The Ulysses Figure and Protagonist of the novel - Essay Example

College Ulysses The autobiographical figure of Stephen is fundamental in the development of the plot of the book Ulysses. Stephen Dedalus may be interpreted as a version of the author himself. This is because his literary accomplishments are an expression of his repressed sexuality just as James Joyce’s book Ulysses is a purging of reproach and taboo enforced onto Irish writers in the milieu of the tightly controlled and authoritarian 20TH century Ireland. The disparity between Stephen Dedalus and James Joyce is that Joyce fights political restraints and religious rules with his book Ulysses by writing about provocative sexual practices that are common place ,in a different language with a structure that is scholarly . Stephen Dedalus’ poetry contrarily does not display a constructive rationale and innovation. When the book begins we learn that Stephen Dedalus has come back to Dublin from his self imposed exile to Paris. His mother was on her death bed and Dublin returned on her request. His mother requested him to pray for her which he sadly refused. This refusal weighed him down to the extent that one year down the line he still puts on mourning clothes. In an excerpt of the book, we are shown how he struggles with guilt. We are told of the visions he had of his mother appearing to him as a disgusting corpse. His mother was mute and had a bad odour. These appearances, according to him, were as a result of his refusal to pray for her at her death bed. It had killed even memories of her. Stephen tells us that his mother’s breathe was reproving. This certainly showed that Stephen was overwhelmed with guilt at the thought of his mother’s image. This is an implication that his mother’s ghost is more of a ghost of his guilt and regret. Either way, it is this guilt that leads him to thinking about Sarget’s mother’s love for him. It is very probable that Dublin was battling with thoughts within himself. He is pondering about the extent his late mother loved him. Stephen’s talent as an artist has not entirely come into light. He is portrayed as a reluctant teacher of history at the boy’s school he teaches at. He even fails to notice that his students are totally detached from his lesson. He is a temperamental and disillusioned character. He is presented as a man who loathes so many things. This is evident when he wakes that morning and learns that he does not like his roommates. He exits the tower, hands over the keys and confirms his absence later in the evening. This highlights his emotional distance with those around him. He is incapable to bond emotionally with his roommates (Joyce 20). Similarly, in Telemachus it is evident that Stephen has started to sense that everything only brings him solitude and seclusion. This manifests at the opening of Ulysses where Stephen appears to be in his own world. Mulligan attempts to make Stephen appear as a radical irreligious genius but he answers back saying that Mulligan’s perception of him was that of an awful example of liberal thought (Joyce 234). Stephen’s contacts with other characters like Buck, Hanes and Mr. Deasy in the initial chapters of this book, accentuates our sense of damaging compulsions and ties that have sprouted due to his return to Ireland from Paris. At the onset of the book, Stephen has a sense of self awareness although he has not entirely realized his identity. He is battling with self-discovery. He is on a mission to identify with his inner self through unreal characters such as Hamlet. Stephen subsists mostly within a world of his own, an imaginary world awash with ideas. His actions are apparently an intention to push others away from him. In an excerpt (Jaurretche, 21) goes out an open porch to a gravel path. He hears cries and voices. He worries about what Mulligan will nickname him this time. “The lion’s couchant on the pillars as he passed out through the gate: toothless terrors. Still I will help him in his fight. Mulligan will dub me a new name: the bullock befriending bard” (Jaurretche 21). The occurrences in the above excerpt are a clear sign that he is struggling with what people think of him. He wants to be given a new name, one that denotes his strength as opposed to the one his housemate had given him-the bullock befriending bard. It is arguable that although he is detached and has distanced himself from the people around him, they are also playing a big role in snubbing him .They are acting in a way that only pushes him further from them as he gets on a self discovery journey. We tend to sympathise with him because the people who we have seen so far interacting with him have not demonstrated a need to have room for him but have rather pushed him away. Stephen displays from the thirst for money. This does not mean that he is charitable but rather implies his lack of concern for material belongings. He is also untidy; this is also a sign of him distancing himself from the material world. Stephen bears resentments, although the reader is swayed to admire his struggle for independence, the fact that he has impoverished siblings back at home nullifies the reader’s false thought. Stephens’s reflections revolve on matters of being a passive or an active individual in the world. This evident from how he reflects about how the eyes perceive the world. This also manifests in his history classes and on his reflections concerning a mother’s love (Kenner 12). Stephen’s struggles are also about his parents. He denies his father despite the fact that his father is alive and well. It could be said he denies him since he is in a quest to be himself without his father’s critical judgment. Throughout the book he is seen to be struggling to find himself without others assisting him. This however creates more conflicts for him. He ends up struggling with God’s authority .His attempts at renouncing obligations and authority accelerates his abandonment of everyone that counts to him including those who do not really count (Joyce 61). Introducing Stephen in the first three chapters helps us in understanding Bloom better. We are able to compare and contrast the behaviour of the two characters. Bloom, who is an outsider, has the power to envision an all inclusive nation. This capacity makes him a character that suffers and also brings to light the narrow-mindedness evident in Ireland. Bloom’s social segregation is multi-sided. He tends to be clear minded when with male friends of his peer. Stephen does not drink, neither does he gossip when he is with his male peers who drink. Although he is a very friendly man, it does not bother him when he is left out from his peer’s circles. As portrayed earlier, Stephen is lost in his own thoughts. Contrarily, Bloom is fretful of the material world that matches his scientific inquisitiveness and pragmatic mind. The clear indication of the variations between these characters may be deduced from the fact that in episode three, Bloom emerges bending over his cat and questions how the cat’s senses work in comparison to Stephen who shuts himself off to ponder about himself. From Bloom’s understanding of female undergarments and from his masturbating habits coupled with his erotic messages it can be concluded that he is more at ease with the physical. Basing on this fact, there is no similarity with Stephen. Stephen is portrayed as celibate and lacks experience. At some point we see him crying while waiting to be touched by the prostitute (Lyons 90). Stephen is portrayed as an unhappy and dramatic individual contrary to Bloom who is grown-up and has the ability to cheer himself up. Bloom can decide not to think about demoralizing issues. Bloom displays love for others. This is evident when he helps out Stephen. Stephen’s friends attempted to give him too much alcohol. He also asks the police not to take Stephen into custody. Bloom takes Stephen to a coffee shop and later on takes him home to rest .Bloom acts as a father figure to Stephen and Stephen does not push him away. By first letting the reader know about the character of Stephen, the author James Joyce, helps us appreciate and understand the protagonist’s character better. He also helps in the building of the plot of the story thus making this book an interesting read although it is quite challenging. It is in their union and appreciation of each other that we get to see Stephen as a person who can accept help from another person. This is probably the point where he discovers himself. Work cited Jaurretche, Colleen. Beckett, Joyce and the Art of the Negative. Amsterdam [Netherlands: Rodopi, 2005. Internet resource. Joyce, James. Ulysses. New York: Random House, 1946. Print. Joyce, James. Dubliners. New York: Modern library, 1926. Print. Joyce, James. A Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man. New York: Viking Press, 1964. Print. Kenner, Hugh. Ulysses. London: G. Allen & Unwin, 1980. Print. Lyons, Louis M. Reporting the News: Selections from Nieman Reports. Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1965. Print. Read More