Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man Lesson Plan

How does Joyce's writing style change to reflect Stephen's new direction in life?

Ask students what the defining features of Joyce's writing style is: his sentences are elaborate, winding, and filled with vivid imagery and a robust vocabulary. This is especially notable in Father Arnall's sermons in the previous chapters. However, his style changes in Chapter 4 to reflect Stephen's own pious nature. Much in the way that Stephen harshly gives up his earthly delights, even going so far as to avoid changing his position while lying in bed, so too does Joyce forego his usual linguistic flourishes for prose that is much more chaste and simple compared to the rest of the...