# Joyce's Ulysses



## RebelGoddess (Apr 11, 2008)

So this week I have to begin tackling this novel for a British Literature class. 

We're reading it along side Dubliners (also by Joyce), so I'm definitely going to be drowning in Joyce the next few weeks.

I've never read any Joyce before and I'm curious to know what everyone thinks of this novel.

Good? Bad? Impossible to get through?

Racheal


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## Dr. Malone (Apr 11, 2008)

I like Dubliners much more than Ulysses.  Not impossible to get through, but you do have to push.  It's not the most enjoyable thing I've ever read.


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## mybigboots (Apr 11, 2008)

In my experience Ulysses is best taken late at night after a slurp of Old Bushmills and read out loud. It will grow on you. The more you can get through in one sitting the better because, if my memory serves me well, it is one day in Bloom's life. The words play like music... but Harrison Birtwistle, rather than anything you can sing along to. If you have to study it I'd recommend checking a Richard Elman (sp?) companion out of the library. 

Have fun


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## RebelGoddess (Apr 11, 2008)

Yeah, something audio might be fun to try. I'm not a big fan of stream of conscious style books, so this should be a fun read.

I'll definitely check out the Richard Ellmman annotated version of Ulysses; I have absolutely no knowledge of colloquial Irish so I'm sure I'll get a bit confused, LOL!

Thanks for the tip!

Racheal


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## Fyodor (Apr 15, 2008)

My AP English class just started reading A Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man and the whole stream-of-consciousness is making it hard for me to stay focused on the writing. Especially the beginning when it jumps around from what appears to be some of the most random things ever.


I really hope it gets better throughout the rest of the book.


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## RebelGoddess (Apr 16, 2008)

Fyodor said:


> the whole stream-of-consciousness is making it hard for me to stay focused on the writing. Especially the beginning when it jumps around from what appears to be some of the most random things ever.



I feel your pain.

I've never had to work so hard to comprehend a novel before. The stream-of-conscious style is quite confusing, but I think I'm starting to get the hang of it (after only 230 pages, LOL!).

My professor gave us a tip tonight on "how to read it" and I think it sounds useful.

He said to read it once with a pencil in hand, marking things you find confusing.

Then re-read it and do the same, only this time mark the things you understand.

Next he said to compare the two and then make a list of questions you still have because chances are more than one other person in your class has the same question.

I'm definitely going to be trying this when I read the next chunk of Ulysses.

Oh, and if all else fails: Chapter Summaries.

Though I'm not saying to read ONLY them; I read the text first and then the summaries (and if I'm still confused, I read the text again).

Good luck with Portrait!

Racheal


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## Flintenspiel (Apr 16, 2008)

We read Portrait and Dubliners for Irish Lit my junior year in college. 
Joyce is definitely a tough read. We _studied _him for several weeks and I still would not say I "knew" his works. But I can try to help out best I can, if you have specific questions.


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## Fyodor (Apr 16, 2008)

> He said to read it once with a pencil in hand, marking things you find confusing.
> 
> Then re-read it and do the same, only this time mark the things you understand.
> 
> Next he said to compare the two and then make a list of questions you still have because chances are more than one other person in your class has the same question.




This is actually a good idea. I might have to try it. Thanks.



> We read Portrait and Dubliners for Irish Lit my junior year in college.
> Joyce is definitely a tough read. We _studied _him for several weeks and I still would not say I "knew" his works. But I can try to help out best I can, if you have specific questions.



Yeah, I think it would have helped more if our teacher spent more than a day teaching us about the author and his style.


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## RebelGoddess (Apr 18, 2008)

Fyodor said:


> Yeah, I think it would have helped more if our teacher spent more than a day teaching us about the author and his style.



I agree! To conquer Joyce's work one needs to discuss it.

My class is 3 hours long and meets once a week, and at the end of class we take a quiz on the reading due for that day.

But usually we spend the first 2-2.5 hours discussing the reading, which I think greatly helps! I would definitely not be doing so hot on the quizzes were it not for our discussions before hand.


Maybe approach your teacher outside of class and ask him/her to spend a day of class discussing/reviewing the novel?

Good luck!

Racheal


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## Cervantes (Apr 23, 2008)

It took me about three months to get through _Ulysses; _that's how difficult it is! However, it is a very good book. I suggest printing out the article on Wikipedia or borrow/buy the SparkNotes to it, because you'll be lost unless you have read the _Iliad _and/or _The Odyssey, _or another stream-of-consciousness work, such as those of William Faulkner or Virginia Woolf.


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## RebelGoddess (Apr 29, 2008)

Cervantes said:


> It took me about three months to get through _Ulysses; _that's how difficult it is! However, it is a very good book. I suggest printing out the article on Wikipedia or borrow/buy the SparkNotes to it, because you'll be lost unless you have read the _Iliad _and/or _The Odyssey, _or another stream-of-consciousness work, such as those of William Faulkner or Virginia Woolf.



Oh, yeah.

I'm SparkNote-ing it for this one.

But don't get twitchy guys, I'm also reading the text. I just need a little help understanding WHAT I'm reading. LOL.

Racheal


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## HarmsGirl (May 15, 2008)

I've never read Ulysses but its on my list of books to read this year!


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## Wintermute (Feb 17, 2009)

I'm reading "A Portrait of an Artist" now for British Modernism. About to tackle "Ulysses" in the coming weeks. I can say that while his style might be difficult, it's undeniably intoxicating.


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## Tom88 (Feb 18, 2009)

This thread has inspired me to get my hands on a copy and have a crack.
The most ambitious thing I've ever read was Anna Karenina, and it was incredibly rewarding inspite of the daunting scope.

I'm game for a challenge.


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## exocoetidae (Feb 18, 2009)

Most important with Joyce is to read his work and discuss what you've read, since that's what Joyce intended. However, remember that much of what the works describe is not modern; it may be contemporary yet that means _something completely different_ in the 21st century (the Monty Python writers were huge fans of his work, which is a telling clue to the cynicism and sentimentality that _*Ulysses*_ and _*Portrait*_  and *Dubliners* created, if that's any help).

I read  Joyce for university work, yet it wasn't until years later that I had the time to read the works with pleasure. Your professor should sympathize with that reality and should encourage discussion and even acting out the stories. That can give the work some tangible reward. Otherwise it's history without substance, language without meaning, truth without perspective. 

I will answer any specific direction questions about Joyce using PM.


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## Garden of Kadesh (Feb 27, 2009)

I've never read any Joyce, but I've read The Sound and the Fury by William Faulkner, which uses stream of consciousness as well. I loved it - but you have to have a method. You can keep a journal, and write down each fragment of the plot and try to put them in a logical order based on clues. This can be tedious though, and often warrants rereads. Discussing the book also helps, as somebody mentioned earlier. If you work in a group, all your collective ideas will create a clearer picture.

OR you can opt for my personal favorite method, which is to skim through a plot summary beforehand. Might be considered cheating, I don't know. Even just having a _basic_ idea of the novel's story can help drastically.


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## Subtext (Aug 12, 2009)

I've read most of Joyce's work.

Dubliners > Everything else IMHO

Best of luck.

By the way, my best advice for grappling with his stream of conscious style is reading it once outloud for timing so that one understands it in terms of timing and transition.


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## Mr. Madeleine (Nov 11, 2009)

I wrote a paper on Ulysses when studying British literature, over a decade ago. It is not an easy read, but reading it deeply was for me a rewarding experience. A good knowledge of Homer's Odyssey will definitely help, and researching some of the lives of the Saints alluded to will bring some light on it. A basic knowledge of Irish history would also help, as would some background reading from a good anthology of Irish Literature including political essays. Not an impossible read, but it demands work.


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