What is the aesthetic theory of Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man?

Stephen
Dadalus, the main character of as well as a fictional alter-ego ofhimself,
defines beauty fully as the comprehensive relationship between the artist and their art. Dadalus
believes that art should invoke only aesthetic emotions.

Dadalus also asserts
that the aesthetic mood is, by its nature, static rather than dynamic. It is a moment suspended
in time that completely captivates the audience and raises the consciousness to not concern
itself with things as petty as base emotions. Dadalus also argues that anything that induces
reaction cannot be art, because it inspires an animal part of us that is base and doesn't
pertain to the intellect.

Dadalus discusses the wholeness and harmony of a
work of art when discussing his aesthetic theory. This refers to an art's completeness and
separation from anything else, as well as its components' relation to each other and itself as a
whole. This leads to radiance, which is the essence of a thing, its essential beauty, that can
be understood by first knowing its wholeness and harmony.