This thesis examines the use of irony in Joyce’s Portrait, claiming that it has the effect of deconstructing common notions of maturity that are engrained within the Bildungsroman tradition, and that this was Joyce’s intention. In Portrait, irony plays the role of psychological reality, undercutting Stephen’s unrealistic expectation to see his life follow a traditional path of teleological progression. This essay proceeds by looking at the novel’s symbolic, thematic and literary cues, as well as through an analysis of its structure, and Stephen’s psychological and behavioral tendencies throughout the novel. This interpretation of the irony as bearing deconstructive meaning comes from the essay adopting a static, as opposed to a kinetic, apprehension of Stephen in Portrait.