Beginning of Essay
Woman is used many times in Joyce's Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Stephen Dedalus, the main character of the work, is fascinated by woman. This fascination is played upon in many circumstances. First and foremost is the relationship he has with Dante, hi ....

Middle of Essay
.... Women further complicate his disposition. For example, when he says goodbye to Eileen at the tram; he knows he should kiss her, but he is mortally afraid to do so. Again, like most boys his age, he thought understanding of women would happen in an instant: Weakness and timidity and inexperience would fall from him in that magic moment (65). This stems from the Irish Catholic culture that has surrounded him his whole life. Also, sex before marriage was a sin- and anything that could lead to sex (a kiss) was to be avoided, as that too could lead to sin. Stephen has such low self-esteem at this point, he is scared of making any mo ....