The Artist as Hero in a Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man by James Joyce is a partially autobiographical account of the life of the the author growing up. The novel chronicles the process through which the main character, Stephen, struggles against authority and religious doctrine to develop his own philosophy of life. Stephen is not necessarily rebelling against God and his father, as much as he is searching for his own person, creating his own life. He is an artist, not because of the outcome of his life, but because of the process he goes through to achieve that result. The artist is a hero because of the sacrifices he makes, the persecution he endures, and the risks he faces simply to set foot toward his vision. Joyce demonstrates that whether or not Stephen realized his vision is insignificant to the journey itself. First of all, the novel does not end with the outcome of Stephen's life but with the initial stages of his journey. “Old father, old craftsman, make me useful now and always,” he writes in the last sentence of the novel. Joyce intentionally ends the book before Stephen leaves, to emphasize that the importance lies in the process he undergoes to reach that point where he can reject the very foundation on which his life was based. The infamous hell scene extends over twenty pages not to scare the reader but to show how difficult it is to even become an artist and fight conformity. Any breaking process is lost after the preacher's sermon on hell, as shown in the following passage: He humbly beat his chest with his fist, secretly under the cover of the wooden armrest. She would be one with others... middle of paper... d for her art, seeing that her religion is not good for her heart, forges a new life and a new religion for herself, realizing her destiny as an artist.Works CitedBeebe, Maurice. "The artist as hero." James Joyce, Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man: text, criticism and notes. Ed. Chester G. Anderson. New York: Penguin, 1968. 340-57.Ellmann, Richard. "The Limits of Joyce's Naturalism." Sewanee Review 63 (1955): 567-75.Givens, Seon, ed. James Joyce: Two Decades of Criticism. New York: 1948. 2nd ed. 1963. Joyce, James. A portrait of the artist as a young man. The James Joyce laptop. Ed. Harry Levin. New York: Penguin, 1976. Power, Arthur. Conversations with James Joyce. Ed. Clive Hart. London: Millington, 1974.Wright, David G. Joyce's Characters. Dublin: Gill and Macmillan, 1983.