Joyce's life began on February 2, 1882, at 41 Brighton Square, Rathgar, Dublin, where his family's fortunes were marked by his father's poor investments, leading to a steady decline. He attended University College Dublin (UCD) and graduated in 1902.
Following his studies, Joyce briefly pursued medicine in Paris but was called back to Dublin due to his mother's impending death from cancer. In 1904, he started working on "Stephen Hero," which he later reworked as "A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man." During this time, he also met Nora Barnacle, a chambermaid, and they went on a memorable walk at Ringsend on June 16, 1904, which would later become the date for the events in his novel "Ulysses."
