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Title: A Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man by James Joyce, Frederick Davidson ISBN: 0-7861-0655-7 Publisher: Blackstone Audiobooks Pub. Date: February, 1995 Format: Audio Cassette Volumes: 7 List Price(USD): $49.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 3.84 (179 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: A Remakably Rich Study Of A Developing Mind
Comment: Perhaps considered by many as one Joyce's most personal work. Through a series of brillant epiphanies that parallel the development of his own aesthetic consciousness Joyce evokes Stephen Dedalus's youth,from his impressionable years as the youngest student at the "Clongowes Wood" school to the deep religious conflict he experiences at a day school in Dublin(which in my opinion was the most profound part of the book, and the most enjoyable to read.)and finally to his college studies where he challenges the conventions of his upbringing and his understanding of faith and intellectual freedom. It's this part of the book which makes me think of "Catcher in the Rye". The mere idea of "breaking loose" to find one's self and setting yourself apart from others by doing what YOU want. A fantasic book filled with rich and wonderful details as only a master like Joyce could have done. Anyone in the mood for a enjoyable, thought-provoking read has to read this! Joyce has left an indelible mark on literature, and aren't we all lucky for that.
Rating: 5
Summary: one of the best books of the twentieth century
Comment: "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man" is easily one of the greatest books of the twentieth century. Rarely is such a mastery of the English language encountered. James Joyce has an almost uncanny ability to create images and feelings out of words. He manages to describe a place and also the feelings of the main character when he's in that place with teh same set of words.
The story itself is almost inconsequential. As I read it I was so caught up in Stephen's self-destructive spiral that I could never pass any sort of moral judgement. I had to like Stephen because he was so human. His dilemmas and his emotions were so real, and Joyce was able to bring them to life with his words.
As a previous reviewer has said, it is true that to understand certain parts of the book, it helps to have a little background on Irish politics at the turn of the century (or at least know who Parnell is) but a few minutes of internet research will do that for you. As for strange words and slang, the language becomes more elevated as Stephen grows up (a touch of genius, if you ask me) so that's not really much of a problem. Stephen's final break with tradition as he answers the call of Daedalus, his namesake, is magnificent to read. All in all, this book is definitely worth the read.
Rating: 2
Summary: A good heart, but not a good read
Comment: I think my main problem with "Portrait" is simply the narrative itself. And please, don't get me wrong: I've read this twice and even took an English class where, for half the year, we personally analyzed this book and all motifs found through out. But even when I understand all that...this is still painful to read.
And here's the thing: there are parts in this book that I love. For example in the fourth chapter when it describes the main character seeing a girl dipping her toe into the water. I thought that part was well done. Or even the bits in the third chapter where the artist contemplates his sins, I liked those parts as well. But in between these parts, the story just gets so dreadfully DULL! I found myself at times skimming a few pages ahead just to see if this was getting any where.
I think the most hilarious instance in this book, at least for me, was during one of the last two chapters when the "artist" is talking to his four friends. He continues to dribble on and on about nothing. One of his friends tries to change the subject a few times, but our hero just keeps on chatting. Eventually they start to leave him one by one...
Again, this is a book that needs to be STUDIED at different moments, perhaps even QUOTED...but actually READING of this book should be a task taken only by James Joyce fans and the inquisitive only.
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Title: Ulysses by James Joyce ISBN: 0679722769 Publisher: Vintage Pub. Date: 16 June, 1990 List Price(USD): $17.00 |
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Title: Dubliners by James Joyce ISBN: 0486268705 Publisher: Dover Pubns Pub. Date: 01 May, 1991 List Price(USD): $2.00 |
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Title: Heart of Darkness by Joseph Conrad ISBN: 0486264645 Publisher: Dover Pubns Pub. Date: 01 July, 1990 List Price(USD): $1.50 |
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Title: Joyce's Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man (Cliffs Notes) by Valerie Pursel Zimbaro ISBN: 0822010577 Publisher: Cliffs Notes Pub. Date: 27 November, 1964 List Price(USD): $5.99 |
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Title: Finnegans Wake (Penguin Twentieth-Century Classics) by James Joyce, John Bishop ISBN: 0141181265 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: December, 1999 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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