Imagery Pattern of Clouds in the Portrait of an Artist by James Joyce

The experience of being literally heard and understood deeply, in some personally vital sphere, has its own kind of impact- whether of relief, of something at last making sense, a feeling or inner connection or

“And all with pearl and ruby glowing/ Was the fair palace door, Through which came flowing, flowing, flowing/And sparkling evermore, A troop of Echoes whose sweet duty/was but to sing.” This is an important passage that fully details that the palace is his mind and the “Troop of Echoes” whom sing are his thoughts, which came like a constant river. He then praises the “Voices of surpassing beauty” the great thoughts that always came to their creator’s aid.

The life span of 37 years saw Vincent Willem van Gogh (Vincent) in creating beautiful works he dearly loved. Painting was an avenue, which allowed him to express his inner thoughts or vent his struggles. My decision to research on Vincent’s painting, Starry Night (1889) came with the inspiration from Don Mclean’s Song, Starry Starry Night where his lyrics spoke about Vincent’s life that further intrigued me in writing this paper.

"It is with considerable difficulty that I remember the original era of my being; all the events of that period appear confused and indistinct. A strange multiplicity of sensations seized me, and I saw, felt, heard, and smelt at the same time; and it was, indeed, a long time before I learned to distinguish between the operations of my various senses. By degrees, I remember, a stronger light pressed upon my nerves, so that I was obliged to shut my eyes. Darkness then came over me and troubled me, but hardly had I felt this when, by opening my eyes, as I now suppose, the light

Joyce's modernistic view of Dublin society permeates all of his writings. The Irish experiences account for a large portion of Joyce's writings. Stephen Dedalus is sometimes Joyce's pseudonym and represents Joyce and his life in Joyce's works. Joyce plays a crucial role in the modernist movement in literature. Some of the well known innovative techniques used by Joyce are symbolism, realism and stream-of consciousness. James Joyce's writings contain autobiographical matter and display his view of life in Dublin, Ireland with the use of symbolism, realism, and stream-of consciousness.

The world has several great poets and numerous mind-blowing works, each with its own way of portraying its own message using symbolism to represent lessons of everyday life. Jane Flanders wrote the poem named “Cloud Painter” she shows the world from an artistic way, using a painter and his canvas to help the reader picture the true meaning behind the words and images created. Robert Frost takes on the same idea, but uses a less complex example so that it makes his work easy to understand while not revealing the actual meaning of the poem. Frost and Flanders are just two of the many poets that use nature as a way of explaining the very lessons in life. Each poet has a different way of presenting similar images but from a different perspective. Poems are short stories that have a meaning behind them without revealing them in obvious ways. Although some are confusing and may use a different style there are a few that present the same message even if they are written by a different poet. “Cloud Painter” written by Jane Flanders uses the clouds and other subjects of nature. Such as trees and the hills. to help the reader picture the true meaning behind her poem. Robert Frost's poem by the name of “Nothing Gold Can Stay” also takes the nature route to convey the point of his poems words and their Each has a unique way of creating an idea that most can relate to emotionally and physically.

Presently I heard a slight groan, and I knew it was the groan of mortal terror. It was not a groan of pain or of grief--oh, no!--it was the low stifled sound that arises from the bottom of the soul when overcharged with awe. I knew the sound well. Many a night . . . the terrors distracted me. (122)

Throughout the course of the novel, the theme of artistry is illustrated in Stephen’s life. When Stephen becomes more religious after confessing his sins, his new life is an artistic process, “[He] did not allow himself to desist from... devotion… each of his senses was brought under a rigorous discipline… He made it his rule to walk in the street with downcast eyes, glancing neither to the right nor left… neither sang nor whistled” (163). Here, the artist is represented by Stephen and his art is his renewed faith. “He did not allow himself to desist from devotion...” This demonstrates that Stephen is quite immersed in his art. He makes it his first priority and, much like an artist must force himself to continue his art, Stephen is forcing himself to stay religious. “He made it his rule to walk in the street with downcast eyes…” This line exhibits how Stephen the artist is attempting to seal himself off from the world, just like how many devoted artists

And on the far rim of consciousness, a scurrying, a fleeting impression of something rushing toward him, across leagues of black mirror. ...

The subject in reference to the concept of the painting in this chapter is chiefly Gerty MacDowell. Joyce lays the scene like an establishing shot of a movie, slowly revealing specific details about the setting. I can scarcely think of the sublime nature and aesthetics of painting without thinking of the mythology surrounding the Roman goddess, Venus and her representation of sex. Like Venus, Gerty acts as a vehicle of seduction. “Her woman’s instinct told her that she had raised the devil in him and at the thought a burning scarlet swept from throat to brow till the lovely colour of her face became a glorious rose” (U 13. 295). The art of the painting functions as an approach to describing Gerty’s seductive venture as Bloom’s detumescence.

First of all, the narrator heard sound that is from heaven and hell. “I hear many things in heaven and hell.” ( page 202 ) Since no one can things from heaven or hell, that making him insane. He also hear acute sound.

Portrait painting thrived in the Netherlands with the increase in production driven by interest in the idea of personhood and the definition of the individual self. Portraits help document the development of a personal identity as it connects factors like marital status, class, and profession. A common portrait genre produced during the seventeenth century portrays their subjects with an impassive demeanor with little vigor. At first, these paintings may be evaluated as lacking “personality” or “characterization” due to the artist’s lack of talent. However, this is rarely the case. In trying to understand Dutch portraiture, it is important to identify what type of functions they serve. Abraham de Vries’ Double Portrait functions not only as recording of his sitters’ faces but also as a signifier of the cultural, social and philosophical ideas of the time.

“A scream was heard that summer day. Four-year-old Catherine’s screams echoed into the mystical wind. She told the wind to find Thomas. Bellowing into the breeze, her little heart begged, with vigorous might. The current carried her voice. It never ceased, until one day, I heard it. The zephyr carried the message in search of Thomas. It traveled lifetimes, into where memories dwell, and it never ceased. In the dark space, of matter, it moved, seeking the answer to the child's petition. It did not stop, until it found accountability. It echoed, in and out of woven petitions, spirits and prayers, asking, "have you seen, the child, Thomas?"

The exploration of the mind and the way our conscious mind perceives the symbols of our subconscious minds was new ground and it gave art a new voice with which to sing.

“That presence that always listened in at the back of my mind is no longer there. Nor is there a presence behind there listening in. Nor a presence behind that, nor behind that,