a poor trait of the artless

something something words words words.

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man isn't quite an autobiography. It is fictionalized, curated, concentrated. It has been pruned from the much longer draft known as Stephen Hero into a dense little novel. It is about the childhood and adolescence of Stephen Dedalus, who follows the broad strokes of the growth of author James Joyce, as he is trained in the Jesuit arts and prepared for a priestly vocation. But something turns him away from the Church and towards a far broader life goal: to be a "priest" of Art as a whole. What is it that happens to him, or in him? What is the life he leaves behind? And what does he have to do with the myth of Daedalus, anyhow?

I:

the first division of the book deals with Stephen as a young child, dimly aware of a bigger world around him, as he deals with the antics of his first years at Jesuit school

II:

the second division has Stephen starting to identify with specific fictional characters and establish himself amongst his friends, But Then There's A Prostitute

III:

the third division is Stephen at his most guilty and most devoted to the priesthood, And Then There's The Hell Sermon

IV:

the fourth division is a shifting Stephen finally turning away from the Church and having epiphanies

V:

and the fifth division has Stephen establishing his theories to his friends, Then He Moves On From Ireland As An Artist

obviously I will fill out this page as time goes on. I have read A Portrait a few times by now and find it a compelling narrative. and it is very helpful to reckon with the novel and learn more about Stephen, as he shows up next time around in Ulysses!!!!

Here’s Portrait on Project Gutenberg.