Joyce's use of birds/flight to
Symbols often accompany characters in the creation of an author's written work. James Joyce, in his novel A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, traces the growth and development of Stephen Dedalus as he experiences a life filled with filial, social, educational and religious constraints. As he gradually discovers his calling for a life devoted to art and writing, images of birds and flight appear in the novel to represent his quest for personal freedom. Once he determines what type of future will fulfill his needs, the limitations that once restricted his potential soon diminish.At the beginning of the story, Stephen's last name Dedalus is the first example of symbolic flight applied (p.10, 246). Daedalus, a character from Greek mythology, designs a labyrinth for the king. Daedalus and the king's son, Icarus, are imprisoned, so Daedalus makes plans to escape by making wings for himself. He successfully escapes and survives, but Icarus meets his death because he does not heed to warnings concerning the height at which he flies; consequently, when he soars too close to the sun, the wax holding his wings together melts, and he plummets into the sea. This anecdote regarding Daedalus parallels with Stephen's life since the
Not only are there family-related constraints, but social constraints exist as well. Stephen is about eighteen now, and is traveling over a bridge, leaving the University, when a group of boys from school start to call him names. He now believed that his sin had made him invisible to God and he has no way to get out of it. Stephen imagines that if he were a bird, someone would hear him calling for help and come to his rescue. Stephen's journey to discover himself finally begins to take off as he realizes from what he needs to escape. In the beginning Stephen attends a Jesuit school and is brought up Catholic during his childhood. Stephen, who has devoted much of his life to education, attends various institutions including Wood School run by Jesuits, Belvedere School when his family moves to Dublin, and the University College near the end of the novel. Stephen enters into a life of sin when he becomes involved with a prostitute (p. At the end of the literary work, once he has left the university, Stephen is writing in his journal and makes yet another reference to flight in one of his final entries: "And the air is thick with their company as they call to me, their kinsman, making ready to go, shaking the wings of their exultant and terrible youth" (p. Simon Dedalus seems to shift his burden to his son, as the narration implies: " The sudden flight from the comfort and revery of Blackrock, the passage through the gloomy foggy city, [. Stephen's self-expression was also revealed through his roller coaster of religion throughout the novel.
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Acceptance Essays
