Protagonist

Character Role Analysis

Stephen Dedalus

Stephen as protagonist is a no-brainer. When you have one character, and pretty much only one character, he’s by default the protagonist. Stephen is more than just our main focus, though – we practically become him through our intimate proximity to his thoughts. Joyce’s intimate narrative voice allows us to engage with Stephen on a level that we don’t reach with any of the other characters in the book. In a book that is driven by character, rather than action, Stephen is the center of attention at all times.