Ulysses

Rating:
Summary: Sometimes infuriating but well worth the struggle
Review: There's probably not much about Ulysses that hasn't already been said, but having just spent well over a month of my free time struggling through this book I thought I would put my two cents in.

In my opinion, Judge John M. Woolsey's synopsis in his 1933 ruling on the work's obscenity charge sums up the book almost perfectly. It is indeed an astonishing achievement and a literary tour de force. It is, as he says, by turns brilliant and dull, intelligible and obscure. And of course it is unprecedented in its exceptionally honest treatment of sexuality.

I really can't agree with his contention, however, that every word of the book is purposeful in its contribution to the whole. In some ways, particularly the incredible realism of its characters' interior monologues and its ability to make a particular place and time come alive for the reader, Ulysses is perhaps the most well-written novel I've ever read. In other ways, namely Joyce's frequent inability to resist showing off his erudition and mastery of language, it is one of the worst and often cries out for editing. While there's not a word of Hades, Wandering Rocks or Penelope I would change, some other chapters (e.g., Cyclops, Oxen of the Sun, and Ithaca) become downright tedious despite their conceptual ingenuity and flashes of brilliance. Additionally, the book is sometimes cloyingly self-referential, plausibility too often bows to symbolism, and many of Joyce's allusions are so esoteric or ambiguous that they can only serve to distract the reader. While it has faults (and despite the book's deification in literary circles, I can't see any other way to characterize many of its quirks and stylistic excesses), Ulysses is nonetheless well worth the exceptional effort required to read it due to its penetrating and poignant illumination of human desires, delusions and relationships. As an added plus, at many points it is nothing less than hilarious.

Personally I found it very helpful to listen to a recording of the text on audio to get through the book (the version narrated by Donal Donnelly and Miriam Healy-Louie published by Classics on Cassette is extremely well done), as twice previously I had attempted to read it without such support and couldn't get beyond six or seven chapters. I would also suggest having at hand an unabridged dictionary, a book of scholarly annotations, and especially Harry Brimes' Bloomsday book for those passages where, despite your best efforts, you still can't figure out what the heck is going on (occasionally Brimes can't either).

Four stars may seem niggardly for a masterpiece, but I'm comparing it with King Lear and The Brothers Karamazov. If you're an Irish Catholic literary scholar with doctorates in western religion and etymology and an upcoming sabbatical, by all means add half a star.

Rating:
Summary: The century's most triumphant literary masterpiece
Review: James Joyce is the leading literary light of the 20th century. His command of the language is masterful and like the truly great writers, the English language is better for his use of it. His experimentation with stream of consciousness in the opening of the century profoundly shaped the literature that followed. Joyce will be remembered as one of the greatest writers ever to have lived: his writing is true virtuosity in both form and substance. He ranks with Homer, Chaucer, Shakespeare, Milton and Tolstoy. It may help to read this work with guidance by a teacher or professor. If that's not possible, after reading it in college and more recently, I recommend that you read it chapter for chapter with Homer's Odyssey or with a guidebook like Stuart Gilbert's James Joyce's Ulysses: otherwise, the intricate structure of the work may be lost. Bloom is 20th century man: to understand him is to peer into the inner depths of one's own being. Ulysses is magnificent. I stand in awe of this work. I am humbled by it. A more gifted literary genius may never have walked the planet and may never inhabit it, again.

Rating:
Summary: Perspective and patience
Review: I only just finished reading Ulysses myself for the first time and believe I may provide at least some small aid for other prospecitve readers. Obviously the book is complex. I would characterize it as the most difficult book I have ever read, whoever, I would not take this as an offence to the genius of the book. I have read (and performed) Hamlet, Homer, Dante, and a host of other "classics," but even if you have not you can still appreciate this work. I would be lying if I said I understood all of the esoteric references even to the literature I have read, but lets be honest how many of us can say we havn't been stumped by a book, or movie, or story, or whatever even with references relativly close to our times and places. I know people who would have no clue if I made a reference to somthing like "Fight Club" even though it is both a best selling book and huge motion picture success (Lord of the Rings for that fact). Don't worry if somthing goes over your head. This is not a casual novel (no Koontz or King here). This is a thematic character study. I recently heard an interesting interview with Quentin Terrantino in which he said somthing to the effect of "people don't talk about 'the plot' they talk about their everyday s**t," and actually that is a pretty fair description of what the framework for Ulysses is. It is one day in the lives of predominantly two people. We are all dynamic individuals, try to immagine a day in your own life and the stresses and desires you face. What memories creep into your concious. What little games do you play at work, with friends, your lover? I bet your not the same person in all those places are you? Don't sweat it if you don't understand a word here and there just take your time and be carefull with the text. The perspectives will shift and the stream of conciousness will kick in and you have to roll with the punches.

It will probably help most people to have some reference books available during a reading of Ulysses, but I personnally felt I became too distracted with every little newance (that's probably spelled incorrectly) so I just went with it. There is a reason all the ivory tower types love this book and that is because you can literally spend years deciphering all the layers. The book, like all pieces of art, is a product of its time so be prepared for that as well. It helps to have some knowledge of turn of the twentieth century Irish/English relations, world views, even literary styles of the era. I had a duece of a time getting through the collected works of Poe because so much of it was in German, French, or Latin (you know people in America used to learn Latin in school, how lame ;) ). I have rambled for way to long so I will close with a point. Many people don't understand modern classical music because they don't understand its place in history. Many people don't understand Jazz or Punk or Hip Hop because they don't understand their places in history. Ultimatly Ulysses will be like many other works of art in this regard. Take your time with it and relax with it (you are not being graded on how many of the top 100 of whatever you have read you know). You may not really like it after having read it and thats OK, but don't be a close minded neigh-sayer just because its not your style. I don't really like Russian novels, but I see their quality, just as I see the genius of Pollack, Whorhal, and Basquiatt (probably missed at least one of those names) but would rather hang a Munch or Picasso. To each his own just don't be pretentious.

Rating:
Summary: Worth Reading...but be prepared
Review: Ulysses is the story of one day in the life of Leopold Bloom, an Irish jew. The novel follows his travels and ends with his meeting of Stephen Dedaulus. By reading the novel, the reader is able to see Bloom's character fleshed out before his eyes, as well as to tap into the personalities of the numerous other characters on the busy Dublin street. Symbolically, the novel parallels Homer's Odyssey, depicting the great "journey" that Bloom travels in one day.

Although Ulysses is difficult to read, it is not impossible to complete. However, before even attempting to read this novel, it is best to have previously read several other pieces of literature to aid in the comprehension of the story. You should first already be familiar with Joyce's writings; read both Dubliners to get a feel of Joyce's style, and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young to fully understand the maturation of Stephan Dedaulus' character. Next, read the Odyssey, preferrable a verse translation. I'd recommend Robert Fagles version. Finally, it is also helpful to have read Hamlet, be familiar with both the Old and New Testament of The Bible, and know a little about early 19th century Irish history.

Even if you are a literary scholar, you will probably still find some parts--probably even whole chapters--confusing or even incomprehensible. One unique characteristic of Ulysses is its style. Contrary to popular belief, the book is not completely written in the stream of consciousness style. Instead, each of the novel's chapters has a characteristic style, ranging from straigt narration to an almost 200 page long play. This can be a bit aggravating for the reader. Another confusion of the chapters is there exact parrallel to the Odyssey. Each chapter does have a parrallel chapter in the Odyssey but while some similiarities can easily be distinguished in the plot, other parrallels are only apparent in symbolism and style. Because of these difficulties it is best to read the CliffsNotes on this book while reading the novel.

Overall, I can tell you that Ulysses is quite interesting in some parts and very very dull in others. If you are a fan of literature, I would recomend reading it sometime. Truefully, Ulysses was good but not as great as it thought it would be. My favorite parts of the book were simply the ones that helped to reveal Bloom's character. I got annoyed by the fact that too many other characters appeared and were characterized but actually had very little to do with the story's plot. The plot itself is a bit weak and Joyce is a bit too over-indulgent and is purposefully confusing in describing some of the action of the story (its 783 pages!). Also, in order to understand all of the novel's symbols you would have to read several literary references and this would take forever. I also think that Joyce sort of went a bit too far with literary styles. Some were good but others not so much. I liked the narrative and stream of consciousness chapters, but personally thought that the play chapter failed to convey its message and was meandering. And why wasn't there a chapter in epic format (as was the Odyssey) or other form of poem (Stephen was supposed to be a poet). Finally, I do not believe that Ulysses was universal enough to be considered a masterpiece. One of the great aspects of world literature is that it is supposed to let reader from other countries understand what it is like to live in the country in which the novel takes place. Joyce did try to achieve this goal, but he presented many viewpoints about Irish politics and facts about political figures (Parnell) with even trying to allow the non-Irish reader to understand these people or concepts.

Dispite its problems, I would recommend reading Ulysses but if there is any other book you would like to read, read it first because Ulysess does seem to drag on forever. Don't expect to understand all of Ulysses or be excited about unraveling its symbolism. In order to understand most of the symbolism you have to read the CliffsNotes and this kind of ruins the fun of self discovery. The book is not as contreversial as I thought it would be--really the only parts that would warrant censorship are contained in the last chapter (Molly's monologue) but these are rather provactive. Overall, the plot of Ulysses does not neccesarily always make the best story nor could I actually call it a "masterpiece" but the book is interesting if you are a fan of Joyce and have the time to spend on it. It took me just short of three weeks to finish it. If you are just reading the book for fun (not for a class) I'd recommend reading it over summer or a holiday because it is definately not a light or short read by any means.

Rating:
Summary: I don't know why they all say it's so great...
Review: This book is not that good. I started reading it because it is at the top of all the book lists. But I mean, I'm not anti-great literature, but man! This book is DENSE. I don't see what is so deep about it. Dunno, just my humble opinion.

Rating:
Summary: Modern Librarian's 20th century most influential book
Review: I spent months to read this crappy novel, hailed by modern pseudo-intellectuals as 20th century best (maybe because they are so close to its flimsy thoughtless characters and broken up narration -typical to Post-Modernist 'masterpieces'-). Although better and more sincere compared to its modern literary heirs, Ulysses still is in no way capable to elude its very nature. The thoroughly unreadable ramblings found inside are under no circumstance manifestations of artistic rebellion, being in fact just excuses coming from extraordinarily self-indulgent authors.

Of course, some non-indoctrinated people could object and say: this book portrays well Dubliner "middle" society from ITS OWN perspective (not from a critical eye). However, I don't think this was author's intent. His intent was just "getting rebelious": being "new", unbounded by (older) rules and responsibility.

Why two stars, then? Because I LOVED the chapter where Bloom's wife events perspective is provided. Everything had no organization whatsoever: no sentences, no punctuations, just one phrase that ends with the chapter. I never read such a masterful portrayal of women's intellectual capacities.

Rating:
Summary: A Light and Airy World
Review: I've read Dubliners and Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and now Ulysses. One apparent source of the joy of reading these for me is that all of the characters are good, sympathetic people, even when they do petty things. It is a world full of light and air, humor and optimism. Stephen Dedalus, Buck Mulligan, Leopold and Molly Bloom and all the rest are more-or-less normal humans living normal lives even though somewhat oppressed by poverty, the Church, and the English, and of course themselves. Ulysses has none of the violence, darkness, ugliness, cynicism, villiany, and perversion that is found in so much of modern literature. The most dramatic and upsetting thing that happens is when Stephen gets his hand whacked in school (in Portrait). Even Stephen's alchoholic irresponsible father is painted somewhat empathetically.

The events in Ulysses are so prosaic and quotidian that Joyce had to dress up his work with high-fallutin prose and verbal pyrotechnics. Otherwise the work would just be too bland. The reader can skate over most of the obscure rambling parts or go back and endlessly ponder them. I ignore most of the references, and I'm not too taken with the Homeric and Biblical symbolism. The book can be read on many different levels. I admit I loved it--but I would recommend reading Dubliners and Portrait first. I would also recommend visiting Dublin if you can swing it, and especially Howth, which figures prominently in Ulysses. Howth is a charming village and vast, dramatic, wild, high headland with sweeping views of the Irish Sea, Bailey Lighthouse way below, and Dublin city center in the distance--all within the city limits of Dublin. Last stop on the DART.

Rating:
Summary: One of the greats
Review: I read most of Ulysses twice. It influenced my writing, and the way I view the world, a lot. The language is beautiful and unique, especially in the first three episodes (the book is based on Homer's Odyssey) and in Night-town, near the end, which is structured, and has been put on, like a play. I found the last episode the hardest, although it is the most famous. Start with A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, The Dead, and don't be embarrased to pick up a guide to Ulysses. Many of us do.

Rating:
Summary: Bloomsday: June 16th, 1904
Review: This is a book that I have thought about almost all my life. I read it first when I was a teenager, and have read it ten times since. Or more. It is a book meant to be re-read a few times. Just like Lolita, and several other books, things in the end don't make any sense in the beginning. Things refer back and forth. A lot about panthers and vampires. History is a nightmare. I have many people from Dublin in my life. None of them ever bothered to read Ulysses. But by reading Ulysses, I knew much about Dublin by my reading experience. I met some members of a band JJ72 who had went to the same school as James Joyce. This is a great book. People who don't realize that are missing out. They just don't know to read. A lot of literature was once about references and quotations. If you don't get the references, that's not the books fault.

Rating:
Summary: Life in a book?
Review: It's a pity for so many out there that appreciating this remarkable novel requires a broad and good education. A grounding in the classics certainly helps - Homer, Dante, and Shakespeare, as some reviewers have noted. But, in addition, if you've read widely and can catch the parodies of, say, Gibbon or the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, or of journalism around 1900, you'll enjoy it even more.

Even then, 'Ulysses' is set in a time and place which have faded - Dublin in 1904 - and there are a lot of topical allusions to the politics (e.g. Parnell and his fall, Zionist publicity for immigration to Palestine), music (operas and lighter musical libretti) and much else to create a world, a whole set of intersecting lives, perspectives and meaning.

Joyce was a true polyglot, so the bits of Italian, French, Latin, and rhyming underworld slang, for instance, can strike people as just showing off - but they make the book much more than a recounting of a banal day in a narrow setting.

Precisely for both reasons - the allusions which have by now faded, and the breadth of the intellectual experience the book provides - even the most well-read connoisseur of literature would probably gain something by referring, at least occasionally, to the annotations of a book like Gifford's. But once this is done for a bit of the book, it gets much easier not to lean on the annotations, and 'Ulysses' can be read on its own, coming back to Gifford to see what more can be added to fill in the multiple meanings and subtleties.

'Ulysses' has to be read slowly. Joyce took seven years to write it, so why not spend a year or two to absorb it? I'd suggest that the right discipline in approaching the book is to read no more than a page or two a day, and to break off and come back to it as often as needed.

But then, exactly as some of the reviewers suggest, if you don't have either the background or the time, maybe you should read something else. After all, a top listing by Modern Library or the opinions of others who've thought 'Ulysses' a classic, or the fact that the book is a staple of English literature departments at universities, shouldn't force anyone to read it. And if people don't force themselves to read something they don't like, maybe they won't find a need to call the book or the author names.

Yet, in spite of the difficulties of access which make 'Ulysses' somewhat esoteric, it has a lot of verbal pyrotechnics. If you enjoy the sheer mastery of language, there's little to compare unless you go back to Shakespeare. More than that, in the finest humanist style of the high renaissance (Montaigne, and, again, Shakespeare)the world of 'Ulysses' is in the measure of man. There's all of life to be experienced in reading it: tragedy (the death of Stephen's mother, from which he is still recovering, of Bloom's infant son, vividly remembered, the suicide of Bloom's father, Virag, which comes back in Bloom's reveries); comedy (mockery of "high society" in a hilarious catalogue of names, of "high art" in a sketch of a dog's barking as if it were reviewed in appreciation of its poetic qualities; sexuality in its many aspects - a quite touching portrait, through her letters to her father, of Bloom's budding young daughter who has just begun to work, but also a nightmarish and hallucinatory scene with Bloom and Stephen in a brothel.

Joyce's vision is kindly and humane. He mocks established religion (the blasphemy is quite amusing if you're not easily shocked),or the 'gods' of "nationalism" ('patriotism' if you wish), and many other '-isms'. But his low-key message is of loving one another, affirming life for what it is, and doing the best one can, with no easy guides.

In the end, reading 'Ulysses' is a unique experience. If this review helps even a few more readers have it, I'll be satisfied. All the others should just relax and just read what they enjoy better!