Burgess, Douglas Kelly.

In A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man Joyce undermines the reader's dependence on an omniscient narrator and demands his active interpretive participation. The reader is no longer led to a knowledge of character by author intrusion but must continuously work towards interpretation. Joyce relies upon imagery and associated symbolism to support the reader's understanding of the novel's central figure, Stephen Dedalus. He incorporates into the work a complex structure of symbolism built upon the repetition of the opposing images of heat and cold. These contrasting images are used to create a series of symbolic associations that not only clarify Stephen's characterization but also intensify the impact of narration on the reader, increasing his recognition of the author's artistic design.