Book Review: Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce 

Whenever scholars discuss the most difficult books to read, James Joyce is usually in the top five. Casual readers will attempt reading his magnum opus Ulysses as if it were a 10K, not realizing a work of that caliber is more like a marathon, requiring training in literary scholarship. Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is a better piece for intermediate or seasoned readers to be introduced to James Joyce style of writing. While it is still deeply symbolic, subliminal, and disorienting, like other modernist literature, the book’s short length, single protagonist, and autobiographical nature of the narrative lends to an easier excavation of his masterful work. Dealing with themes of religion, nationalism, and artistic freedom, Portrait of the Artist is a short novella written by a lover of literature for lovers of literature.

Why is it Difficult?

The modernist literary movement of the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century is known for breaking conventional narrative structures by focusing more on the protagonist’s inner thoughts, sensations, and profound psychological experiences. It countered the conservatism of Victorian literature and the exaggerations of the Romantic movement. James Joyce is one of the pioneers of modernism along with other literary titans like William Faulkner, Ezra Pound, Virginia Woolf, Marcel Proust, and Franz Kafka. Utilizing the stream-of-consciousness narration to highlight the abstract nature of thought and sensations, modernist writers explored the complexity of the human psyche when flooded by memories, daydreams, and inner voices while attempting to engage with the plot happening around them. Readers may not realize when the protagonist has left the present timeline to a past memory or fantasy. Sentences may be fragments, quotation marks are questionable, and order is optional, rebelling against the grammatical order of common storytelling to display the disjointed nature of reality.

Therefore, Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is not going to follow the standard plot diagram. It is important that readers understand what they are getting into before taking on a modernist book, even a short half marathon like this one. The plot is somewhat chronological, beginning in infancy and ending in young adulthood, but the plot jumps around the timeline between his university days and childhood school memories without any clear direction. Joyce assumes readers will recognize and understand allusions to Catholicism and literary figures. Character’s names may seem unimportant, but their names often reflect an ideology he is intentionally addressing. It would do any reader a great deal of good to accompany this book with literary criticism and analysis by scholars.

It’s Worth Reading

“His heart danced upon her movements like a cork upon a tide. He heard what her eyes said to him from beneath their cowl and knew that in some dim past, whether in life or revery, he had heard their tale before.” - James Joyce, Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man 1916

Aside from the semi-autobiographical nature, which is what initially drew me to the book, Joyce’s use of language is sublime and poetic. Readers who are familiar with the classics will appreciate the many allusions and allegories to literary figures and characters as far back as ancient Greece. The protagonist’s name is Daedalus, after the genius inventor of the fake bull, the labyrinth holding the minotaur, and the infamous wax wings of the tragic Icarus. Other characters are named after favorite poets like Dante, representing the influence they’ve had on his development as a person and writer. One the subject of Dante, Joyce contrasts the colors maroon and green against one another throughout the book, bringing to mind the famous portrait of Dante Alighieri in a red garb, crowned with a green laurel wreath. The colors also represent the contrast between Irish nationalism and the catholic faith within himself and his family.

There is another war raging inside of Joyce, the call of the priesthood or to fully devote himself to art. Attending a Catholic Jesuit school shaped his young mind as a boy, but it was always grated against the strong Irish nationalism and crimes of the church against patriots. Many of his early heroes were Catholics. However, his deep hidden passions were for the flesh and aesthetics and led him down a destructive path. This wounds him severely and propels him into piety and self-mortification before being recommended to the priesthood. The chapters about his redemption from guilt are some of the most beautifully poetic lines of modernist prose I’ve ever read.


“Her lips touched his brain as they touched his lips, as though they were a vehicle of some vague speech and between them he felt an unknown and timid pressure, darker than the swoon of sin, softer than sound or odor.” - Joyce, 1916


“Instead the vital wave had carried him on its bosom out of himself and back again when it receded: and no part of body or soul had been maimed, but a dark peace had been established between them. The chaos in which his ardour extinguished itself was a cold indifferent knowledge of himself.” - Joyce, 1916


“Her whose beauty ‘is not like earthly beauty, dangerous to look upon, but like the morning star which is its emblem, bright and musical.’” - Joyce, 1916


Portrait is a coming-of-age story more akin to the turbulent Catcher in the Rye than the typical narrative tone. It is about deconstructing faith and finding meaning in life as well as identity contrary to the environment. Everything about Stephen Daedalus'’ life should have made him a strong Irish-Catholic, but he leaves it all behind literally to be an artist who is both and neither.

Who Shouldn’t Read It?

Don’t read this book if you’re a casual reader looking for something fun to read because this book is only fun for people who like to excavate and dig through literature. Readers who do not understand modernism or stream-of-consciousness narration should also avoid this book because it will be confusing and disorienting. This book is for readers who love literature, specifically poetry, and can appreciate unique forms of storytelling. If you are thinking of reading Ulysses because of its grand status in the literary world, try Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man as a prerequisite. Survive the 10k before attempting the marathon. Don’t be ashamed to watch analysis videos on YouTube or get help from Sparknotes.com to make sense of the symbolism so you don’t miss anything.

If you’ve read it or are thinking of reading it. Let me know :)