Finding Life's Passion

A detailed Summary of Finding Life's Passion

As we step into A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce, we find Stephen Dedalus to be a boy that lives a life of change. He is only one person, but one might say that he is numerous different people, and that most of these people are complete opposites of one another. He is one boy who suffers with living the lives of several all wrapped up into one. It is along with this fact that we embark on a journey into the life of a lost soul that is simply trying to find its proper place in existence. Through this journey we see Stephen as he moves from being extremely pious to completely rejecting religion, from being a daydreamer of heroes and virginal heroines, to finding no comfort in love's midst, from being wealthy and stable to being forced to move from his home. While he has been brought up to revere his father, he only sees his failures; and though he loves his mother, he rejects her dreams for his life. We see Stephen as insecure yet confident with himself, meek yet not afraid to challenge authority, focused yet constantly changing. But the one thing that always remains the same is the fact that Stephen is driven by passion.

Stephen's whole life is one that is characterized by passion. He lives his life v

It is not long, however, until he experiences change once again. Although it is a slightly harder change to take place, through the horrific descriptions and forceful influences of the sermons that he hears throughout the retreat, Stephen begins to realize that he must once again turn from this life style that he has adapted. Change occurs once again, though this time it is not so willingly done, but more so motivated by his fear of losing his soul to Hell. However, Stephen does indeed leave the life of sin and lust as he confesses his sins to a priest and instills in himself a new passion for religion. Once again we see a wholehearted change of focus within Stephen as he has left the old self behind in order that he may follow in the direction of religion once more. This time Stephen took religion to a much deeper level, as well as a much more personal one. He becomes very pious and strict with himself. He establishes harsh rules for himself to follow in order that he would not fall back into sin and carries with him rosary beads at all times. Although Steven throughout his life has been a member of the Catholic church, this is the first time that we find him being truly devoted to leading a pious life, and I would argue that this is the first time we really see Stephen as truly accepting the faith as his own. All through his life he was influenced by his mother's desire for him to be a member of the church as well as in his schooling experiences. With such a life being pushed upon him and surrounding completely surrounding him, it is no wonder that this is the life which he leads early on, though I believe it was not truly the life he desired to live, and still is not the life he is seeking even now. This point becomes evident through two encounters in the story: first when Stephen comes to the realization that he must not become a priest because this passion for religion is keeping him from experiencing life the way that he was supposed to, and secondly when he encounters the girl on the beach.

In the beginning we experience the close family ties within the Dedalus family as Stephen's father tells him a story. It is here that we get our first glimpse of Stephen as an artist for he envisions himself within the story and makes it revolve around him. In a sense, Stephen steps completely into the story and makes it revolve around him. Though soon after this experience we find Stephen talking of love and marriage, even at this very young age.

It becomes evident that Stephen's first passion is towards the emotion of love. H

Some common words found in the essay are:
Stephen Dedalus, Hell Stephen, E-C- Emma, Virgin Mary, Monte Crisco, Looking Stephen, Emma Clery, passion religion, , story makes revolve, living life, vision love, devout catholic, stephen's passion, life style, sin lust, lives life, virgin mary, story makes,

Approximate Word count = 1725
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English