A groundbreaking modernist classic for readers of literary fiction, exploring identity, faith, and artistic awakening through James Joyce's innovative narrative style. Considered semi-autobiographical, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man consists of five carefully composed chapters that tell the story of Stephen Dedalus and his path to religious and intellectual awakening. Reflecting Joyce's own frustrations with life in Ireland, the restrictions of the Catholic church and social mores, the novel uses free indirect speech to convey the feelings of the principal character via the narrator. It very nearly wasn't published, as at one point, Joyce flew into a rage and threw the manuscript into a fire, only for it to be saved by members of his family.