James Joyce

James Augustine Aloysius Joyce (February 2, 1882 – January 13, 1941) was an expatriate Irish writer and poet, widely considered a significant writer of the 20th century. He is best known for his short story collection Dubliners (1914), and his novels A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1916), Ulysses (1922) and Finnegans Wake (1939).

Early life

James Joyce was born into a well-off Catholic family in the Dublin suburb of Rathgar. He was the eldest surviving child; two of his siblings died of typhoid. His father's family, originally from Cork, were wealthy merchants. In 1887, his father, John Stanislaus Joyce, was appointed rate collector by Dublin Corporation; the family subsequently moved to the fashionable new suburb of Bray.

Related Topics:
Catholic - Suburb - Rathgar - Cork - 1887 - John Stanislaus Joyce - Dublin Corporation - Bray

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In 1891, James wrote a poem, Et Tu Healy, on the death of Charles Stewart Parnell. His father had it printed and even sent a copy to the Vatican Library. In November of that same year, John Joyce was entered in Stubbs Gazette (an official register of bankruptcies) and suspended from work. In 1893 John Joyce was dismissed with a pension. This was the beginning of a slide into poverty for the family, mainly due to John's drinking and general financial mismanagement. The character of Stephen Daedalus in A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Ulysses, is based on James Joyce himself.

Related Topics:
1891 - Charles Stewart Parnell - Vatican Library - Stubbs Gazette - Bankruptcies - 1893 - Pension - Poverty - Stephen Daedalus

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James Joyce was initially educated at Clongowes Wood College, a boarding school in County Kildare, which he entered in 1888 but had to leave in 1892 when his father could no longer pay the fees. Joyce then studied at home and briefly at the Christian Brothers school on North Richmond Street before he was offered a place in the Jesuits' Dublin school, Belvedere College, in 1893. The offer was made at least partly in the hope that he would prove to have a vocation and join the Jesuits himself. Joyce, however, would reject Catholicism by the age of 16, although the philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas would remain a strong influence on him throughout his life.

Related Topics:
Clongowes Wood College - County Kildare - 1888 - 1892 - Christian Brothers - Jesuits - Belvedere College - 1893 - Catholicism - St. Thomas Aquinas

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He enrolled at University College Dublin in 1898. He studied modern languages, specifically English, French and Italian. He also became active in theatrical and literary circles in the city. His review of Ibsen's New Drama was published in 1900 and resulted in a letter of thanks from the Norwegian dramatist himself. Joyce wrote a number of other articles and at least two plays (since lost) during this period. Many of the friends he made at University College would appear as characters in Joyce's written works.

Related Topics:
University College Dublin - 1898 - English - French - Italian - Ibsen - 1900 - Norwegian

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