Exploring Religious Constraints and a Journey towards Self-Discovery in James Joyce’s <i>A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man</i>

Fahamida Akter

doi:doi:10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12

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Exploring Religious Constraints and a Journey towards Self-Discovery in James Joyce’s A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man

Fahamida Akter

Published in International Journal of Literature and Arts (Volume 11, Issue 3)

Received: 9 May 2023 Accepted: 26 May 2023 Published: 6 June 2023

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Abstract

The object of this paper is to represent a deeply flawed character Stephen Dedalus, whose journey towards self- discovery is hindered by societal and religious constraints in James Joyce’s novel A Portrait of the Artist as a young man. One of the most prominent issues of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is showing how Stephen casts off the Catholic Religion, his religious identity while he evolves his own freedom and artistic consciousness throughout a procedure that will shape the different phases of his life. From childhood Stephen ascribes to an absolute belief in the morals of the church as his family was a devout Catholic family. As a teenager, this belief directs him to two opposite extremes, both of which are detrimental. At first, he falls into the extreme of sins, repeatedly sleeping with prostitutes, lying, envying, becoming prone to all seven deadly sins and intentionally turning his back on religion. Though Stephen sins consciously, he is always aware that he is breaking the church's rules. Again, when Father Arnall's sermon encourages him to return to Catholicism, he falls to the other extreme, becoming a fanatical model of religious fidelity and dedication. At long last, nonetheless, Stephen understands that both of these lifestyles—the completely immoral and the completely devoted—are constraints and are dangerous for him. Stephen realizes that extreme religious rules and complete sinful attitude both will not permit him to enjoy the full experience of being human. Stephen finally reaches a decision to embrace life and rejoice humanity after seeing a young girl wandering at a beach. At the end of the novel, Stephen replaces his initial Catholicism by a more personal and “evolutionary” religion, the religion of art that will make him a complete and eternal person.

Published in	International Journal of Literature and Arts (Volume 11, Issue 3)
DOI	10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12
Page(s)	104-109
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2024. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Religion, Fanatic, Artist, Epiphany, Growth, Identity

References

[1]	Beja, Morris. (1992). James Joyce: A literary life. Columbus: Ohio State University Press. pp. 42- 45.
[2]	Beja, Morris. (1971). Joyce's Epiphanies and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. James Joyce Quarterly, 8 (3), pp. 315-327.
[3]	Bloom, Harold. (2004). James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Chelsea House Publishers. pp. 20-25.
[4]	Bonapfel, Elizabeth. (1999). "This race and this country and this life": The development of Stephen Dedalus's identity in "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man." In H. Bloom (Ed.), James Joyce's "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man". New York: Chelsea House Publishers. pp. 29-40.
[5]	Brown, Richard. (1992). The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man: A Casebook. Oxford University Press.
[6]	Fairhall, James. (2008). James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man: A Casebook. Oxford University Press.
[7]	Friedman, S. S. (1990). "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man": Reflections on the art of the novel. In M. T. Inge (Ed.), James Joyce's "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man": A casebook (pp. 77-96). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
[8]	Howes, Marjorie. (2007). James Joyce's "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man": A sourcebook. New York: Routledge.
[9]	Joyce, James. (1916). A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. London: Penguin.
[10]	Kiberd, Declan. (1995). Inventing Ireland: The literature of the modern nation. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
[11]	Kenner, Hugh. (1955). Dublin's Joyce. New York: Columbia University Press.
[12]	Lawrence, Karen. (1983). The Odyssey of style in "Ulysses". Princeton: Princeton University Press. pp. 95-98.
[13]	Litz, A. Walton. (1961). The Art of James Joyce: Method and Design in "Ulysses" and "Finnegans Wake. Oxford University Press.
[14]	Martin, Timothy. (2012). James Joyce: A Short Introduction. Blackwell Publishing.
[15]	McDonald, Marianne. (1997). Epiphanies in A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. James Joyce Quarterly, 34 (4), 667-681.
[16]	Nash, John. (2004). James Joyce and the Act of Reception: Reading, Ireland, Modernism. University of Chicago Press.
[17]	Riquelme, J. P. (2005). The Cambridge companion to James Joyce. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
[18]	Scott, Bonnie Kime. (2007). The gender of piety in Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. In J. P. Riquelme (Ed.), A Companion to James Joyce. Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 33-45.
[19]	Slote, S. (2005). Joyce's Nietzschean ethics. Gainesville: University Press of Florida. pp. 43-45.

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Fahamida Akter. (2023). Exploring Religious Constraints and a Journey towards Self-Discovery in James Joyce’s A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man. International Journal of Literature and Arts, 11(3), 104-109. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12

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Fahamida Akter. Exploring Religious Constraints and a Journey towards Self-Discovery in James Joyce’s A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man. Int. J. Lit. Arts 2023, 11(3), 104-109. doi: 10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12

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Fahamida Akter. Exploring Religious Constraints and a Journey towards Self-Discovery in James Joyce’s A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man. Int J Lit Arts. 2023;11(3):104-109. doi: 10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12

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@article{10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12,
  author = {Fahamida Akter},
  title = {Exploring Religious Constraints and a Journey towards Self-Discovery in James Joyce’s A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man},
  journal = {International Journal of Literature and Arts},
  volume = {11},
  number = {3},
  pages = {104-109},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijla.20231103.12},
  abstract = {The object of this paper is to represent a deeply flawed character Stephen Dedalus, whose journey towards self- discovery is hindered by societal and religious constraints in James Joyce’s novel A Portrait of the Artist as a young man. One of the most prominent issues of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is showing how Stephen casts off the Catholic Religion, his religious identity while he evolves his own freedom and artistic consciousness throughout a procedure that will shape the different phases of his life. From childhood Stephen ascribes to an absolute belief in the morals of the church as his family was a devout Catholic family. As a teenager, this belief directs him to two opposite extremes, both of which are detrimental. At first, he falls into the extreme of sins, repeatedly sleeping with prostitutes, lying, envying, becoming prone to all seven deadly sins and intentionally turning his back on religion. Though Stephen sins consciously, he is always aware that he is breaking the church's rules. Again, when Father Arnall's sermon encourages him to return to Catholicism, he falls to the other extreme, becoming a fanatical model of religious fidelity and dedication. At long last, nonetheless, Stephen understands that both of these lifestyles—the completely immoral and the completely devoted—are constraints and are dangerous for him. Stephen realizes that extreme religious rules and complete sinful attitude both will not permit him to enjoy the full experience of being human. Stephen finally reaches a decision to embrace life and rejoice humanity after seeing a young girl wandering at a beach. At the end of the novel, Stephen replaces his initial Catholicism by a more personal and “evolutionary” religion, the religion of art that will make him a complete and eternal person.},
 year = {2023}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Exploring Religious Constraints and a Journey towards Self-Discovery in James Joyce’s A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man
AU  - Fahamida Akter
Y1  - 2023/06/06
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N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12
T2  - International Journal of Literature and Arts
JF  - International Journal of Literature and Arts
JO  - International Journal of Literature and Arts
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PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2331-057X
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12
AB  - The object of this paper is to represent a deeply flawed character Stephen Dedalus, whose journey towards self- discovery is hindered by societal and religious constraints in James Joyce’s novel A Portrait of the Artist as a young man. One of the most prominent issues of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is showing how Stephen casts off the Catholic Religion, his religious identity while he evolves his own freedom and artistic consciousness throughout a procedure that will shape the different phases of his life. From childhood Stephen ascribes to an absolute belief in the morals of the church as his family was a devout Catholic family. As a teenager, this belief directs him to two opposite extremes, both of which are detrimental. At first, he falls into the extreme of sins, repeatedly sleeping with prostitutes, lying, envying, becoming prone to all seven deadly sins and intentionally turning his back on religion. Though Stephen sins consciously, he is always aware that he is breaking the church's rules. Again, when Father Arnall's sermon encourages him to return to Catholicism, he falls to the other extreme, becoming a fanatical model of religious fidelity and dedication. At long last, nonetheless, Stephen understands that both of these lifestyles—the completely immoral and the completely devoted—are constraints and are dangerous for him. Stephen realizes that extreme religious rules and complete sinful attitude both will not permit him to enjoy the full experience of being human. Stephen finally reaches a decision to embrace life and rejoice humanity after seeing a young girl wandering at a beach. At the end of the novel, Stephen replaces his initial Catholicism by a more personal and “evolutionary” religion, the religion of art that will make him a complete and eternal person.
VL  - 11
IS  - 3
ER  -

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Author Information

Fahamida Akter

Senior Lecturer, Department of English, Port City International University, Chattogram, Bangladesh

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Fahamida Akter. (2023). Exploring Religious Constraints and a Journey towards Self-Discovery in James Joyce’s A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man. International Journal of Literature and Arts, 11(3), 104-109. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12

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ACS Style

Fahamida Akter. Exploring Religious Constraints and a Journey towards Self-Discovery in James Joyce’s A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man. Int. J. Lit. Arts 2023, 11(3), 104-109. doi: 10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12

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AMA Style

Fahamida Akter. Exploring Religious Constraints and a Journey towards Self-Discovery in James Joyce’s A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man. Int J Lit Arts. 2023;11(3):104-109. doi: 10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12

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@article{10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12,
  author = {Fahamida Akter},
  title = {Exploring Religious Constraints and a Journey towards Self-Discovery in James Joyce’s A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man},
  journal = {International Journal of Literature and Arts},
  volume = {11},
  number = {3},
  pages = {104-109},
  doi = {10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ijla.20231103.12},
  abstract = {The object of this paper is to represent a deeply flawed character Stephen Dedalus, whose journey towards self- discovery is hindered by societal and religious constraints in James Joyce’s novel A Portrait of the Artist as a young man. One of the most prominent issues of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is showing how Stephen casts off the Catholic Religion, his religious identity while he evolves his own freedom and artistic consciousness throughout a procedure that will shape the different phases of his life. From childhood Stephen ascribes to an absolute belief in the morals of the church as his family was a devout Catholic family. As a teenager, this belief directs him to two opposite extremes, both of which are detrimental. At first, he falls into the extreme of sins, repeatedly sleeping with prostitutes, lying, envying, becoming prone to all seven deadly sins and intentionally turning his back on religion. Though Stephen sins consciously, he is always aware that he is breaking the church's rules. Again, when Father Arnall's sermon encourages him to return to Catholicism, he falls to the other extreme, becoming a fanatical model of religious fidelity and dedication. At long last, nonetheless, Stephen understands that both of these lifestyles—the completely immoral and the completely devoted—are constraints and are dangerous for him. Stephen realizes that extreme religious rules and complete sinful attitude both will not permit him to enjoy the full experience of being human. Stephen finally reaches a decision to embrace life and rejoice humanity after seeing a young girl wandering at a beach. At the end of the novel, Stephen replaces his initial Catholicism by a more personal and “evolutionary” religion, the religion of art that will make him a complete and eternal person.},
 year = {2023}
}

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TY  - JOUR
T1  - Exploring Religious Constraints and a Journey towards Self-Discovery in James Joyce’s A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man
AU  - Fahamida Akter
Y1  - 2023/06/06
PY  - 2023
N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12
DO  - 10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12
T2  - International Journal of Literature and Arts
JF  - International Journal of Literature and Arts
JO  - International Journal of Literature and Arts
SP  - 104
EP  - 109
PB  - Science Publishing Group
SN  - 2331-057X
UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ijla.20231103.12
AB  - The object of this paper is to represent a deeply flawed character Stephen Dedalus, whose journey towards self- discovery is hindered by societal and religious constraints in James Joyce’s novel A Portrait of the Artist as a young man. One of the most prominent issues of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is showing how Stephen casts off the Catholic Religion, his religious identity while he evolves his own freedom and artistic consciousness throughout a procedure that will shape the different phases of his life. From childhood Stephen ascribes to an absolute belief in the morals of the church as his family was a devout Catholic family. As a teenager, this belief directs him to two opposite extremes, both of which are detrimental. At first, he falls into the extreme of sins, repeatedly sleeping with prostitutes, lying, envying, becoming prone to all seven deadly sins and intentionally turning his back on religion. Though Stephen sins consciously, he is always aware that he is breaking the church's rules. Again, when Father Arnall's sermon encourages him to return to Catholicism, he falls to the other extreme, becoming a fanatical model of religious fidelity and dedication. At long last, nonetheless, Stephen understands that both of these lifestyles—the completely immoral and the completely devoted—are constraints and are dangerous for him. Stephen realizes that extreme religious rules and complete sinful attitude both will not permit him to enjoy the full experience of being human. Stephen finally reaches a decision to embrace life and rejoice humanity after seeing a young girl wandering at a beach. At the end of the novel, Stephen replaces his initial Catholicism by a more personal and “evolutionary” religion, the religion of art that will make him a complete and eternal person.
VL  - 11
IS  - 3
ER  -

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