging him to be strong and manly and healthy and when the
movement towards the national revival had begun to be felt in college yet another
voice had bidden him to be true to his country and help to raise up her language
and tradition”
The pressure from expectations gradually becomes a burden and his soul
search finally results in art a mea of breaking the cage. To Stephen art was
nevertheless a way of liberating his soul by fulfilling his hunger for meaning not
with what was imposed upon him by others but by something originating from
inside himself. Stephen‘s path toward becoming an artist is seen at every step
while going through the novel. His first act of courage, independence and rebellion
is when he protests his palm-whipping. Later on, he would also commit heresy
when writing a school essay and reject priesthood. The growing gap between him
and his family, especially his father is ever more obvious as time passes. “Old
father, old article, stand me now and ever in good stead.”
Stephen has experienced severe traumas in the early course of their lives.
Namely repeated financial troubles which Stephen was a witness of and the deep
divide over the question of religion and patriotism within his own family. It can be
observed that Stephen‘s relations with his siblings are rarely mentioned and
subsided, irrelevant to the overall story and formation of the artist. Stephen in
times of stress and sorrow only occasionally relishes in the memories of his
childhood, such as his friendship with a boy named Aubrey Mills or eating slim
Jim out for his pocket cap. Stephen is experiencing religious, national and pressure
from his family.
An adolescent individual will always be forced with multiple form of
expectations and regardless of whether they are coming from the family, schools
or society, it is the way these teenagers deal with what is expected of them with
their own strength, mental potency and emotional capacity and deciding whether
they are going to fulfill these expectations or not that will define them as a person
later on, as opposed to the expectations themselves.
Joyce consumes alcohol; and uses foul language often, depicting some of the
negative sides of adolescence and the temptations it brings along. Stephen, on the
other hand, does not fall under these temptations or the pressure of conformity,
but rather commits sins such as gluttony. Sex represents an important part of lives
of this two teenager- Stephen Dedalus felt that “his childhood was dead or lost and
with it nothing but a cold and cruel loveless lust”
Remained within his soul. He also believed that out of lust, all other sins
originate easily. Lust and love for aesthetic beauty combined, however, lead him
to numerous encounters with young prostitutes of Dublin. What can be noticed in
Stephen‘s behavior is that through isolated, he is actually trying to protect himself
even through he, like everyone else needs human contact and compassion. Of
course, the boy had that “special someone” present in his live- Stephen on the
other hand , also idolizing the image of Emma , a girl who he has never actually
met , through still considered her to be the temple of beauty and a symbol of
femininity finds himself ashamed and daunted by the thoughts of his own teenage
fantasies: “If she knew to what his mind had subjected her or how brute- like lust
had torn and trampled upon her innocence! Was that boyish love? Was that
chivalry? Was that poetry? The sordid details of his orgies shrank under his very
nostrils”
It must, however, be note that the contradictions of his actions and sins
against his position and role in the society did not seem to bother him at times. It
can be concluded that traumatic experiences, unreasonable expectations and the
lack of support are just some of the burdens halting a normal development of an
individual during his or her teenage years. The result of these factors can vary
from some of the negative, above mentioned perpetual circle of awkwardness and
discomfort.

Epiphany in A portrait of The Artist as a Young Man

Critics have variously interpreted the experience of the modern novelist as
tolling the death of story. The words are a proven truth for James Joyce. His
expression of experience took a different turn as also a different form. The early
years of his life were passed in Dublin. Joyce was almost blind from his childhood,
and he lived in the world of sounds; in that glamorous town of Dublin, Joyce wanted
to express the immediate and the present he called it ‘an epiphany’ (Greek
epiphaneia, “appearance”). Unlike roust he wanted to express the immediate
consciousness as reality. Joyce’s A Portrait of The Artist As a Young Man clearly
demonstrates such epiphanies to signify the moment when all of a sudden the
personae probes into the heart of things and experiences a sudden spiritual
manifestation. In the present novel it is used to resolve and resolute a conflict the
to be an artist face with.
 Stephen’s spiritual manifestation and his aesthetic satisfaction is presented
through the epiphanies which is a sudden revelation of the inner truth by
paralleling a visual moment. The journey of Stephen from his very tender infancy
till he becoming an artist is presented through certain epiphanies to express the
inflow of Stephen’s conscious and its changing schedules. In the artistry of literary
device Stephen’s rejection of priesthood, his peeling of nationality, his self-search
in an artist in exile are presented through certain revelation meticulously and
forcefully.
In fact, at the end of each chapter epiphanies are skillfully used. In Chapter-
I Stephen at in childhood meets certain conflicts that makes in confusion. With the
baffling impressions Stephen perceives the world of elders. He oscillates and
vacillates over the implicit faith on the elders and his helpless insecurity. He has
absolute trust, justice and morale from his elders yet how they quarrel over
political and religious matter he cannot understand. So, naturally there is marked
difference between the expectation and reality. But ultimately Stephen triumphs
when he gets rustic at school and he is being hailed as hero. Thus at the end the
finality of resulting the conflict and achieving justice is marked by epiphany.
In chapter-II we pass into Stephen’s adolescence where a few of the family
problems disturbs him. In school, his essay is accused of heresy and his school
mate’s unfriendly attitude to him hurts him dearly. But more distressfully
increasing hatred for father on the part of Stephen widens. Interestingly enough,
Stephen’s ideal shed beauty and notice of purity transits into a vague erotic fantasy
of the girl Mercedes who often comes into dreams. So torn in disputes, ultimately
resolving into an epiphany towards a learning experience. Stephen’s dream of
Mercedes is united with the embrace of a whore. Thought it is an absolute sin,
Stephen passes into an emotional learning and resolution: “Tears of joy and relief
shone in his delighted eyes. In hat arms he felt that he had suddenly become strong
and fearless and sure of himself.”
Extending the same conflict, Stephen in Chapter-III finds himself
frequently in the embrace of whores. Stephen’s moral dilemma and sinned meeting
the world of religion and doing the epiphany provides him immense relief: “He had
confessed and God had pardoned him. His soul was made for and holy once more,
holy and happy. The past was past. The ciborium had come to him.”
The journey of Stephen to be an artist born is narcissism and it is proving
truth by the epiphany of muse at sea beach in chapter-IV. More complex than any
other is the description of the figure of the girl on the beach after the vision of the
hawk like man flying sun ward above the sea, and the suggestion of all the
emotional associations which radiate from the glimpse of her. The vision of
mysterious, birdlike, mythical figure is the certitude of Stephen’s vocation of an
artist. It is the message he receives from the spy, heavenly yet flow of life. It is
religiously ammunition and a voice of divinity. In romantic ecstasy Stephen learns
the truth of beauty and art and an artist is born.
Finally, in chapter-V Stephen wishes to encounter ‘the reality of experience’
and invokes the mythical Daedalus to air him in that purpose. To note further, it
is to be mentioned that there are many other epiphanies which contribute to a
certainty in developing Stephen and his journey to an artist. Such as ‘tower of
ivory’, ‘house of gold’, ‘fetus’ etc. are few examples. So, in conclusion, it is fair to
say that epiphany is used to experience both the world of Stephen and Joyce as an
artist in A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.
Stephen in the Novel is the Search of an Artist in Exile.
Escape is the natural complement to the theme of Entrapment and
Constraint. Joyce depicts escape metaphorically by the book's most important
symbol and allusion: the mythical artificer Daedalus is not at all an Irish name;
Joyce took the name from the mythical inventor who escaped from his island prison
by constructing wings and flying to his freedom. Stephen, too, will eventually
escape from the island prison of Ireland.
Truly speaking in A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, the hero moves
from childhood to manhood, learning his own destiny as artist and as exile. Again,
of all the characters in the novel, Stephen Dedalus is the only one whose portrait
is fully realized. His most intimate thoughts, memories and sensations are
revealed to us throughout; all the other characters exist for the reader only insofar
as they matter to Stephen. Stephen is tied by family, country and religion, but one
by one he releases himself from those ties to discover his true vocation on the free
and uncommitted life of the artist. Stephen tends to view his life in terms of a
heroic struggle to free himself from the various confinements he feels his native
city imposes upon him—the “nets” of politics, religion and family. The church was
the greatest rival to the world of art: it, too promised loneliness and power. But he
understood at last that “he was destined to learn his own wisdom apart from others
or to learn the wisdom of others himself wandering among the snares of the
world”. And so the artist is born. The climax of the book comes soon after Stephen’s
realization of his true destiny. He is wandering alone by the shore alone and young
and willful and hardhearted, alone amid a waste of wild air and brackish water
and the sea-harvest of shells and tangle and veiled grey sunlight and gay clad and
light clad figures of children and girls and voices childish and girlish in the air. He
sees a girl standing in mid-stream,“alone and still, gazing out to sea” and he
contemplates her, intently, frankly, without desire or ulterior motive of any kind
he is relishing the artist’s perception of life. And as he looks, he is overcome by
joy:“Heavenly God! Cried Stephen’s soul, in an outburst of profane joy”. It is
profane joy, the artist’s joy in life.
Once Stephen recognizes his destiny, the shedding of his other
loyalties proceeds quickly. He is haunted by the sea-gulls flying overhead in the
evening sky. They symbolize escape for the artist, escape from the cramping
environment where other claims on his loyalty oppress him. Like the Greek
Daedalus who made the labyrinth for king Minos and afterwards made wings to
enable him to escape across the sea from the labyrinth of life and claims of Dublin.
Daedalus, too, was the first craftsman, ‘old artificer’. As epigraph to the book, Joyce
has quoted a line from Ovid’s description of Daedalus’ construction of the
labyrinth: “And he turned his mind to unknown arts”. So Joyce would turn his
mind to enlarge the surname is that of the Old artificer, his Christian name is that
of the first Christian martyr. Thus, the artist is both crafts man and martyr.
However, Stephen identifies with the classical hero whose name he bears, but he
is more like the son Icarus, who flew too close to the sun and came crashing down
into the sea, than the father Daedalus, whose cunning enabled him to forge the
wings that permitted his escape from Minos’s prison.
So Stephen works out his theory of the artist as exile. “The artist like
the God of creation, remains within or behind or beyond or above his handiwork,
invisible, refined out of existence, indifferent, paring his fingernails”. Stephen
refuses to serve that in which he no longer believes – home, country, church; he
will express himself freely, using for his defense the weapons of‘ silence, exile and
cunning’. He is prepared to take the risk of separating himself from others and of
having not even one friend.
As its title suggests, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is a kind
of self-portrait, a novel that traces the development of its central character,
Stephen D, from infancy to young adulthood, as he finds himself drawn into and
struggling with the social, religious, and political currents of late 19th-century
Ireland. While Joyce clearly bases Stephen on his younger self, he maintains an
ironic distance from his character, implying at the end of the novel that his
youthful alter ego still has much to learn about both life and the art that he dreams
of making. A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is thus an important document
in the history of the artist as exile. But it is also a remarkable work of art in its
own right. Combining the naturalistic and the symbolist traditions, Joyce finds a
solution to the problems of the literary artist in his time.
 Joyce's Use of Imagery
Although Joyce is frequently praised for his mastery of the "stream-of-
consciousness" narrative technique, his distinctive use of imagery has contributed
much to the artistic development of the twentieth-century novel. Specifically, in A
Portrait, he uses imagery to establish motifs, identify symbols, and provide
thematic unity throughout the work.
Perhaps the most obvious use of imagery in the novel occurs during the novel's
first few pages, with the introduction of the sensory details which shape Stephen's
early life: wet versus dry; hot versus cold; and light versus dark — all images of
dichotomy which reveal the forces which will affect Stephen's life as he matures. If
we can understand this imagery, then we can better understand Stephen's reasons
for deciding to leave Ireland.
The wet/dry imagery, for example, is symbolic of Stephen's natural
response to the world versus a learned response. As a small child, Stephen learns
that any expression of a natural inclination (such as wetting the bed) is
labeled "wrong"; the wet sheets will be replaced by a dry, reinforcing "oilsheet" —
and a swift, unpleasant correction for inappropriate behavior. Thus, wet things
relate to natural responses and dry things relate to learned behavior.
Other examples of this wet/dry imagery include the wetness of the cesspool
(the square ditch) that Stephen is shoved into and the illness which follows;
likewise, the "flood" of adolescent sexual feelings which engulf Stephen
in"wavelet[s]," causing him guilt and shame. Seemingly, "wet" is bad; "dry" is
good.
A turning point in this pattern occurs when Stephen crosses the "trembling
bridge" over the river Tolka. He leaves behind his dry, "withered" heart, as well as
most of the remnants of his Catholicism. As he wades through "a long rivulet in
the strand," he encounters a young girl, described as a "strange and beautiful
seabird." She gazes at Stephen from the sea, and her invitation to
the "wet"(natural) life enables Stephen to make a climactic choice concerning his
destiny as an artist. Later, after Stephen has explained his aesthetic philosophy to
Lynch, rain begins to fall; seemingly, the heavens approve of Stephen's theories
about art, as well as his choice of art as a career.
The hot/cold imagery similarly affects Stephen. At the beginning of the novel,
Stephen clearly prefers his mother's warm smell to that of his father. For
Stephen,"hot" is symbolic of the intensity of physical affection (and, in some cases,
sin);"cold," on the other hand, is symbolic of propriety, order, and chastity. Specific
examples of this symbolism can be found in Stephen's memories: resting in his
mother's warm lap, being cared for by the kindly Brother Michael (when Stephen
is recovering from a fever), and receiving a heated embrace from the Dublin
prostitute during his first sexual encounter.
In contrast, the cold, slimy water of the square ditch is evidence of the cruel
reality of his changing life at school; in addition, Stephen initially experiences a
"cold . . . indifference" when he thinks about the Belvedere retreat, and his vision-
like worship of Eileen (the young Protestant girl) has coldly symbolic, touch-me-
not overtones; her hands, pure and white, enable him to understand the references
to the Tower of Ivory in an oft-repeated Church litany.
The last of this set of opposites is concerned with the light/dark dichotomy:
light symbolizes knowledge (confidence), and dark symbolizes ignorance (terror).
Numerous examples of this conflict pervade the novel. In an early scene, when
Stephen says that he will marry a Protestant, he is threatened with blindness:"Put
out his eyes / Apologize." Stephen is terrorized without knowing why; seemingly, a
good Catholic boy should remain ignorant about other faiths — and perhaps even
of women. Stephen's natural fondness for Eileen is condemned. Stephen is only a
boy, but his sensitive artist's nature realizes that he is going to grow up in a world
where he will be forced to suppress his true feelings and conform to society's rules
and threats.
Stephen's broken glasses are also part of this light/dark imagery. Without his
glasses, Stephen sees the world as if it were a dark blur; figuratively blinded, he
cannot learn. And yet he is unjustly punished for telling the truth about the reason
for his “blindness." He quickly realizes the potential, dark (irrational) cruelty of
the clergy. Further on in the novel, there are recurrent images of darkness in the
streets of Dublin — for example, when Stephen makes his way to the brothel
district. Here, we also see the darkness within Stephen's heart as he wanders
willfully toward sin. Later on, the philosophical discussion about the lamp with the
Dean of Studies (Chapter V) reveals the "blindness" of this cleric, compared with
the illumination of Stephen's aesthetic thoughts.
A close reading of the novel will produce many more images within these
patterns. Joyce's use of them is essential as he constructs his intricate thematic
structure.
Another kind of imagery in the novel is made up of references to colors and
names. Colors, as Joyce uses them, often indicate the political and religious forces
which affect Stephen's life. Similarly, Joyce uses names to evoke various images
— specifically those which imply animal qualities, providing clues to Stephen's
relationships with people.
For an example of color imagery, note that Dante owns two velvet-backed
brushes — one maroon, one green. The maroon brush symbolizes Michael Davitt,
the pro-Catholic activist of the Irish Land League; the green-backed brush
symbolizes Charles Stewart Parnell. Once, Parnell was Dante's political hero par
excellence, but after the Church denounced him, she ripped the green cloth from
the back of her brush. Other references to color include Stephen's desire to have
a "green rose" (an expression of his creative nature) instead of a white one or a red
one, symbols of his class' scholastic teams.
Another reference to color imagery can be seen in Lynch's use of the term
"yellow insolence"; instead of using the word "bloody," Lynch uses the word
“yellow," indicating a sickly, cowardly attitude toward life. The idea of a "bloody”
natural lust for living would be appalling to Lynch. Lynch's name, literally,
means "to hang"; he has a "long slender flattened skull . . . like a hooded reptile . .
. with a reptile like . . . gaze and a self-embittered . . . soul."
Like Lynch, Temple is also representative of his name. Temple considers
himself "a believer in the power of the mind." He admires Stephen greatly for
his "independent thinking,” and he himself tries to "think" about the problems of
the world.
Cranly, like his name (cranium, meaning "skull"), is Stephen's "priest like"
companion, to whom he confesses his deepest feelings. Note that several of Joyce's
references also focus on Stephen's image of Cranly's "severed head"; Cranly's
symbolic significance to Stephen is similar to that of John the Baptist (the
"martyred Christ"). The name "Cranly" also reminds us of the skull on the rector's
desk and Joyce's emphasis on the shadowy skull of the Jesuit director who queries
Stephen about a religious vocation.
Concerning the other imagery in the novel, perhaps the most pervasive is the
imagery that pertains to Stephen's exile, or, specifically, his "flight" from Ireland.
The flight imagery begins as early as his first days at Clongowes, when Stephen's
oppressed feelings are symbolized by "a heavy bird flying low through the grey
light." Later, a greasy football soars "like a heavy bird" through the sky. At that
time, flight from unhappiness seemed impossible for Stephen, but as the novel
progresses and Stephen begins to formulate his artistic ideals, the notion of flight
seems possible.
For example, in Chapter IV, after Stephen renounces the possibility of a
religious vocation, he feels a "proud sovereignty" as he crosses over the Tolka and
his name is called out by his classmates; this incident is followed by another
allusion to flight. Later, the girl wading in the sea is described as "delicate as a
crane," with the fringes of her"drawers . . . like the featherings of soft white down";
her bosom is described as "the breast of some dark plumaged dove." Her presence
in this moment of epiphany enables Stephen to choose art as his vocation.
 Finally, note that when Stephen's friends call him, his name seems to carry a
"prophecy"; he sees a "winged form flying above the waves and . . . climbing in the
air." The image of this "hawk like man flying sunward" is at the heart of the flight
motif. As Stephen realizes his life's purpose, he sees his "soul . . . soaring in the
air." He yearns to cry out like an “eagle on high." He experiences "an instant of
wild flight" and is "delivered” free from the bondage of his past. At the end of the
novel, Stephen cries out to Daedalus, his "old father, old artificer," and prepares
for his own flight to artistic freedom.

Autobiographical Elements in A Portrait of the Artist

as a Young Man by James Joyce

Introduction: In some novels the author or narrator records or narrates his own
experiences of life by adding fictional elements. These are known as
autobiographical novel. There are some elements of an autobiographical novel. They
are characters, setting, details, chronological order, point of view, author’s purpose
etc. In this type of novel the characters, themes and incidents are taken from the
author’s real life, but they are presented in an imaginary way. A Portrait of the
Artist as a Young Man is an autobiographical novel. Start with the name. The name
of the novel carries a sign. The phrase “A Portrait of the Artist” seems a symbol of
the self-portraiture of James Joyce. Stephen Dedalus is the protagonist of the novel.
He is a young Irishman. The description of education of Stephen Dedalus is quite
similar to that of James Joyce’s. His background has much similarity with Joyce’s.
The novel covers the first twenty years of Joyce’s life through Stephen. The
characteristics of the protagonist are similar to the life of Joyce. But it is a bit
artistic or fictional than the biography of the author. The autobiographical elements
in this novel are as follows:
1. Characters: Some major characters of this novel are Stephen Dedalus, his
father who has failed in various works and barely can support his family
financially, his mother who is dominated by the Catholic church, siblings of
Stephen, Mr. Casey, aunt Dante, Parnel etc. We know that Stephen is a portrait of
Joyce. From the reading of biography of Joyce we know that father of Joyce was just
like that of Stephen in the novel. Joyce’s mother was also very loyal to the Catholic
church. There are some other characters which are similar to the novel. Now if we
focus on the central character of the novel, we see Stephen with the same
intellectuality what is seen in Joyce. Stephen’s thoughts, associations, feelings and
language serve as the primary medium by which the readers can discover Stephen’s
pain, pleasure, experiences of intellectual, sexual and spiritual elements which
actually portray Joyce’s feelings at his time.

2. Setting: The novel starts in Dublin which can be considered as the backdrop of
the novel. It is also a symbol of discontentment of Stephen. The time is nearly the
last part of the nineteenth century. We see the sufferings from poverty and frequent
changes of houses of Dedalus family. The rule of Irish Catholicism and Irish
nationalist movement is also included in the settings of the novel. All the things are
just similar to the reading of Joyce’s biography. As Stephen, Joyce also was born
and brought up in Dublin, suffered from poverty and changed their houses for
several times. Not different from Stephen, Dublin was a place of discontentment to
Joyce and the streets of Dublin seemed maze to him from where he wanted to fly
away.

3. Details: This element of an autobiographical novel is interesting. Writers of

this type of novel generally use objective and subjective details and fictions to
illustrate their life stories. Objective details can be proved. In this novel objective
details are – birth details, education, religious views, family, love, emotions,
intellectual etc of Stephen. These details are real and are similar to that of James
Joyce. Fictional description is also present there. The name of the protagonist
Stephen Dedalus has a mythical value. The last name Dedalus was taken from a
Latin myth. The myth was about Icarus and his father. Dedalus was taken from
their name. They were jailed and they flew away from there. Stephen in the novel
and Joyce in his real life flew away from their birth place to fulfill their dream. That
is why Joyce used this name of the central character of his autobiographical novel.

4. Chronological Order: It is the order in which the life events of the protagonist
occur in which the writers tell their stories. Often events are arranged from
childhood to adulthood. In the novel, through the life events of Stephen, Joyce
actually told his story. He arranged the novel from childhood to adulthood. The
novel tells the story of Stephen Dedalus from his childhood to his young age. Here
we see him to study in the school, his study in the college, see the development of
his character, development of his thought, his intellectual development etc. All the
things are well arranged. So, chronological order an element of an autobiographical
novel is also present in the novel.
5. Point of View: Point of view is the perspective from which an autobiography is
written. In an autobiography, story is told from first person point of view where the
pronouns I, me, mine are used. The story is narrated from the point of view of the
author. In the novel the narrator is anonymous, but speaks with the same voice and
tone that Stephen might. Though most of A portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is
in third person, the point of view is Stephen’s. As Stephen develops as a person, the
use of language and narrating style also develops with him. At the end of the novel
we see a section in which the story is told from Stephen’s diary. This section is in
first person. This discussion shows that this requirement of being an
autobiographical novel is fulfilled.
Conclusion: The above discussion indicates that the novel A Portrait of the Artist as
a Young Man is an autobiographical novel by James Joyce. The characters, settings,
details, chronological order, point of view etc are some of the elements of an
autobiographical novel. All these elements are present in the novel. In spite of many
similarities Stephen Dedalus is grave, serious but Joyce was witty and cheerful. On
the other hand like Stephen Joyce was self-centered. In fact Stephen sometimes
seems Joyce and sometimes not, it seems clear that Joyce has portrayed himself
through Stephen.

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James

Joyce is a Bildungsroman Novel
Bildungsroman: Novels are of different kinds. Bildungsroman is one of them.
Bildungsroman is a special kind of novel that focuses on the psychological and
moral growth of its central character from his or her childhood to adulthood. A
Bildungsroman is a story of the growing up of a sensitive person who looks for
answers to his questions through different experiences. This type of a novel
generally starts with a loss or a tragedy or sad incident that disturbs the main
character emotionally. He or she leaves on a journey in the hope of getting
something new to fill that vacancy. During the journey, the protagonist gains
maturity gradually and with difficulty. Usually, the plot depicts a Conflict between
the protagonist and the values of society. Finally, he or she accepts those values and
they are accepted by the society, ending the dissatisfaction. Such a type of novel is
also known as a coming-of-age novel.
A portrait of the Artist as a Young Man a bildungsroman: A Portrait of the Artist as
a Young Man is a wonderful novel by James Joyce. It is an autobiographical novel.
The novel shows a journey, a journey of Stephen from his childhood to his
adulthood. Through Stephen, Joyce portraits his own early age. Through this
journey Stephen grows up physically, mentally and spiritually with difficulty. In his
growth he looks for some questions- his identity, his goal. In this journey we find
him suffering from some problems. There is a conflict between Stephen and the
society and religion. But in the end we see that the society at last accepts him. The
novel carries almost all the characteristics of a bildungsroman novel. So we can
consider the novel as a bildungsroman. Now I am going to show some
characteristics of bildungsroman which are present in this novel.
i. Character looks for answers to his questions: Searching for the answers
of his questions is a characteristic of a bildungsroman. We see Stephen looking for
some answers of his questions. He searches for his identity, the moral value of the
religion, his goal of life etc. In the novel we find him confused of his identity. This
identity is not the identity of his biological identity. This one is his spiritual
identity. While he was in the school, one day he writes his address. He writes his
address thus-
Name: Stephen Dedalas
Address: Dublin, Ireland, Europe, Universe.
He didn’t consider himself as a citizen of a particular region, rather a citizen of the
universe. Another answer he searched for the moral value of the religion. He
belongs to a family which carrying the ideology of Roman Catholicism. His mother
always wants him to be loyal to the church. But doesn’t show that much interest in
Catholicism or in a broad sense in religion. A question always comes in his mind,
“What is the moral value of a religion?” He also looks for his goal of his life. His
mother wants him to be a priest of Catholic Church though he doesn’t have any
interest in Catholicism. But at a time a soft corner for Catholicism grows in his
mind though it doesn’t stay long. He finally finds his goal and it is to be an artist.
So, the discussion proves the existence of a characteristic of bildungsroman in A
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.

ii. Sad incident that disturbs the main character emotionally: A novel
starts with a tragedy or a sad incident that disturbs the main character emotionally
is another characteristic of a bildungsroman. In the novel A Portrait of the Artist as
a Young Man carries this one as well. In the first part of the novel we see Stephen
to face two or more sad incidents by which he is disturbed emotionally. For
example, some of his senior students throw him in a ditch and another one is his
being punished by Father Dolan for no reason. Last one touches him a lot. Once
while coming to the school, he breaks his spectacles. As a result in the class while
Father Dolan asks everyone t read their books, Stephen can’t as he can’t read
without having his spectacles. On this account he gets punished by Father Dolan
despite of his description about his problems. This injustice deed of Father Dolan
makes him disturbed. Thus he questions the religion and the ideology of religious
person and decides for having a justification and finally he gets it.

iii. Gaining maturity by the Central character: Gaining maturity by the

central character is one of the most important characteristics of a bildungsroman.
In this novel we see the development of the central character Stephen. He grows up
from childhood to adulthood. Te novel covers the twenty years of Stephen. In these
twenty years we see how he gets matured physically, mentally and spiritually.
Some incidents show the evidences of his grown up. Father Dolan punishes Stephen
and he accuses Dolan for doing an injustice on him and he decides to have the
justice and finally he does it. This incident shows his mental growth or gaining
mental maturity. Then at a time because of having so much frustrations and
desperations we see him going to brothel house. But soon he understands his
mistake and he goes to the Church to repent and to confess his misdeed (though his
beliefs do not go long). This incident shows his spiritual maturity. So, we get
another characteristic of bildungsroman novel in this one.
iv. Conflicts between the protagonist and the values of society: In a
bildungsroman novel it is a very important thing to have a conflict between the
protagonist and the values of society. In the end of the novel the character accepts
the social values and is accepted by the society after dissatisfaction. In the novel A
Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man we can find this criterion of bildungsroman. A
conflict between the social values and Stephen is seen.

The above discussed topics are basically the main characteristics of a

bildungsroman. All of them are present in the novel A Portrait of the Artist as a
Young Man”. So we can consider the novel as a bildungsroman.

Conclusion: James Joyce is one of the most important literary figures of modern age
of English literature. His novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man” is also a
famous one. Not because of having the autobiographical elements in the novel,
rather because of the plot, description and art of creating and describing the
characters. The bildungsroman characteristics have put another feather in the
crown.