From the time of his earliest writings and interest in theatre, Joyce aligned himself with the great Norwegian dramatist, Henrik Ibsen. In 1900 he wrote an essay on Ibsen's drama, and the following year he cited Ibsen in opposition to the lack of quality in the Irish theatre. Two years later he again wrote on an early Ibsen play. By the mid 1930s, however, his attitude towards the master had changed somewhat. In his introduction, Phillips explores why Ibsen so captured Joyce's young imagination, and why he wrote about him.