Ulysses

By James Joyce

Ulysses is a novel by the Irish author James Joyce. It was first serialised in parts in the American journal The Little Review from March 1918 to ecember 19!"# and then published in its entirety by$ylvia Beach on ! %ebruary 19!!# in &aris. 'ne of the most important wor(s of Modernist literature#it has been called )a demonstration and summation of the entire movement).)Before Joyce# no writer of fiction had so fore*rounded the process of thin(in*.) Ulysses chronicles the passa*e of +eopold Bloom throu*h ublin durin* an ordinary day# 1, June

19"- .the day of Joyce/s first date with his future wife# 0ora Barnacle1.2-3 4he title alludes to'dysseus .+atinised into Ulysses1# the hero of 5omer/s Odyssey# and establishes a series of parallels between characters and events in 5omer/s poem and Joyce/s novel . e.g.# the correspondence of +eopold Bloom to 'dysseus# Molly Bloom to &enelope# and $tephen edalus to4elemachus1. Joyce fans worldwide now celebrate 1, June as Bloomsday. Ulysses is appro6imately !,7#""" words in len*th# uses a le6icon of 8"#"8" words .includin* proper names# plurals and various verb tenses1#273 and is divided into ei*hteen episodes. $ince publication# the boo( attracted controversy and scrutiny# ran*in* from early obscenity trials to protracted te6tual )Joyce 9ars.) Ulysses' stream:of:consciousness techni;ue# careful structurin*# and e6perimental prose<full of puns# parodies# and allusions# as well as its rich characterisations and broad humour# made the boo( a hi*hly re*arded novel in the Modernist pantheon. In 1998# the Modern +ibraryran(ed Ulysses first on its list of the 1"" best =n*lish:lan*ua*e novels of the !"th century.

Key Facts
FULL TITLE > Ulysses AUTHOR > James Joyce TYPE OF WORK > 0ovel GENRE > Modernist novel? comic novel? ;uest novel LANGUAGE > =n*lish TIME AND PLACE WRITTEN > 4rieste# Italy? @urich# $witAerland? &aris?191-B19!1 DATE OF FIRST PUBLICATION > Individual episodes were published serially startin* in

1918? as a novel# it

was first published in 19!! PUBLISHER > %irst serially in The Little Review? as a novel by $ha(espeare C Dompany NARRATOR > =pisodes 'ne# 4wo# %ourB4welve# $i6teen# and $eventeen feature anonymous narrators. =pisode 4hree features $tephenEs thou*hts. =pisode 4hirteen features an amal*amation of anonymous narrator# Ferty Mac owell# and Bloom. =pisode %ourteen features a variety of narrators# meant to be representative of the prose styles of historical =n*lish authors. =pisode %ifteen has no narrator. Molly Bloom is the first:person narrator of =pisode =i*hteen. POINT OF VIEW > =pisodes 'ne# 4wo# %ourB=leven# $i6teen# and $eventeen are told from the third:person viewpoint. =pisode 4hree features interior monolo*ue. =pisode 4welve is told from the first:person. =pisode

4hirteen is told from the third and first person. =pisode %ourteen is told variously in the third:person and first: person. =pisode %ifteen is in play:script form. =pisode =i*hteen features an interior monolo*ue. TONE > 4he narratives of =pisodes 'ne throu*h =i*ht have a strai*htforward tone. =pisodes 0ine throu*h =leven have a self:conscious# playful tone. =pisode 4welve has a hyperbolic# belli*erent tone. =pisode 4hirteen has a sentimental tone. =pisode %ourteen has an e6treme variety of tones# includin* pious# sensational# and satiric. =pisode %ifteen has no narrator and therefore no dominant narrative tone. =pisode $i6teen has a tired tone. =pisode $eventeen has a scientific tone. TENSE > &resent SETTING (TIME > 8G"" A.M.# June 1,# 19"-Bappro6imately 8 A.M.# June1H# 19"SETTING (PLACE > ublin# Ireland# and its surroundin* suburbs PROTAGONIST > $tephen edalus# +eopold Bloom# Molly Bloom MA!OR CONFLICT > Molly BloomEs infidelity with BlaAes Boylan? $tephen edalusEs search for a symbolic father? +eopold BloomEs desire for a son .his only son died eleven years a*o several days after his birth1 RISING ACTION > Bloom leaves his house for the day# sees BlaAes Boylan on the street several times# and becomes an6ious about BlaAes and MollyEs four oEcloc( rendeAvous. Bloom is convinced they are *oin* to have se6. $tephen and Bloom *o about their day. 4hey pass by each other several times and coincidentally meet at 5olles $t. Maternity 5ospital. CLIMA" > 4he first clima6 could be when Bloom loo(s after $tephen durin* $tephenEs ar*ument with &rivate Darr .at the end of =pisode %ifteen1. 4he second clima6 is BloomEs return home to his bedroom to discover evidence of MollyEs infidelity and to mentally overcome the threat of BlaAes Boylan .=pisode $eventeen1. FALLING ACTION > Bloom and $tephen rest at a cabmanEs shelter .=pisode $i6teen1# then return to the Bloom residence and have cocoa and tal( .=pisode $eventeen1. Bloom tells Molly about his day and as(s her to serve him brea(fast in bed .=pisode $eventeen1. Molly lies awa(e considerin* the events of the day and a happy memory from her and BloomEs past. THEMES > 4he ;uest for paternity? the remorse of conscience? compassion as heroic? paralla6 or the necessity of multiple perspectives MOTIFS > +i*htness and dar(ness? the home usurped? the =ast SYMBOLS > &lumtreeEs &otted Meat? the Fold Dup horserace? $tephenEs +atin Iuarter hat? BloomEs potato talisman
FORESHADOWING > $tephenEs and BloomEs compatible dreams set in an =astern mar(etplace street

Joyce be*an writin* Ulysses in 191-# and when 9orld 9ar I bro(e out he moved his family to @urich# $witAerland# where he continued wor( on the novel. In @urich# JoyceEs fortunes finally improved as his talent attracted several wealthy patrons# includin* 5arriet $haw 9eaver. Portrait was published in boo( form in 191,# and JoyceEs play# Exiles, in 1918. Also in1918# the first episodes of Ulysses were published in serial form in The Little Review. In 1919# the Joyces moved to &aris# where Ulysses was published in boo( form in 19!!. In 19!8# with his eyesi*ht ;uic(ly diminishin*# Joyce be*an wor(in* on what became Finnegans Wake,published in 1989. Joyce died in 19-1. Joyce first conceived of Ulysses as a short story to be included in D !liners,but decided instead to publish it as a lon* novel# situated as a sort of se;uel to " Portrait o# the "rtist as a $o ng %an. Ulysses pic(s up $tephen edalusEs life more than a year after where Portrait leaves off. 4he novel introduces two new main characters# +eopold and Molly Bloom# and ta(es place on a sin*le day# June 1,# 19"-# in ublin. Ulysses strives to achieve a (ind of realism unli(e that of any novel before it by renderin* the thou*hts and actions of its main characters< both trivial and si*nificant<in a scattered and fra*mented form similar to the way thou*hts# perceptions# and memories actually appear in our minds. In D !liners, Joyce had tried to *ive his stories a hei*htened sense of realism by incorporatin* real people and places into them# and he pursues the same strate*y on a massive scale in Ulysses. At the same time that Ulysses presents itself as a realistic

novel# it also wor(s on a mythic level# by way of a series of parallels with 5omerEs Odyssey. $tephen# Bloom# and Molly correspond respectively to 4elemachus# Jlysses# and &enelope# and each of the ei*hteen episodes of the novel corresponds to an adventure from the Odyssey. Ulysses has become particularly famous for JoyceEs stylistic innovations. InPortrait, Joyce first attempted the techni;ue of interior monolo*ue# or stream:of:consciousness. 5e also e6perimented with shiftin* style<the narrative voice of Portrait chan*es stylistically as $tephen matures. In Ulysses, Joyce uses interior monolo*ue e6tensively# and instead of employin* one narrative voice# Joyce radically shifts narrative style with each new episode of the novel. JoyceEs early wor( reveals the stylistic influence of 0orwe*ian playwri*ht 5enri( Ibsen. Joyce be*an readin* Ibsen as a youn* man? his first publication was an article about a play of IbsenEs# which earned him a letter of appreciation from Ibsen himself. IbsenEs plays provided the youn* Joyce with a model of the realistic depiction of individuals stifled by conventional moral values. Joyce imitated IbsenEs naturalistic brand of realism in D !liners, " Portrait o# the "rtist as a $o ng %an, and especially in his play Exiles. Ulysses maintains JoyceEs concern with realism but also introduces stylistic innovations similar to those of his Mo:dernist contemporaries. UlyssesEs multivoiced narration# te6tual self:consciousness# mythic framewor(# and thematic focus on life in a modern metropolis situate it close to other main te6ts of the Modernist movement# such as 4. $. =liotEs mythic poem The Waste Land .also published in 19!!1 or Kir*inia 9oolfEs stream:of:consciousness novel# %rs. Dalloway .19!71. 4hou*h never wor(in* in collaboration# Joyce maintained correspondences with other Modernist writers# includin* $amuel Bec(ett# and =Ara &ound# who helped find him a patron and an income. JoyceEs final wor(# Finnegans Wake,is often seen as brid*in* the *ap between Modernism and postmodernism. A novel only in the loosest sense# Finnegans Wake loo(s forward to postmodern te6ts in its playful celebration .rather than lamentation1 of the fra*mentation of e6perience and the decentered nature of identity# as well as its attention to the nontransparent ;ualities of lan*ua*e. +i(e =liot and many other Modernist writers# Joyce wrote in self:imposed e6ile in cosmopolitan =urope. In spite of this fact# all of his wor( is stron*ly tied to Irish political and cultural history# and Ulysses must also be seen in an Irish conte6t. JoyceEs novel was written durin* the years of the Irish bid for independence from Britain. After a bloody civil war# the Irish %ree $tate was officially formed<durin* the same year that Ulysses was published. =ven in19"-# Ireland had e6perienced the failure of several home rule bills that would have *ranted the island a measure of political independence within Freat Britain. 4he failure of these bills is lin(ed to the downfall of the Irish member of &arliament# Dharles $tewart &arnell# who was once referred to as LIrelandEs Jncrowned Min*#N and was publicly persecuted by the Irish church and people in 1889 for conductin* a lon*:term affair with a married woman# Mitty 'E$hea. Joyce saw this persecution as an hypocritical betrayal by the Irish that ruined IrelandEs chances for a peaceful independence. Accordin*ly# Ulysses depicts the Irish citiAens of 19"-# especially $tephen edalus# as involved in tan*led conceptions of their own Irishness# and comple6 relationships with various authorities and institutions specific to their time and placeG the British empire# Irish nationalism# the Ooman Datholic church# and the Irish +iterary Oevival.

A#alys$s %& Ma'%( C)a(acte(s

Le%*%l+ Bl%%, +eopold Bloom functions as a sort of =veryman<a bour*eois 'dysseus for the twentieth century. At the same time# the novelEs depiction of his personality is one of the most detailed in all literature. Bloom is a thirty:ei*ht:year:old advertisin* canvasser. 5is father was a 5un*arian Jew# and Joyce e6ploits the irony of this fact<that ublinEs latter:day 'dysseus is really a Jew with 5un*arian ori*ins<to such an e6tent that readers often for*et BloomEs Irish mother and multiple baptisms. BloomEs status as an outsider# combined

with his own ability to envision an inclusive state# ma(e him a fi*ure who both suffers from and e6poses the insularity of Ireland and Irishness in 19"-. Pet the social e6clusion of Bloom is not simply one:sided. Bloom is clear:si*hted and mostly unsentimental when it comes to his male peers. 5e does not li(e to drin( often or to *ossip# and thou*h he is always friendly# he is not sorry to be e6cluded from their circles. 9hen Bloom first appears in =pisode %our ofUlysses, his character is noteworthy for its differences from $tephenEs character# on which the first three episodes focus. $tephenEs cerebrality ma(es BloomEs comfort with the physical world seem more remar(able. 4his ease accords with his practical mind and scientific curiosity. 9hereas $tephen# in =pisode 4hree# shuts himself off from the mat:erial world to ponder the wor(in*s of his own perception# Bloom appears in the be*innin* of =pisode %our bendin* down to his cat# wonderin* how her senses wor(. BloomEs comfort with the physical also manifests itself in his se6uality# a dimension mostly absent from $tephenEs character. 9e *et ample evidence of BloomEs se6uality<from his penchant for voyeurism and female underclothin* to his masturbation and erotic correspondence<while $tephen seems ine6perienced and celibate. 'ther disparities between the two men further define BloomEs characterG where $tephen is depressive and somewhat dramatic# Bloom is mature and even:headed. Bloom possesses the ability to cheer himself up and to pra*matically refuse to thin( about depressin* topics. Pet Bloom and $tephen are similar# too. 4hey are both unrealiAed artists# if with completely different a*endas. As one ubliner puts it# L4hereEs a touch of the artist about old Bloom.N 9e mi*ht say that BloomEs conception of art is bour*eois# in the sense that he considers art as a way to effect peopleEs actions and feelin*s in an immediate way. %rom his desire to create a newer# better advertisement# to his love poem to Molly# to his readin* of $ha(espeare for its moral value# BloomEs version of art does not stray far from real:life situations. BloomEs sense of culture and his aspiration to be LculturedN also seem to brin* him close to $tephen. 4he two men share a love for music# and $tephenEs companionship is attractive to Bloom# who would love to be an e6pert# rather than a dabbler# in various subjects. 4wo emotional crises pla*ue BloomEs otherwise cheerful demeanor throu*hout Ulysses&the brea(down of his male family line and the infidelity of his wife# Molly. 4he untimely deaths of both BloomEs father .by suicide1 and only son# Oudy .days after his birth1# lead Bloom to feel cosmically lonely and powerless. Bloom is allowed a brief respite from these emotions durin* his union with $tephen in the latter part of the novel. 9e slowly realiAe over the course of Ulysses that the first crisis of family line is related to the second crisis of marital infidelityG the BloomsE intimacy and attempts at procreation have bro(en down since the death of their only son eleven years a*o. BloomEs reaction to MollyEs decision to loo( elsewhere .to BlaAes Boylan1 for se6 is comple6. Bloom enjoys the fact that other men appreciate his wife# and he is *enerally a passive# acceptin* person. Bloom is clear:si*hted enou*h to realiAe# thou*h# that BlaAes Boylan is a paltry replacement for himself# and he ultimately cheers himself by reconte6tualiAin* the problem. Boylan is only one of many# and it is on Molly that Bloom should concentrate his own ener*ies. In fact# it is this ability to shift perspective by sympathiAin* with another viewpoint that renders Bloom heroic. 5is compassion is evident throu*hout<he is charitable to animals and people in need# his sympathies e6tend even to a woman in labor. BloomEs masculinity is fre;uently called into ;uestion by other characters? hence# the second irony of Ulysses is that Bloom as =veryman is also somewhat feminine. And it is precisely his fluid# andro*ynous capacity to empathiAe with people and thin*s of all types<and to be both a symbolic father and a mother to $tephen<that ma(es him the hero of the novel. M%lly Bl%%, 'ver the course of the novel# we *et a very clear picture of Bloom and $tephen because we witness their interactions with many different people and see what they are thin(in* throu*hout all of these interactions. %or most of the novel we only see Molly Bloom throu*h other peopleEs eyes# so it may be temptin* to dismiss her as a self:centered# unfaithful woman. 4he way we decide to view her will re;uire us to

reevaluate the understandin* we have thus far formed of +eopold Bloom. If we focus on the Lvul*arityN and physicality of her monolo*ue# our built:up sympathies with Bloom as the well:meanin* husband of a loose woman are ratified. But a more nuanced understandin* of her involves seein* her as an out*oin* woman who ta(es a certain pride in her husband# but who has been feelin* a lac( of demonstrative love. 4his idea yields a reevaluation of Bloom as bein* unfaithful in his own ways and complicit in the temporary brea(down of their marria*e. +i(e Bloom# Molly is a ublin outsider. $he was raised in the military atmosphere of Fibraltar by her father# Major Brian 4weedy. Molly never (new her mother# who was possibly Jewish# or just Jewish:lo:o(in*. Bloom associates Molly with the Lhot:bloodedN Mediterranean re*ions# and# to a lesser de*ree# the e6oticism of the =ast. Pet Molly considers her own childhood to have been normal# outside the dramatic entrances and e6its of youn*# *ood:loo(in* soldiers *oin* off to war. Molly seems to or*aniAe her life around men and to have very few female friends. $he enjoys bein* loo(ed at and *ains self:esteem from the admiration of men. Molly is e6tremely self:aware and perceptive<she (nows without loo(in* when she is bein* loo(ed at. A manEs admiration of her does not cloud her own ne*ative jud*ments about him. $he is fran( about topics that other people are li(ely to sentimentaliAe<intimacy# mournin*# and motherhood# for e6ample. $he is also fran( about the e6tent to which livin* involves adaptations of different roles. 5er sense of this truth<which is perhaps related to her own career as a sta*e sin*er<ali*ns her with $tephen# who is also conscious of his outward e6istence in terms of a series of roles. Molly and $tephen both share a capacity for storytellin*# scene:settin*# and mimicry. MollyEs storytellin* and fran(ness about role:playin* evinces her sense of humor# and it also mediates our sense of her as a hypocritical character. %inally# it is this pra*matic and fluid adoption of roles that enables Molly to reconnect with Bloom throu*h vivid recollections# and# indeed# reenactments# of the past# as in her final memory of the 5owth scene at the end of Ulysses. Ste*)e# De+al-s 4he character of $tephen edalus is a harshly drawn version of Joyce himself at a*e twenty:two. $tephen first appeared as the main character of " Portrait o# the "rtist as a $o ng %an, which followed his development from early childhood to his proud and ambitious days before leavin* ublin for &aris and the realiAation of his artistic capabilities. 9hen we meet $tephen a*ain at the be*innin* of Ulysses, it is over two years after the end of Portrait.$tephen has been bac( in ublin for over a year# havin* returned to sit at his motherEs deathbed. $tephenEs artistic talent is still unrealiAed<he is currently a reluctant teacher of history at a boyEs school. 5e is disappointed and moody and is still dressed in mournin* over the death of his mother almost a year a*o. $tephenEs interactions with various characters<Buc(# 5aines# Mr. easy<in the openin* episodes of the boo( crystalliAe our sense of the dama*in* ties and obli*ations that have resulted from $tephenEs return to Ireland. At the be*innin* of Ulysses, $tephen is a self:conscious youn* man whose identity is still in formation. $tephenEs aloofness and his attempts to understand himself throu*h fictional characters such as 5amlet dramatiAe his stru**le to solidify this identity. $tephen is depicted as above most of the action of the novel. 5e e6ists mainly within his own world of ideas <his actions in the world tend to pointedly distance himself from others and from the world itself. 5is freeness with money is less a demonstration of his *enerosity than of his lac( of material concerns. 5is unwashed state similarly reflects his removal from the material world. 5is cryptic stories and riddles cut o: thers off rather than include them. 5e stubbornly holds *rud*es# and our admiration of his noble stru**le for independence is tempered by our (nowled*e of the impoverished siblin*s he has left behind. If $tephen himself is an unsympathetic character# however# the issues central to his identity stru**le are easier for us to sympathiAe with. %rom his contemplation of the eyeEs perception of the outside world to his teachin* of a history lesson to his meditations on a'or 'atris or Lmother love#N $tephenEs mental meanderin*s center on the problem of whether# and how# to be an active or passive bein* within the world.

$tephenEs stru**les tend to center around his parents. 5is mother# who seems to blame $tephen for refusin* to pray at her deathbed# represents not only a motherEs love but also the church and Ireland. $tephen is haunted by his motherEs memory and *host in the same ways that he is haunted by memories of his early piety. 4hou*h $tephenEs father is still alive and well# we see $tephen attemptin* to i*nore or deny him throu*hout all of Ulysses.$tephenEs stru**le with his father seems to be about $tephenEs need to have a space in which to create<a space untainted by $imon edalusEs overly critical jud*ments. $tephenEs stru**le to define his identity without the constraint or aid imposed by his father bleeds into lar*er conflicts< $tephenEs stru**le with the authority of Fod# the authority of the British empire# even with the authority of the moc(er or jo(er. After the first three episodes# $tephenEs appearances in Ulysses are limited. 5owever# these limited appearances<in =pisodes 0ine# %ourteen# and %ifteen<demonstrate that $tephenEs attempted repudiation of authority and obli*ations has precipitated what seems to him to be the abandonment of all those close to him. At the end of =pisode %ifteen# $tephen lies nearly unconscious on the *round# feelin* as thou*h he has been LbetrayedN by everyone. 0ever before has $tephen seemed so much in need of a parent# and it is Bloom<not wholly father nor mother<who cares for him. 4hou*h $tephen plays a part in the final episodes of Ulysses, we see less and less of his thou*hts as the novel pro*resses .and# perhaps not coincidentally# $tephen becomes drun(er and drun(er1. Instead# the circumstances of the novel and the apparent choices that $tephen ma(es ta(e over our sense of his character. By the novelEs end# we see that $tephen reco*niAes a brea( with Buc( Mulli*an# will ;uit his job at easyEs school# and has accepted# if only temporarily# BloomEs hospitality. In BloomEs (itchen# $tephen puts somethin* in his mouth besides alcohol for the first time since =pisode 'ne# and has a conversation with Bloom# as opposed to performin* as he did earlier in the day. 9e are thus encoura*ed to understand that# in the calm of the late:ni*ht hours# $tephen has reco*niAed the power of a reciprocal relationship to provide sustenance.

T)e,es. M%t$&s / Sy,0%ls

T)e,es The'es are the # nda'ental and o#ten niversal ideas ex(lored in a literary work. The Quest for Paternity At its most basic level# Ulysses is a boo( about $tephenEs search for a symbolic father and BloomEs search for a son. In this respect# the plot ofUlysses parallels 4elemachusEs search for 'dysseus# and vice versa# in The Odyssey. BloomEs search for a son stems at least in part from his need to reinforce his identity and herita*e throu*h pro*eny. $tephen already has a biolo*ical father# $imon edalus# but considers him a father only in Lflesh.N $tephen feels that his own ability to mature and become a father himself .of art or children1 is restricted by $imonEs criticism and lac( of understandin*. 4hus $tephenEs search involves findin* a symbolic father who will# in turn# allow $tephen himself to be a father. Both men# in truth# are searchin* for paternity as a way to reinforce their own identities. $tephen is more conscious of his ;uest for paternity than Bloom# and he mentally recurs to several important motifs with which to understand paternity. $tephenEs thin(in* about the 5oly 4rinity involves# on the one hand# Dhurch doctrines that uphold the unity of the %ather and the $on and# on the other hand# the writin*s of heretics that challen*e this doctrine by ar*uin* that Fod created the rest of the 4rinity# concludin* that each subse;uent creation is inherently different. $tephenEs second motif involves his 5amlet theory# which see(s to prove that $ha(espeare represented himself throu*h the *host:father in)a'let, but also< throu*h his translation of his life into art<became the father of his own father# of his life# and Lof all his race.N 4he 5oly 4rinity and 5amlet motifs reinforce our sense of $tephenEs and BloomEs parallel ;uests for

paternity. 4hese ;uests seem to end in BloomEs (itchen# with Bloom reco*niAin* Lthe futureN in $tephen and $tephen reco*niAin* Lthe pastN in Bloom. 4hou*h united as father and son in this moment# the men will soon part ways# and their paternity ;uests will undoubtedly continue# for Ulyssesdemonstrates that the ;uest for paternity is a search for a lastin* manifestation of self. The Remorse of Conscience 4he phrase agen!ite o# inwit, a reli*ious term meanin* Lremorse of conscience#N comes to $tephenEs mind a*ain and a*ain in Ulysses. $tephen associates the phrase with his *uilt over his motherEs death<he suspects that he may have (illed her by refusin* to (neel and pray at her sic(bed when she as(ed. 4he theme of remorse runs throu*h Ulysses to address the feelin*s associated with modern brea(s with family and tradition. Bloom# too# has *uilty feelin*s about his father because he no lon*er observes certain traditions his father observed# such as (eepin* (osher. =pisode %ifteen# LDirce#N dramatiAes this remorse as BloomEs L$ins of the &astN rise up and confront him one by one. Ulysses ju6taposes characters who e6perience remorse with characters who do not# such as Buc( Mulli*an# who shamelessly refers to $tephenEs mother as Lbeastly dead#N and $imon edalus# who mourns his late wife but does not re*ret his treatment of her. 4hou*h remorse of conscience can have a repressive# paralyAin* effect# as in $tephenEs case# it is also va*uely positive. A self:conscious awareness of the past# even the sins of the past# helps constitute an individual as an ethical bein* in the present. Compassion as Heroic In nearly all senses# the notion of +eopold Bloom as an epic hero is lau*hable<his job# talents# family relations# public relations# and private actions all su**est his utter ordinariness. It is only BloomEs e6traordinary capacity for sympathy and compassion that allows him an unironic heroism in the course of the novel. BloomEs fluid ability to empathiAe with such a wide variety of bein*s<cats# birds# do*s# dead men# vicious men# blind men# old ladies# a woman in labor# the poor# and so on<is the modern:day e;uivalent to 'dysseusEs capacity to adapt to a wide variety of challen*es. BloomEs compassion often dictates the course of his day and the novel# as when he stops at the river +iffey to feed the *ulls or at the hospital to chec( on Mrs. &urefoy. 4here is a networ( of symbols in Ulysses that present Bloom as IrelandEs savior# and his messa*e is# at a basic level# to Llove.N 5e is ju6taposed with $tephen# who would also be IrelandEs savior but is lac(in* in compassion. Bloom returns home# faces evidence of his cuc(old status# and slays his competition<not with arrows# but with a refocused perspective that is available only throu*h his fluid capacity for empathy. Parallax, or the Need for Multiple Perspectives Parallax is an astronomical term that Bloom encounters in his readin* and that arises repeatedly throu*h the course of the novel. It refers to the difference of position of one object when seen from two different vanta*e points. 4hese differin* viewpoints can be collated to better appro6imate the position of the object. As a novel# Ulysses uses a similar tactic. 4hree main characters<$tephen# Bloom# and Molly<and a subset of narrative techni;ues that affect our perception of events and characters combine to demonstrate the fallibility of one sin*le perspective. 'ur understandin* of particular characters and events must be continually revised as we consider further perspectives. 4he most obvious e6ample is MollyEs past love life. 4hou*h we can construct a jud*ment of Molly as a loose woman from the testimonies of various characters in the novel<Bloom# +enehan# i6on# and so on<this jud*ment must be revised with the inte*ration of MollyEs own final testimony. M%t$&s %oti#s are re* rring str *t res, *ontrasts, or literary devi*es that *an hel( to develo( and in#or' the text+s 'a,or the'es. Li htness and !ar"ness

4he traditional associations of li*ht with *ood and dar( with bad are upended in Ulysses, in which the two prota*onists are dressed in mournin* blac(# and the more menacin* characters are associated with li*ht and bri*htness. 4his reversal arises in part as a reaction to Mr. easyEs anti:$emitic jud*ment that Jews have Lsinned a*ainst the li*ht.N easy himself is associated with the bri*htness of coins# representin* wealth without spirituality. LBlaAesN Boylan# BloomEs nemesis# is associated with bri*htness throu*h his name and his flashy behavior# a*ain su**estin* surface without substance. BloomEs and $tephenEs dar( colors su**est a variety of associationsG Jewishness# anarchy# outsiderQwanderer status. %urthermore# 4hrowaway# the Ldar( horse#N wins the Fold Dup 5orserace. The Home Usurped 9hile 'dysseus is away from Ithaca in The Odyssey, his household is usurped by would:be suitors of his wife# &enelope. 4his motif translates directly to Ulysses and provides a connection between $tephen and Bloom. $tephen pays the rent for the Martello tower# where he# Buc(# and 5aines are stayin*. Buc(Es demand of the house (ey is thus a usurpation of $tephenEs household ri*hts# and $tephen reco*niAes this and refuses to return to the tower. $tephen mentally dramatiAes this usurpation as a replay of DlaudiusEs usurpation of Fertrude and the throne in )a'let. Meanwhile# BloomEs home has been usurped by BlaAes Boylan# who comes and *oes at will and has se6 with Molly in BloomEs absence. $tephenEs and BloomEs lac( of house (eys throu*hout Ulysses symboliAes these usurpations. The #ast 4he motif of the =ast appears mainly in BloomEs thou*hts. %or Bloom# the =ast is a place of e6oticism# representin* the promise of a paradisiacal e6istence. BloomEs haAy conception of this faraway land arises from a networ( of connectionsG the planterEs companies .such as A*endeth 0etaim1# which su**est newly fertile and potentially profitable homes? @ionist movements for a homeland? Molly and her childhood in Fibraltar? narcotics? and erotics. %or Bloom and the reader# the =ast becomes the ima*inative space where hopes can be realiAed. 4he only place where Molly# $tephen# and Bloom all meet is in their parallel dreams of each other the ni*ht before# dreams that seem to be set in an =astern locale. Sy,0%ls -y'!ols are o!,e*ts, *hara*ters, #ig res, or *olors sed to re(resent a!stra*t ideas or *on*e(ts. Plumtree$s Potted Meat In =pisode %ive# Bloom reads an ad in his newspaperG L9hat is home without Q &lumtreeEs &otted MeatR Q Incomplete. Q 9ith it an abode of bliss.N BloomEs conscious reaction is his belief that the ad is poorly placed <directly below the obituaries# su**estin* an infelicitous relation between dead bodies and Lpotted meat.N 'n a subconscious level# however# the fi*ure of &lumtreeEs &otted Meat comes to stand for BloomEs an6ieties about BoylanEs usurpation of his wife and home. 4he ima*e of meat inside a pot crudely su**ests the se6ual relation between Boylan and Molly. 4he wordin* of the ad further su**ests# less concretely# BloomEs masculine an6ieties<he worries that he is not the head of an Labode of blissN but rather a servant in a home Lincomplete.N 4he connection between &lumtreeEs meat and BloomEs an6ieties about MollyEs unhappiness and infidelity is driven home when Bloom finds crumbs of the potted meat that Boylan and Molly shared earlier in his own bed. The %old Cup Horserace 4he afternoonEs Fold Dup 5orserace and the bets placed on it provide much of the public drama in Ulysses, thou*h it happens offsta*e. In =pisode %ive# Bantam +yons mista(enly thin(s that Bloom has tipped him off to the horse L4hrowaway#N the dar( horse with a lon*:shot chance. L4hrowawayN does end up winnin* the race# notably oustin* L$ceptre#N the horse with the phallic name# on which +enehan and Boylan

have bet. 4his underdo* victory represents BloomEs eventual unshowy triumph over Boylan# to win the LFold DupN of MollyEs heart. &tephen$s Latin Quarter Hat $tephen deliberately conceives of his +atin Iuarter hat as a symbol. 4he +atin Iuarter is a student district in &aris# and $tephen hopes to su**est his e6iled# anti:establishment status while bac( in Ireland. 5e also refers to the hat as his L5amlet hat#N tippin* us off to the intentional broodin* and artistic connotations of the head *ear. Pet $tephen cannot always control his own hat as a symbol# especially in the eyes of others. 4hrou*h the eyes of others# it comes to si*nify $tephenEs moc( priest:liness and provinciality. 'loom$s Potato Talisman In =pisode %ifteen# BloomEs potato functions li(e 'dysseusEs use of LmolyN in DirceEs den<it serves to protect him from enchantment# enchantments to which Bloom succumbs when he briefly *ives it over to @oe 5i**ins. 4he potato# old and shriveled now# is an heirloom from BloomEs mother# =llen. As an or*anic product that is both fruit and root but is now shriveled# it *estures toward BloomEs an6ieties about fertility and his family line. Most important# however# is the potatoEs connection to Ireland<BloomEs potato talisman stands for his fre;uently overloo(ed maternal Irish herita*e.

B%%1 S-,,a(y
Ulysses begins at about 8:00 a.m. on Thursday, June 16, 1904, in Dublin, Ireland, when one o its ma!or "arti#i"ants, young $te"hen Dedalus, awa%ens and intera#ts with his two housemates, the egotisti#al medi#al student, &u#% 'ulligan, and the o(erly reser(ed )nglish student, *aines. The narrati(e ends some twenty+ our hours later, when $te"hen, ha(ing "olitely re used lodgings at the home o two other "rin#i"al #hara#ters, ,eo"old and 'olly &loom, dis#o(ers he is no longer wel#ome to stay with 'ulligan and *aines. During the si-teen hours o narrati(e time, the #hara#ters mo(e through their day in Dublin, intera#ting with a stunning (ariety o indi(iduals, most o whom are i#tional but some o whom re"resent a#tual "eo"le. Ulysses stands as an in(enti(e, multi"le+"oint+o +(iew .there are eighteen/ (ision o daily e(ents, "ersonal attitudes, #ultural and "oliti#al sentiments, and obser(ations o the human #ondition. It is written in a number o di ering literary styles, ranging rom internal monologue to irst+"erson s"e#ulation to 0uestion+and+answer rom a #ate#hism to news"a"er headlines. The wor% has eighteen #ha"ters. 1hen ta%en in #onte-t with James Joy#e2s grander design or it .a "lay ul #om"arison to *omer2s e"i# "oem, The Odyssey/, Ulysses gains #om"le-ity, irony, and dramati# intensity. 3ot only does $te"hen Dedalus be#ome all the more (i(id be#ause o his #om"arison to Telema#hus, the son o 4lysses, 5ing o Itha#a, in the *omeri# e"i#. The other main #hara#ter, ,eo"old &loom, may be seen as the wandering 4lysses. In The Odyssey, 4lysses is seen returning to his wi e, that symbol o womanly and #ultural (irtue, 6enelo"e7 in the no(el, Joy#e uses irony to re"resent 6enelo"e as 'olly &loom, who that (ery a ternoon had an adulterous en#ounter with her lo(er, &la8es &oylan.

In#idents in the no(el ha(e #ounter"arts in the *omeri# e"i#, sometimes to a broadly ar#i#al e e#t, other times to a more "unning or humorous e e#t, and still others to it Joy#e2s own sense o so#ial or "oliti#al irony. 9or instan#e, :ha"ter ;ne in Ulysses, re erred to as <Telema#hus< by Joy#e, establishes the lin% to #ome between $te"hen Dedalus and ,eo"old &loom. It shows $te"hen getting u" and lea(ing or wor%. Those amiliar with The Odyssey will be amused by the "arallels between 'ulligan and *aines and the suitors o 6enelo"e. In The Odyssey, Telema#hus, son o 4lysses, 5ing o Itha#a, is "ersuaded to (enture out in sear#h o his long+absent ather. :ha"ters Two and Three o The Odyssey show Telema#hus meeting 3estor, an old windbag o a #ounselor to his ather. In the no(el, $te"hen is shown in #on(ersation with 'r. Deasey, headmaster o the s#hool where he tea#hes. In addition to being anti+$emiti#, anti+ eminist, and wildly "ro+&ritish, 'r. Deasey is a re"ository o misin ormation. The irst three e"isodes o Ulysses o#us on $te"hen Dedalus, a "roblemati#ally autobiogra"hi#al #hara#ter irst introdu#ed in Joy#e2s "ublished wor% through A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. In :ha"ter ;ne, $te"hen, 'ulligan, and *aines "re"are or the day. In :ha"ter Two, $te"hen is tea#hing in a boys2 s#hool. 1hile the #lass re#ites 'ilton2s Lycidas, he broods about his li e so ar, his ambitions to be a great writer, and his doubts. In :ha"ter Three, $te"hen wal%s along the sea ront and re le#ts u"on the things he sees = midwi(es, #o#%le+"i#%ers, boulders, a dog, the body o a dog, <seas"awn and seawra#%.< The ne-t twel(e #ha"ters ta%e the reader on ,eo"old &loom2s ;dyssey .the wanderings o 4lysses/. *is and $te"hen2s "aths #ross but they ha(e no meaning ul meeting until later on. In :ha"ter 9our, ,eo"old &loom is at his and 'olly2s home at > )##les $treet in the northwest 0uadrant o Dublin. *e is "re"aring brea% ast or himsel and his wi e .and his #at/ be ore de"arting or 6addy Dignam2s uneral. The !ingling s"rings o the bed u"stairs show that his wi e 'olly is awa%e. *e goes out into the world li%e ;dysseus in The Odyssey. &loom2s wanderings be#ome the ma!or "art o the no(el. In :ha"ter 9i(e, &loom wal%s through the streets o Dublin and "er orms se(eral errands. In :ha"ter $i-, &loom and his ellow mourners tra(el to the #emetery or the burial o 6addy Dignam, whi#h e(o%es rom &loom a wealth o meditations on birth, death, and human railty, in#luding his reminis#en#es on ?udy, his own dead son, and his ather, a sui#ide. This theme and anti+$emitism, ta#tlessly arise in (arious #on(ersations, with &loom the target.

In :ha"ter $e(en, $te"hen and &loom . ather and son, or ;dysseus and Telema#hus/ meet in the news"a"er o i#e or the irst time in the no(el, although ea#h %nows who the other is. &loom attem"ts .unsu##ess ully/ to #om"lete an ad(ertising #ontra#t, and $te"hen .su##ess ully/ hands o(er the letter s#hoolmaster Deasy entrusted him with. 3ote the shi t in narrati(e as news"a"er headlines a""ear to interru"t straight orward narrati(e. In :ha"ter )ight, &loom gets hungry and de#ides to lun#h at Da(ey &yrnes2s "ub. The dominant moti s are related to ood and eating. &loom #ontinues to wander, thin%ing about birth and amily li e, 'olly, her "re(ious lo(ers, and his own "ast. *e is handed a religious "am"hlet, sees $te"hen2s sister Dilly in the street, eeds some seagulls with #a%es he has "ur#hased, then starts noti#ing and thin%ing about ad(ertising. &loom meets 'rs. &reen, sort o an old lame, and sym"athi8es with her be#ause o her <#ra#%ed< husband. .*e had earlier sym"athi8ed with women2s lot in general when thin%ing about amilies = <,i e with hard labor.</ *e learns that a mutual a#0uaintan#e, 'rs. 6ure oy, is in the maternity hos"ital. In :ha"ter 3ine, at the 3ational ,ibrary, in the o i#e o the dire#tor, $te"hen, @.). .the "seudonym o noted Irish man o letters, Aeorge ?ussell/, John )glinton, and ,yster the librarian dis#uss $ha%es"eare. The others mo#% $te"hen or his youth ul enthusiasm or #om"le- theories o literary #reation. @.). is a 6latonist .an idealist/, and mo#%s all readings o $ha%es"eare that su""ose that *amlet is a real "erson. @ ter some banter about the Dublin literati, @.). lea(es and $te"hen begins to e-"ound his theory .it is a theory that must #hart a #ourse between the idealism o @.). and the sim"le+minded, literal a""roa#h o 'ulligan in order to de ine the ways in whi#h art Bthe idealC and li e Bthe materialC intera#t/. :ha"ter Ten ta%es "la#e at about D:00 ".m. on the streets o Dublin. It2s made u" o eighteen small e"isodes, whi#h ma%es it a sort o doubling o the boo% itsel .whi#h has eighteen #ha"ters/. In these mini+e"isodes, we meet 9ather :onmee, the Dedalus sisters, and $te"hen .who, at the sight o one o his sisters, is wra#%ed with guilt be#ause she is so ob(iously in "oor inan#ial straits and he is doing nothing to hel" her/, a one+legged sailor, and an arm that throws a #oin and belongs to 'olly &loom. 1e also meet &la8es &oylan, and a host o other #hara#ters. In :ha"ter )le(en, it is about 4:00 in the a ternoon, nearly time or &oylan2s assignation with 'olly. 1e are at The :on#ert ?oom $aloon in the "osh ;rmond *otel. The barmaids at the ;rmond *otel see &loom "ass by. $imon Dedalus, $te"hen2s ather, is there, and he turns his attention to the "iano, whi#h has !ust

been tuned by the blind stri"ling. &loom is elsewhere, buying "a"er. &oylan enters. &loom s"ots his #ar outside and also enters with a riend, ?it#hie Aoulding. &oylan lea(es, on his way to meet 'olly. $imon sings, and &loom thin%s o 'olly. In :ha"ter Twel(e, it is nearly E:00 and the lo#ale shi ts to &arney 5iernan2s "ub, where &loom is going to meet 'artin :unningham and dis#uss the a airs o the Dignam amily. The unnamed narrator .a debt #olle#tor/ #hats with Joe *ynes, and they meet the :iti8en, a ier#e nationalist with a dog #alled Aarryowen, who does not ta%e %indly to &loom. $e(eral #hara#ters enter the "ub, in#luding &loom, behind whose ba#% the :iti8en starts throwing insults. :ha"ter Thirteen ta%es "la#e at 8:00 ".m. :issy :a rey, her twin brothers, and her riends )dy &oardman and Aerty 'a#Dowell .who sits a little a"art/, are on the $andymount $trand. Aerty is im"atient with the boys and their noise and mess, as well as her riends, who are a little #ommon, and she daydreams at length about hersel , her romanti# as"irations, and her s"iritual stri(ings. The twins %i#% their ball to &loom, who is also on the bea#h, and Aerty wea(es him into her thoughts .she noti#es that he is in mourning and #onstru#ts a tragi# but romanti# tale around him/. :issy #o#%ily goes to as% &loom the time, but his wat#h has sto""ed. @ irewor%s dis"lay begins. *er riends run along the bea#h, but Aerty stays near &loom and leans ba#% to wat#h the irewor%s .she %nows that men #an be e-#ited by immodest women, and she is allowing &loom to see u" her s%irt/. 1hen she lea(es, &loom noti#es that she has a lim", and we learn that he has masturbated. In :ha"ter 9ourteen, at 10:00, &loom enters The 3ational 'aternity *os"ital to #he#% on the #ondition o 'ina 6ure oy, who went into labor in :ha"ter )ight. To rein or#e the theme o #hildbearing, Joy#e deli(ers a running analogy between the de(elo"ment o the )nglish language and the gestation o an in ant. 1hile at the hos"ital, &loom sees $te"hen #arousing with other young men and worries that doing so will s"ill and waste the seed o his talent. In :ha"ter 9i teen, it is midnight at &ella :ohen2s brothel on Tyrone $treet. This #ha"ter is a series o antasti# e(ents, "artially the result o drun%enness on $te(en2s "art, "artially due to hallu#inations indu#ed by guilt and remorse on &loom2s "art. $te"hen and ,yn#h stagger in drun% and are mo#%ed by the hangers+on and "atrons o the "la#e. &loom ollows, e(ents and #hara#ters .Aerty, 'olly, his ather, and his mother/ stimulating his mind and sense o guilt in a hallu#inatory ashion. &loom is arrested or #ommitting an unnamed nuisan#e and undergoes a "rotra#ted trial in whi#h he ne(er %nows or #ertain what the #harges are. *is identity #onstantly #hanges as #hara#ters rom his "ast

and "ersoni i#ations o "er(erse desires enter the #ourt. &loom s"ea%s with one o the whores, Foe *iggins, who %nows where $te"hen is. 1hen &loom inds him, $te"hen, in his drun%enness, is attem"ting to settle his bill. &loom ensures that he isn2t #heated. The ghost o $te"hen2s mother a""ears, $te"hen brea%s the #handelier, and they end u" on the street. @ ight with some )nglish "ri(ates .he has allegedly insulted the 5ing/ lea(es $te"hen "rostrate on the "a(ement. The "oli#e a""ear, but :orny 5elleher and &loom smooth things o(er. &loom ga8es at the un#ons#ious $te"hen and e-"erien#es a (ision o his dead son, ?udy. The remaining three #ha"ters, may be seen as 4lysses2 home#oming to Itha#a. These segments #o(er the ollowing e(ents rom The Odyssey: the hero2s return, his slaying o the trea#herous suitors o his aith ul wi e 6enelo"e, and his !oy ul reunion with her. In :ha"ter $i-teen, it is 1:00 at a #abman2s shelter. &loom and $te"hen drin% #o ee. @ number o minor #hara#ters a""ear, and $te"hen and &loom intera#t with them. &loom shows $te"hen a "hotogra"h o 'olly, the im"li#ation being that $te"hen2s talents might be used to urther 'olly2s #areer .and thus oust &oylan rom her a e#tions/. They lea(e and dis#uss musi# as they wal%. In :ha"ter $e(enteen, it is G:00 in the morning at the &loom2s home at > )##les $treet. The narrati(e style is in the dry, 0uestion+and+answer style o the #ate#hism. $te"hen and &loom are brought together or the last time here. $te"hen see%s a ather, &loom see%s a son. @t the same time, ea#h o them is indi(idual, yet harmoniously !oined. In the te-t, they are united by a word "lay, be#oming <$toom and &le"hen,< but their union or re#on#iliation is e"hemeral. They urinate in the garden, &loom in(ites $te"hen to stay, $te"hen de#lines and lea(es. In :ha"ter )ighteen, #alled <'olly2s $olilo0uy,< 'olly is in bed, !ust on the #us" o slee". The entire #ha"ter is rom 'olly2s "oint o (iew, re(ealing 'olly2s thoughts. $he is thin%ing about her husband, her meeting with &oylan earlier that day .in that (ery bed/, her "ast, her ho"es. @mong other things, she sus"e#ts &loom o ha(ing an a air, she thin%s o woman2s lot in the games o #ourting and mating, she thin%s o her lo(ers, and she longs or a glamorous li e. $he thin%s o beauty and ugliness, and her thoughts are interru"ted by a train whistle. $he thin%s o her "ast li e in Aibraltar and laments the drabness o her "resent. $he thin%s about her health and her daughter, she thin%s about her (isits to the do#tor, and muses about $te"hen. *er thoughts turn to ?udy and &loom. $he thin%s o humiliating her husband, she re#alls the time when she and &loom irst made lo(e, letting the reader see she #learly "re ers &loom to

&oylan. 6un#tuation, sele#tion, #omment, things usually asso#iated with authorial #ontrol, are missing. Those amiliar with The Odyssey will see the ironi# #om"arison between 'olly &loom and with 6enelo"e, who uses her %nowledge o the #onstru#tion o hers and 4lysses2 bed to #on irm the identity o her long+absent husband. This #ha"ter begins and ends with the a irmati(e Hes. The yeses re"resent 'olly2s ongoing o"timism to li e in general, "un#tuating the #hoi#es she has made and the memories she has re(isited during the entire solilo0uy. The yesses also re"resent Joy#e2s belie that women are a "ositi(e li e or#e, a notion he was at "ains to demonstrate in this remar%able solilo0uy. The %ey here is to be ound in 'olly2s ultimate de#ision to ser(e &loom brea% ast in bed tomorrow.