Chapter 3 - A Portrait of the
Artist as a Young Man by James
Joyce
Zach Lax, Rachel Bosler, Jacob Andrew, Addie Breese, Kennedy
Madgett, & Austin Davis
Summary
Stephen continues to pursue his sinful desires. He revisits thoughts
about religion and realizes that because he has committed one of
the seven deadly sins, lust, he has committed all of them. He
becomes angry and displeased with everything on Earth. Stephen is
still fascinated by the Virgin Mary, which leads him to question the
relation between religious importance and sexual desires. He then
goes on a school religious retreat in honor of St. Francis Xavier. The
retreat is lead by Father Arnall, allowing Stephen to remember his
innocent childish days. Father Arnall changes tones as he begins to
lecture on the four main questions of Catholicism: heaven, hell,
death, and judgement. Stephen begins to feel disgusting. Father
Arnell talks in depth of death and judgement, in his religious rant on
the apocalypse. By the end of Arnall’s graphic sermon, Stephen is
extremely frightened and knows his sins are crucial to God’s
ultimate decision for him.
summary (part 2)
He wants to feel closer to the Virgin Mary and God, but feels that
he has been too sinful. The next day Stephen is horrified by
the gruesome description of hell. Father Arnell yells about
devils and sinners and a horrible eternity spent in hell.
Stephen won’t confess at his school. The next lesson is on
the spiritual tortures of hell. Arnall describes eternity with a
metaphor about carrying sand up a mountain. Stephen has a
vivid nightmare about the hell that potentially awaits him. He
throws up, and then prays to God while he cries. He goes to a
chapel in Dublin and confesses all of his sins. Afterwards he
feels that he has changed and that his sins have been
washed away. The next morning he goes to the school’s
chapel and believes he is starting over.
Sensory Descriptions
The sensory images and symbols from the previous chapters are expanded in
this chapter as well, however the majority of the chapter focuses on
Stephen’s sensory progression.
At first his senses are compared to a predatory beast, as Stephen has been
reduced to one following his sin. He is stalking the prostitutes at the
beginning of the chapter and feels they are his prey.
However after the first lecture by the speaker, Stephen realizes the death of his
humanity and the cold, lifelessness of his senses. They become
overwhelmed and are juxtaposed in unusual ways.
“only to hear and feel the more deeply his own damnation” (114)
“He felt the deathchill touch the extremities and creep upward towards the
heart, the film of death covering the eyes.” (119)
Once he has confessed his sins, he comes to life once more and finds peace. I
suspect that his senses will be more vivid and positive the next chapter
following his progression.
Religious Imagery/Motifs
Throughout the chapter although God is described as the forgiving savior of
man, Stephen is fascinated with the Virgin Mary (the mother of Jesus) and
even asks her to “save him from the guilt of death” (132). His fascination is
revealed when he murmurs to the statue of her and thinks about the lewd
kisses he shared upon the same lips. Mary represents a sort of ideal
woman that the prostitutes will never be. (112-113)
Throughout this chapter there are numerous references and near quotes from
the final chapter of the Bible, Revelation. Specifically mentioned are: the
end of the earth, the second coming of christ, and the subsequent
judgement day announced by the angel Michael. The angel Michael carries
a trumpet which is referenced and used as a symbol that guides Stephen
to his epiphany. “But the blast of the angel’s trumpet had driven him forth
from the darkness of sin into the light.” (122)
Continued
The rain on page 124 is both a biblical symbol and a biblical allusion. As a
symbol, the rain “covers” the earth and cleanses it. Rain is cleansing and
refers to a baptism of Stephen’s spirit as “the waters of baptism cleanse the
soul” (129). However “forty days and forty nights the rain would fall till the
water covered the face of the earth” (124) is a referenced to the biblical
story of Moses or the great flood. Not long after the creation of earth, God
was so displeased with humanity that he sent a flood to end all life (except
for a man named Noah, his family, and two of every animal). Like Noah,
Stephen will be renewed and start over after his spiritual cleansing.
The biblical story of Adam and Eve is a recurring motif which is juxtaposed to
the story of Lucifer. Both fell from grace in the eye’s of God. Lucifer for
pride, Adam and Eve for lust.
Continues
There is graphic sensory imagery used to describe hell and the torments that
occur there.
“Every Sense of the flesh is tortured and every faculty of the soul therewith the
eyes with impenetrable utter darkness, the nose with noisome odours, the
ears with yells and howls and execration, the taste with foul matter, leprous
corruption, nameless suffocating filth, the touch with redhot goads and
spikes, with cruel tongues and flame.” (129)
Avoidance of Guilt/Punishment
Stephen tries to avoid punishment many times this chapter.
“His days and works and thoughts could make no atonement for him, the
fountains of sanctifying grace having ceased to refresh his soul. At most, by
an alms given to a beggar whose blessing he fled from, he might hope
wearily to win for himself some measure of actual grace” (111).
At the beginning of chapter 3, Stephen gives a small donation to a beggar to
“win for himself some measure of actual grace,” and to avoid a complete
deterioration of his soul. Donating money made Stephen feel good about
himself, and he avoided guilt. This reflects his desire to avoid negative
feelings and escape his growing problems.
Avoidance (cont.)
“The thought slid like a cold shining rapier into his tender flesh: confession. But
not there in the chapel of the college. He would confess all, every sin of
deed and thought, sincerely; but not there among his school companions.
Far away from there in some dark place he would murmur out his own
shame; and he besought God humbly not to be offended with him if he did
not dare to confess in the college chapel and in utter objection of spirit he
craved forgiveness mutely of the boyish hearts about him” (133).
Stephen did not want to confess his sins amongst his classmates in the college
because he was afraid of the possible consequences. He feared there
judgement and condemnation for his sins. Instead he wants to confess in a
chapel far away so he can’t be judged or punished by those close to him.
Although he is moving forward by confessing his sins, Stephen is still not
ready to admit his actions to those around him.
Avoidance (cont.)
When the preacher was preaching about Hell, his vivid
descriptions penetrated Stephen’s mind and scared him.
The preacher’s words made Stephen realize he did not
want to be punished for what he had done and spend an
eternity in hell. WHile it may seem like he is moving
forward, Stephen’s whole confession can be seen as a
way to escape the punishment of eternal hell.
Stephen’s Fall
Stephen’s fall from grace boils down to his initial sin,
which sparks the rest of his sins. His lust and desire
caused him to abandon care and live recklessly,
completely abandoning his religious upbringing. He feels
pride in not praying anymore and more pride in sinning.
His fall is emphasized when he walks by the church and
criticizes the congregation for being “dull” and “sickly,”
believing himself to be alive and well in contrast.
However as the preacher speaks, he realizes it is he
who is dead and helpless, not those in church.
Indications of Climax
The climax of the chapter is indicated and
foreshadowed by the consistent use of
repetition found in the preachers speech and
the change in Stephen’s religious views. His
newfound need to atone for his sins
symbolizes a huge turning point in the story.
He is scared into this religion by the threat of
Hell but regardless, it has changed his whole
perspective.
The Pacing of Chapter 3
The pacing of chapter three is a very important element to
the development of the chapter and its place in the
center of the novel. At the beginning, the pace is slow as
Stephen meanders about town, but then when the rector
starts to preach about sin and hell, the pace becomes
more intense. Between each sermon, the ipace drops as
Stephen reflects on his life. This causes the chapter to
have frequent breaks between intense moments and
inner monologue. At the end, the pace intensifies before
suddenly becomes slow, reflecting the peace Stephen
has found.
The Function of Repetition
The function of repetition is very obvious in chapter 3, and
comes in different forms, particularly in Father Arnall’s
sermons, and when Stephen asks for forgiveness.
Repetition allows thoughts to be further explored and
emphasized, while obtaining a deeper meaning in the
message.
“God and the blessed Virgin were too far from him: God
was too great and stern and the Blessed Virgin too pure
and holy”(Joyce 102).
“But our earthly fire was created by God for the benefit of
man”... “Our earthly fire again, no matter how fierce or
widespread it may be…”(Joyce 106).
Repetition continues
“Why did you sin? Why did you lend an ear to the
temptings of friends? Why did you turn aside from your
pious practices and good works? Why did you not shun
the occasions of sin? Why did you not leave that evil
companion?...”(Joyce 108).
“...ever to suffer, never to enjoy; ever to be damned, never
to be saved; ever, never; ever, never”(Joyce 116).
Stephen’s prayer:
“O my God! O my God! I am heartily sorry- I am heartily
sorry- for having offended Thee- for having offended
Thee- and I detest my sins- and I detest my sins- above
every evil- above every evil…”(Joyce 118).
Mirror Images
Chants are used in all three chapters. Examples
include:
“pull out his eyes apologize” (pg. 4)
“Admit. -No. -Admit. -No.” (pg. 71)
“O my God!- O my God!” (pg. 118)
The chants are used to try and force a belief or
action upon Stephen. He is told he should not
want to marry a protestant, not like Lord Byron,
and not like sinning.
Mirror Images continued
Stephen also feels sick in the first chapter,
wishing he could go home, and the image of
his sickness is mirrored at the beginning of
chapter 3 when he feels sick from his
gluttony.
The difference is that the first sickness is
caused by others, and the second is caused
by himself, which shows he is now causing
himself pain.
Stephen’s Epiphany
Stephen’s Epiphany is triggered by the building of multiple events at his school retreat. Over the
course of the retreat, Father Arnall delivers sermons consisting of death, judgement, and hell.
These sermons seem to Stephen, that they are meant entirely for him, and end up scaring him
straight. On the third night of the retreat, Father Arnall informs the boys that they can reach
heaven if they ask God for His forgiveness and stop sinning altogether. The moment where
Stephen has his epiphany is shown below:
“He desired with all his will not to hear or see. He desired till his frame shook under the strain of his
desire and until the senses of his soul closed. They closed for an instant and then opened. He
saw.” (144)
Here, Stephen has just recently recounted his sinful life, and is fighting between his current life, or a
life with God. Father Arnall’s sermons have convinced Stephen that he must pursue a pure and
sinless life with God.
The Epiphany: Stephen realizes that his sinful lifestyle is a ticket for eternity in Hell, and that he must
ask God for forgiveness and live a life free of sin.
Moment of Stasis
“The preacher took a chainless watch from a pocket within his soutane and, having considered its dial
for a moment in silence, placed it silently before him on the table.” (124)
The moment of stasis during Chapter 3 occurs right before the preacher gives a sermon on Adam and
Eve. Before this moment, Joyce describes the scene with other “silent” adjectives. He depicts a
scene of a mass flood. The flood symbolizes the cleansing of Stephen, which is followed with the
moment of temporary stasis above. Following the stasis, the preacher recounts the story of Adam
and Eve, which symbolizes a new beginning, and foreshadows Stephen’s epiphany later on in the
chapter.
“It would rain forever noiselessly.”
“All life would be choked off, noiselessly: birds, men elephants, pigs, children: noiselessly floating
corpses amid the litter of the wreckage of the world.”
Dante’s Inferno
Inferno is Italian for “Hell”.
Dante Alighieri’s 14th century epic poem “Divine Comedy” is considered
the greatest literary work composed in the Italian language.
The poem is an allegory telling of the journey of Dante through hell,
guided by the Roman poet Virgil. Inhabitants of the inferno have no hope
of salvation, release, improvement, or escape from their punishments. They
cannot go back in time as if their sins did not happen, similar to how even
though Stephen’s sins have been forgiven, he cannot go back in time to
change them. The “Divine Comedy” represents the journey of the soul
towards God, with the Inferno describing the recognition and rejection
of sin. (Sound familiar?)
This deals with themes of sin, salvation, and redemption. (Just like Ch. 3)
It is ironic how Stephen calls his aunt Dante, her being a nationalist. Dante
Alighieri was an Italian who wrote about a Roman leading Dante away from
hell.
Dante Alighieri
& the hell he depicts
Thomas Aquinas 7 deadly
sins
Saint Thomas Aquinas spoke about what he called the 7 mortal
vices, now known as the 7 deadly sins. “He who offends
against one commandment becomes guilty of all” (114).
Pride- unrestrained view of self worth. Often considered the
worst as it leads to other sins.
Greed- over desire for goods or power.
Gluttony- overindulgence of food or drink.
Lust- impure desires and actions.
Sloth- laziness.
Envy- desire for other’s goods or good fortune.
Anger/Wrath- unwarranted anger.
7 Deadly Sins of Stephen
“stuff it into you, his belly counselled him” (110) -greed
“Pride in his own sin” (112) -pride
“Contempt of his fellows”(112) -anger
“So he had sunk to the state of a beast that licks his own chaps after meat” (119) -gluttony
“From the evil seed of lust all other deadly sins had sprung forth: pride in himself and contempt of
others, covetousness in using money for the purchase of unlawful pleasure, envy of those whose
vices he could not reach to and the calumnious murmuring against the pious , gluttonous
enjoyment of food, the dull glowering anger amid which he brooded upon his longing, the swamp
of spiritual and bodily sloth in which his whole being had sunk.” (114)
While there are specific examples of Stephen committing all the deadly sins,
his greatest downfall is his lust. Aquinas saw pride to be the deadliest sin,
but here Joyce is suggesting that lust began all sin on earth. He brings up
the motif of Adam and Eve, whose lust and following sin got them removed
from the Garden of Eden. This was the first sin, and the other six follow
soon after. Like Adam and Eve, Stephen falls victim to his temptation and
the rest of his sins are a result of his initial lust in chapter two.
Milton’s Paradise Lost
Paradise Lost is a series of twelve books that
contain a continuation of a poem written by John
Milton in 1674 about the biblical story of Adam and
Eve. The poem describes the biblical story of the
Fall of Man and the first sin. Sin entered the world
when Eve was tempted by Satan in the form of a
serpent and offered fruit which God had forbidden
her and Adam from eating. Consequentially, this
led to a “loss of paradise” and the two were
banished from the Garden of Eden and sent to live
in sin and disgrace.
The story of Jonah
The biblical story of Jonah is a tale of repentance. God spoke to Jonah
and told him to go to the city of Nineveh and preach repentance (as
Nineveh was known for wickedness and sin). However Jonah did not
find this command appealing, and instead he fled and boarded a ship
headed the opposite way. God was displeased, and sent a terrible
storm. Jonah realized that the storm was sent for him, so he begged
the innocent sailors to throw him overboard in promise that the storm
would stop. They were hesitant, but eventually conceded. Once
overboard, Jonah was saved from drowning and instead swallowed by
a whale where he spent three days and three nights repenting to God
and promising to go to Nineveh. After the three days the whale threw
Jonah up on land near Nineveh and he went to preach to the people,
who then repented. However in an ironic twist this story ends with
Jonah complaining to God about being too hot (even after God sent
him a tree for shade), and not caring about what happened to the
people of Nineveh.
Christ’s Descent into Hell
Jesus Christ was crucified by the Romans after
being betrayed by one of his disciples.
Although Christ was innocent and free from
sin, he carried the sins of the world on his
shoulders and so following his death on the
cross, he descended into hell for three days
to pay for mankind’s sin. After three days he
was resurrected and returned to earth, and
shortly after ascended back into heaven.
The Function of Chapter Three
in Joyce’s Chiasmic Structure
Joyce’s Chiasmic structure hinges on chapter three.
According to the triangle, chapter three is the epicenter
and highpoint of the book. At the moment of stasis, the
book essentially starts over again structurally. In the
beginning of the book Stephen is pure and innocent,
eventually losing his innocence, feeling guilt and then
cleansing. This is, of course, a parallel between the story
of Noah’s ark and the cycle of our world. The rest of the
book now begs the question as to whether or not
Stephen is changed, or if he still has the sins within him.
This falling action will presumably be seen in chapters 4
and 5.
Chiasmus continued
Additionally, we can begin to see Chiasmus in
Stephen’s lines of thinking from the beginning of the
book to now. In the beginning he is looking outward at
the world: Stephen Dedalus Class of Elements
Clongowes Wood College Sallins County Kildare Ireland
Europe The World The Universe (pg. 12)
Now, he is looking inward to himself in the opposite,
yet symmetrical manner. He looks at his very soul and
the sins he has committed. This chiasmic scale is crucial
in evaluating Stephen’s character.
Question 1
What are the seven deadly sins and which one
weighs on Stephen the most?
Answer 1
Gluttony, Envy, Lust, Sloth, Wrath, Pride,
Greed
Stephen is most affected by lust, his clearest
indication of loss of innocence.
Question 2
What is the significance of the retreat?
Answer 2
The retreat surrounds Stephen with the religion
he has betrayed and forces concepts of
hellfire and death into his psyche. It
eventually drives Stephen to go to his
confession.
Question 3
The arts and literature are central to Stephen in
earlier chapters. (Count of Monte Cristo and
Lord Byron) What literature is in chapter
three, and what significance does it have in
the book?
Answer 3
Chapter three is different from the other
chapters in that The Bible and other religious
texts are the only piece of literature explicitly
engaged. This forces Stephen to focus solely
on his sins, rather than the adventure and
exploration provided by The Count of Monte
Cristo, or the individualism provided by Lord
Byron’s poems.
Question 4
Do you think Stephen’s confession to his Priest
changed him? Support with evidence.
Answer 4
Answers will vary
Question 5
Is Stephen responsible for his actions, or
should society bear the responsibility?
Explain.
Answer 5
Answers will vary
Bibliography
http://christianity.about.com/od/biblestorysumm
aries/a/Jonah-And-The-Whale.htm
http://catholiceducation.org/articles/religion/re0
465.html
http://www.danteinferno.info/