A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man - Essay Example The essay "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" examines isolation theme in Joyce’s Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. 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. 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. 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 thin king. 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. He considers himself somewhat separated. Unlike other students of his class, Stephen is somewhat sceptic about the religion.