A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man - Essay Example

Theme of Isolation in “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man” Roll No: Teacher: 28th March 2009 Theme of Isolation in “A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man” ‘Isolation is the first principle of artistic economy’ (Joyce). Discuss the theme of isolation in Joyce’s Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Isolation is a significant theme of modernism and in the works that are written in modern period more or less mention the theme of isolation. In James Joyce’s novel, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, the protagonist of the novel, Stephen Dedalus is isolated from his surroundings from the beginning of the novel. The character of Stephen is a portrayal of modern man who is in search of his identity and recognition (Brandabur 1971). Stephen appears as a character, which we can see from inside as we are able to note his inner transactions and developments with the passage of time (Gorman 1928). Before A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, no other writer wrote like Joyce. It was for the first time that a character was seen in terms of his psychological development (Booth 1961). Stephen is introduced first in the novel as three years old boy that proceeds towards his vocation of an artist by a continuous psychological development. Stephen starts his education at Clongowes Wood College, which is a Jesuit boarding school for boys but later on, he has to get admission in another educational institution, which is less prestigious as compared to Clongowes Wood College on the basis of financial problems faced by his father. At Clongowes Wood College, he is to suffer embarrassment on the basis of his distant thinking (Brandabur 1971). He is unable to connect to his peers because of his isolated nature and search for his self-identity. His new boarding school is Belvedere College. Stephen is portrayed as a good student, an excellent essay writer, who wins awards and a good actor while being at Belvedere College. Stephen is a promising student but he is unable to feel attachment to his surroundings (Brandabur 1971). He considers himself somewhat separated. Unlike other students of his class, Stephen is somewhat sceptic about the religion (Kenner 1965). In addition, he also feels profound curiosity for literary works and writing. He gets alienated because of his interests and his cynicism related to religion (Booth 1961). Whenever Stephen returns from his boarding school, he feels uncomfortable. He is alienated from his family, his friends, his companions and his instructors. Hence, it can be said that Stephen is somewhat detached from his society, religion and people around him. When he comes to his family in his Christmas holidays, he attends a diner with his family. In this dinner, the family is involved in a political debate and angry arguments due to which, he feels himself more separated from his family. At the school, he has to suffer the nastiness of boys because of his different nature (Brandabur 1971). He becomes a target because of being misfit in his school among his peers. Due to this fact, he is isolated from his peers. Stephen is able to win reputation while continuing to be isolated. His sense of alienation is deepened when he goes to a trip with his father. He considers himself fully different than his father and in actuality, he gains knowledge about his father’s weaknesses (Gorman 1928). He protests against his palm whipping, which can be considered as his first act of rebellion against the system. Because of his this act, he is able to gain respect by his peers. When Stephen accompanies his father on a trip to Cork, he realizes that his father keeps the values of dead Ireland (Booth 1961). This means that his father is still in the past or has attached himself to the past. Stephen looks the association with dead past as a weakness of his father. With his development, he drifts away from his family and Church (Brandabur 1971). In other words, it can be said that Stephen is disillusioned from the Church and his family. He feels anger and pity both for the situation and circumstances of his family. Stephen wins award for his essay writing and he spends this on himself. He feels repugnancy for poverty, which he has to endure. He feels himself separated and isolated because of his ideologies, which are in contrast to his family and religion (Kenner 1965). Stephen has to suffer to a great extent because of his sense of alienation from his family and religion. Later on, he grows to be a young man but his isolation and alienation move with him and he is depicted as alone at many incidents in the novel. Stephen’s growth towards being an artist indicates towards his existence as an isolated and alienated being (Pope 1986). He feels detached from his family and religion on the basis of their values (Booth 1961). According to Stephen, there are also positive values attached with religion but his vocation is different. At the end of Chapter 1, Joyce writes: He was alone. He was happy and free: but he would not be any way proud with father Donlan. He would be very quiet and obedient: and he wished that he could do something kind to show him that he was not proud. (Joyce 1992, 64) From the childhood, Stephen is portrayed as alone. He is somewhat troubled because of his isolation and loneliness but he is detached from his family and religion on the basis of his own ideologies and opinions concerning life, existence and his position in society (Brandabur 1971). Because of Stephen’s isolated and alienated personality, he is also considered as proud. Stephen Dedalus is seen in A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man as an outsider because he is unable to connect anyone in his development towards maturity (Booth 1961). Stephen is a rebellious character who has little to do with his family and religion. For his artistic development, he has to identify himself. He has to recognize his being as an individual. He rebels for his artistic development (Gorman 1928). Stephen moves throughout the novel towards his self-discovery that is very crucial for his development as an artist. Stephen shows interest in Literature and reading, which can be regarded as an escape from his isolation or from his detached society. At his childhood, Stephen enjoys the story of The Count of Monte Cristo. This interest shows that he regards himself as imprisoned by his school and feels intensely about the spitefulness and vindictiveness of his peers (Kenner 1965). Stephen gives a little importance to other events around him because of his self-consideration and selfish nature (Pope 1986). In his isolation, he regards nothing more important as compared to his own being. While reading A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, the reader finds a little connection between father and son as Stephen narrates about his father and family in a negligible manner. His father’s search of property and seeking out for a job, all are mentioned with little importance (Booth 1961). When Stephen’s father talks to the Jesuit to whom, Stephen has remonstrated against the unjustified palm whipping, Stephen feels himself disconnected from his father (Brandabur 1971). His father says: Shows you the spirit in which they take the boys there. O, a Jesuit for your life, for diplomacy! (Joyce 1992, 73) By listening to his father’s views and speech, Stephen regards himself an individual and also that he has little connection with his father. For Stephen, this event was of great trouble but his father took it leniently (Pope 1986). Stephen was unable to connect the original incident with his father’s comments. Stephen gets involved in sexual contact between prostitutes. He is attracted towards this sexual rendezvous with prostitutes because he feels no emotional attachment in his this linkage (Booth 1961). With his this act, he moved away from Jesuit and his family’s power. He chose his own vocation and that was becoming an artist. Even after this, he was in some sense of otherness. At this stage of development, Stephen is not fully aware about how to give an outlet to his artistic expression and he remains somehow depressed thinking and pursuing continuously a way for his artistic expression (Gorman 1928). His sexual encounters are meaningless and without any emotional bondage. Stephen considers himself alone even when he realizes his artistic vocation. When he is busy in viewing the girl on the sea, he is alone. As the following quotes show: He was alone. He was unheeded, happy and near to the wild heart of life. He was alone and young and wilful and wild hearted, alone amid a waste of wild air and blakish waters and seaharvest of shells and tangle and veiled grey sunlight and gayclad, lightclad figures of children and girls and voices childish and girlish in the air. (Joyce 1992) In this paragraph, the writer Joyce indicates towards the loneliness and isolation of Stephen. Stephen is alone but happy. He has a number of people around him as he can see various figures of children and girls. He can also listen to the voices but still, he is alone. This loneliness indicates towards his self-obsessed personality. He gives maximum importance to his own self. He is not unhappy with his loneliness. He is happy and contented. He feels his uniqueness and individuality among many other figures. This uniqueness and individuality is not new but very old. He has always considered himself unique and detached from his surroundings (Kenner 1965). To him, he is the centre of his being and should be given such importance. Joyce writes: Isolation is the first principle of artistic economy (Joyce). Therefore, Stephen is kept isolated with the help of which, he is able to identity his own self and is able to find his artistic capabilities. He is alone but happy. He has at last discovered himself and his vocation. He was not ready to be a priest but an artist who sees beauty in different aspects of life. He shows interest in his own personality and keeps in his own search. Modernism also takes into consideration the theme of self-discovery along with the theme of isolation and loneliness and many others. The theme of isolation is quite prominent in A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Even at the end, Stephen remains isolated. He is able to recognize himself and his ambitions by being alone. He never discusses his problems with his friends and peers (Kenner 1965). He remains somewhat introvert and keeps his personality hidden. It is only through his art that he is able to get an outlet of his feelings and personality. With his psychological development, he gains a source of outlet for his own self. He is an artist and he realizes this by noticing the girl at the sea. Stephen has found an outlet for his isolated and alienated being. He has remained isolated and alienated because of his self-discovery and his search for his true vocation. He has rebelled against the restrictions on his personality and vocation. He connected himself with nothing else but his art. Works Cited Booth, Wayne C 1961, "The Price of Impersonal Narration, 1: Confusion of Distance", The Rhetoric of Fiction. University of California Press, 311-38. Brandabur, Edward 1971, A Scrupulous Meanness: A Study of Joyces Early Work, University of Illinois Press, Chicago, 159-174. Gorman, Herbert 1928, In an introduction to A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce, The Modern Library, 5-11. Joyce, James 1992, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, Bantam Books, New York. Kenner, Hugh 1965, "Joyces Portrait -- A Reconsideration", The University of Windsor Review, vol.1, no. 1, Spring, 1-15. Pope, Deborah 1986, "The Misprision of Vision: A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man", James Joyce, vol.1, ed. Harold Bloom, Chelsea House Publishers, New York. Read More