Communication in A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man

In this book, I saw communication for the first time, as a sort of tragedy. Steven has a beautiful mind-one that is uniquely creative and expressive. The reader gets the chance to meet Steven's mind before they actually become acquainted with his personality. In fact, it is hard to get a good grasp on his personality throughout the entire book. This is because, at least in this book, the "personality" is not how someone feels or thinks, or even what they are passionate about. A person's personality is how they act around other people. When I think about my personality, I think of something a little different than what my mind and heart look like. Honestly, I think my insides are quieter than my outsides. My personality however, has everything to do with how I communicate. People only know of your personality by the things you choose to share with them. So essentially, one could make up an entire personality that was a complete lie, but that would indeed be their personality. Steven's mind is what takes center stage, and it is when he is forced to share that the tragedy that is communication takes place. When he would interact with his school mates, teachers, or even his family, I found myself not wanting him to give them the time of day because even with the most eloquent language, I didn't think he could do his feelings justice. The fact that he had to speak to others and attempt to voice his feelings was almost heartbreaking. In our group discussion though, we found that although this was tragic, it was certainly necessary. What good is an artist's mind, feelings, or passions if they never share them with anyone?

“We die. That may be the meaning of life. But we do language. That may be the measure of our lives.”

I keep thinking about this quote and I think that it embodies this idea. Although an artist may not only use language, there has to be some way to measure their voice and their passions. I like the way that Pope wrote about as and a duty. Art, he said, has the power to bring people to God, to see into the magic that is art. And the artist has a gift that he must share with the World. I think that communication is art- whether it be speaking or writing or painting or singing. Although we may never be completely satisfied with our attempts to make sense of those things that are sacred and mysterious, we must at least try. Why?

Because it is an artist’s duty.