Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man

I have read many novels over the years and the majority of them have had some sort of influence on me in one way or another.  Without question, the one book that influenced me the most is James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man.

I remember when I read the book for a literature class years ago that is was unlike anything I have ever read before.  The way the story is told changes with changes the main character experiences.  I don't know if I can even describe why I even enjoyed it.  It wasn't so much about what the novel was about; it was more about the incredible way Joyce told the story.  It was how reading the book made me feel about myself.

The book describes the life of Stephen Dedalus a fictional alter-ego of Joyce himself.  The book takes place in Ireland during the turn of the twentieth century.  The novel tells how Dedalus starts to question the conventions of his Irish Catholic background and how those conventions put restrictions on his life.

To me, the book is about what it takes to become your own person.  Joyce is saying that the only way for a person to be truly free is that they must remove ties to family, church and state.  When I first realized that was what the book was about it initially seemed overly harsh.  The more I though about it; the more I realized that may be the most honest thing I have ever read.  To me the book is about you can choose how much influence you let others have over you.  Be that your family, church or your country.  You choose how much or how little.   In my opinion that is a very powerful message.