From 'A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man'
‘A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man’ by James Joyce was a challenging read for me. My personal preference in the books I read and anything I write is that it be simple. I appreciate simplicity and straight-forwardness. I prefer reading a solid storyline rather than reading pages description. On the first day of my Creative Writing class, we had to write about and share with the class our favorite writers and why. I chose Chuck Palahniuk; I’m young and I love adventure and I respond positively to crassness and shock. I like to read things that entertain me and keep my interest. One of my peers chose James Joyce. Since the beginning of the class, I could tell there were opposites in every way possible. I think that’s the same with James Joyce. I think he is just the opposite of the authors I usually enjoy reading. I learn a lot from my creative writing counterpart though, being so different from him, I’m able to take away new things that I don’t usually think about. If we get to choose partners or groups, I gravitate towards those that also enjoy horror and adventure, but many times we have a lot of the same ideas. We still have things to teach other, but I think we can learn more from our antagonists. From James Joyce’s ‘A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man’ I hope to learn a way of writing that is completely foreign for me. I hope to take his example of writing more details and using more language, yet in my own way.
“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 lifelong mistake and perhaps as long as eternity too.”
--James Joyce, 'A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man'
“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 lifelong mistake and perhaps as long as eternity too.”
--James Joyce, 'A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man'
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