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need_to_read's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
blasfeminin's review against another edition
challenging
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I too changed my entire worldview after seeing a woman’s thighs
theliteraryapothecary's review against another edition
challenging
3.5
Last night I finished listening to the audiobook version of A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, narrated by Colin Farrell. This was a reread for me, and let me tell you – audiobook is honestly the only way to make any sense of James Joyce writing. Joyce uses punctuation very sparingly, which makes it different for readers to follow and understand his writing. Joyce’s books are regularly discussed in their difficulty to read. By listening to the audiobook, you are essentially letting the narrator do most of the work for you. With that being said, though, and even though this is a reread for me, I honestly still don’t really have a good idea what actually happened in this book – more on this in my CAWPILE breakdown. (* Note: I did add an eight category in our CAWPILE ratings to account for the audiobook narration.)
CAWPILE Breakdown:
Characters: 6 – Some characters were good, but they mostly felt like they all blended together. I still had a hard time keeping them all seperate in my mind.
Atmosphere/Setting: 6 – 4/6 points goes to the setting, which was done wonderfully! 2/6 points goes to atmosphere, which I felt a few times but wanted more of.
Writing Style: 4 – I continue to struggle with James Joyce’s writing style, although listening to it on audiobook certainly helped.
Plot: 3 – Honestly, even after a reread, I still don’t really have a good idea of what the plot actually was in this book, let alone how it developed. It seemed like there was more religious and political and philosophical discussion than an actual plot.
Intrigue: 5 – Does it count as intrigue if I’m really just trying to figure out what’s going on?
Logic/Relationships: 5/6 points for relationships, which as far as I could tell were written well. 1/6 for logic – still didn’t make much logical sense to me.
Enjoyement: 6.5 – Colin Farrell helped increase the enjoyement of this book dramatically with his audiobook narration.
Audiobook narration: 8 – Colin Farrell did saints work narrating this audiobook. Thank you! He made it much more enjoyable and slightly easier to follow along. His thick Irish accent made it really feel like an Irish book.
CAWPILE(A) Total: 44.5/8 = 5.5 = 3.5 stars
56bumblebees's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
jannagregory's review against another edition
Tried my best but just couldn’t get into it. Was about to start a section where Stephen listens to a sermon that goes on page after page and I had had enough. Contented myself with reading a summary on Wikipedia and moved on.
myeonghopabo's review against another edition
4.5
"You made me confess the fears that I have. But I will tell you also what I do not fear. I do not fear to be alone or to be spurned for another or to leave whatever I have to leave. And I am not afraid to make a mistake, even a great mistake, a life-long mistake and perhaps as long as eternity too."
Through its intricate and delicate narrative languages, Portrait tracks a young sensitive Irish boy growing up in a chaotic turmoil of geo-politics, religion and family politics. Laced with the appropriate yet fragmented epigrams that have been downloaded into the protagonist's mind, his shift from wanting to be captured by literature–abiding and relating to it–to desiring for literature to capture him makes this novel actually quite heart-warming despite the pessimistic and dreary premise it originates from. However, this isn't the easiest read because of the shitload of references; i had one finger in the endnotes at ALL times reading this so for that trouble i'm docking 0.5!
Through its intricate and delicate narrative languages, Portrait tracks a young sensitive Irish boy growing up in a chaotic turmoil of geo-politics, religion and family politics. Laced with the appropriate yet fragmented epigrams that have been downloaded into the protagonist's mind, his shift from wanting to be captured by literature–abiding and relating to it–to desiring for literature to capture him makes this novel actually quite heart-warming despite the pessimistic and dreary premise it originates from. However, this isn't the easiest read because of the shitload of references; i had one finger in the endnotes at ALL times reading this so for that trouble i'm docking 0.5!
athousandgreatbooks's review against another edition
5.0
Stephen Dedalus, the protagonist, has a pious Catholic upbringing but he revolts against it as he matures and ultimately breaks away to become an artist. As such he also severs his ties with his family, his culture, his country Ireland (as Joyce also did) and decides to carve his own way as an artist, free from institutional bondage.
The story is semi-autobiographical in nature wherein Stephen essentially works as Joyce's alter ego. Though Stephen, like Joyce, departs from his Catholic upbringing he doesn't necessarily have an atheistic worldview.
Rather his rejection of the institutions, especially the Irish Catholic Church, is a departure from the current form and structure they're in the state of which is incompatible with his search for identity.
Perhaps the most striking, and much appreciated, element of the book is its narration. It changes and assumes his idiolect as Stephen matures.
We start simple - Once upon a time and a very good time it was there was a moocow coming down along the road and this moocow that was coming down along the road met a nicens little boy named baby tuckoo... His father told him that story: his father looked at him through a glass: he had a hairy face. He was baby tuckoo...
And advance as he advances in years - A feverish quickening of his pulses followed, and a din of meaningless words drove his reasoned thoughts hither and thither confusedly. His lungs dilated and sank as if he were inhaling a warm moist unsustaining air and he smelt again the moist warm air which hung in the bath in Clongowoes above the sluggish turf-colored water.
Stephen's own voice is seamlessly woven into the narration that makes reading the story an intimate experience. Of course, since this is Joyce, some degree of stream-of-consciousness wanders its way in. But it never stalls the story, and at 300-odd pages Portrait is a quick read.
This is not your usual coming-of-age story for its literary and technical genius far exceeds that pigeonhole. It is rather a highly personal reflection of an artist in search of his true identity, unmarred by the puritanical traditions and mores. It is also a precursor to Ulysses in which Stephen returns as a character
The story is semi-autobiographical in nature wherein Stephen essentially works as Joyce's alter ego. Though Stephen, like Joyce, departs from his Catholic upbringing he doesn't necessarily have an atheistic worldview.
Rather his rejection of the institutions, especially the Irish Catholic Church, is a departure from the current form and structure they're in the state of which is incompatible with his search for identity.
Perhaps the most striking, and much appreciated, element of the book is its narration. It changes and assumes his idiolect as Stephen matures.
We start simple - Once upon a time and a very good time it was there was a moocow coming down along the road and this moocow that was coming down along the road met a nicens little boy named baby tuckoo... His father told him that story: his father looked at him through a glass: he had a hairy face. He was baby tuckoo...
And advance as he advances in years - A feverish quickening of his pulses followed, and a din of meaningless words drove his reasoned thoughts hither and thither confusedly. His lungs dilated and sank as if he were inhaling a warm moist unsustaining air and he smelt again the moist warm air which hung in the bath in Clongowoes above the sluggish turf-colored water.
Stephen's own voice is seamlessly woven into the narration that makes reading the story an intimate experience. Of course, since this is Joyce, some degree of stream-of-consciousness wanders its way in. But it never stalls the story, and at 300-odd pages Portrait is a quick read.
This is not your usual coming-of-age story for its literary and technical genius far exceeds that pigeonhole. It is rather a highly personal reflection of an artist in search of his true identity, unmarred by the puritanical traditions and mores. It is also a precursor to Ulysses in which Stephen returns as a character