Portrait's Contribution

A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man presents more difficulty when attempting to answer the question of how the family unit has an effect on society. Stephen does not seem to enduce profound changes in society as a whole, however, in his immediate surroundings his actions have an impact. From there, it becomes further unique with the knowledge that he goes to a boarding school, and much of the time he is in the boarding school/college setting. Although there are significant instances where is parents and siblings are presented they do not seem to play as big a role in his upbringing as do the priests and prefects who suurround him. Therefore, however, one must consider his parents' decision to send Stephen to boarding school an element of the family unit. It appears possibly as a separation of the family unit. Now his actions and affects on his surroundings can be attributed/compared to his family life.
Throughout the novel, Stephen travels through a series of transformations and realizations. His serch for significance and purpose coarses through the entire novel, and his artistic passion results. Throughout, his journey, his relationship with his parents appears strained. He is the oldest, the one who his parents invested their very best in. He obtained the opportunity to attend school in preparation for the priesthood. However, his ideas and desires end up differing from those of his parents. His mother, who prays that he becomes the priest she envisioned and his dad who lives in the past seem simply disconnected from him. This possibly results from the disconnection between them in vacinity. Just as their ideas differ, their residence differs as well.
From this disconnect, anger rises. Stephen expresses explicitley near the end of the novel his dislike and anger towards his mother. Furthermore, during the chapter 2, Stephen reveals that he detests his father's focus on the "good old days," the past. Stephen even finds his fathers discussions immature and shallow. This disconnect with the family unit, a place to feel secure and accepted, may be a portion of the reason behind his consistent battle between lustful desires and religious piety. Without a secure place to claim his identity he battles with the extremes. Even though a unified family would not remove the struggle to find meaning in life, it might have provided a safer place to search in. That may have prevented him from experimenting with such extremes.
Furthermore, growing up with his family in a possitive environment, may have increased his appreciation for people. It seems that throughout the novel, he expresses various anger with his peers. A possitive relationship with his parents and a unified family may have reduced his distaste for others.