woman as a symbol in chapter 2 of Portrait of the artist as a young man.
Woman is used many times in Joyce's Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Stephen Dedalus, the main character of the work, is fascinated by woman. This fascination is played upon in many circumstances.First and foremost is the relationship he has with Dante, his aunt. While this relationship is mostly discussed in the first chapter, it's ramifications can be seen in the second. Stephen is often reminded of his aunt, and the green and red brushes she always had. he draws many conclusions (however ill informed they are) from the knowledge of his aunt. He views women, as did most boys in his culture, as something alien; something that he would understand 'when he grew up'. Women are presented as mysterious, as when Stephen is looking at "The Beautiful Mabel Hunter" in the evening paper. He stares at the picture with awe and not a little confusion- what should he feel? Stephen is possessing a self-consciousness that is so melancholy as to be called morbid. He has, like most young men, horrible doubts about himself. Women further complicate his disposition. For example, when he says goodbye to Eileen at the
Again, like most boys his age, he thought understanding of women would happen in an instant: tram; he knows he should kiss her, but he is mortally afraid to do so. Also, sex before marriage was a sin- and anything that could lead to sex (a kiss) was to be avoided, as that too could lead to sin. Stephen has such low self-esteem at this point, he is scared of making any move towards any girl. This stems from the Irish Catholic culture that has surrounded him his whole life. This sentence has a wealth of meaning hidden therein. This shows a sad, proud disdain for passionate women. Stephen takes this quote to heart, living his young life in a ridiculous state of chastity- a state which backfires viscously at the end of the chapter when he attains the services of a prostitute. Stephen thinks that because he has no luck with women, it's their fault. Going inward, he finds that it is much easier to deny himself the pleasure of loving a woman, than to try to love one and become rejected.
Some common words found in the essay are:
Cristo Stephen, Irish Catholic, Stephen Dedalus, Mabel Hunter, Simply Dedalus, God Stephen, Catholic Ireland, Symbol Chapter, women constant, father stephen,
Approximate Word count = 781
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
|
