Has anyone ever finished ulysses?

[TheBean]

My GOD that book gave me a headache after the first two pages. Only book to defeat me. I refuse to read any further.

 

[Siberian]

you're not the only one... that might have been the most unreadable book in my life.

 

[j d worthington]

Well, yes... I have. I also know people who have (such as, for example, my physician's head nurse, who saw me reading it and actually became rather bubbly about it, stating that it is one of her favorites).

I will admit that the first section of that book is a bit difficult to get into at first... but then it picks up tremendously by having such a thoroughly strange protagonist in Bloom. And, of course, the fact that Joyce uses such a number of voices for the tale doesn't hurt, either, from the contemporary slang to a delightful imitation of Sir Thomas Malory (depending on Bloom's constantly alternating frame of mind at the time); nor the fact that it runs from the maudlin to the bombastic to the outrageous to the pathetic (in the positive sense of that term). And, of course, the final section is going to be a sticking point for many, as it is entirely stream-of-consciousness for a very long stretch, but thoroughly effective for all of that....

I won't say that it is one of my favorites, though I will say it falls just short of that, and is certainly one I expect to reread more than once in future (and that I expect my regard for it will grow with each reading). At any rate, I found it a very enjoyable experience -- much more than I expected, given its reputation, which I found rather daunting. And yes, I think it is very aptly named, given its relationship to Homer's epic....

 

[Karn Maeshalanadae]

Actually, Ulysses, as opposed to the Odyssey, I found to be rather substandard.

Then again, the only version of Ulysses I actually read was abridged, while the version of the Odyssey I read was not.



I admit-I have a prejudiced opinion against Virgil due to the fact that the Romans had all but stolen myths from the Greeks and merely changed a few names around. (Not true on every case, but indeed, there have been cases-the Aeneid being one.)

To be honest, I would recommend the Iliad and the Odyssey over the Aeneid and Ulysses.

 

[gully_foyle]

I still shudder when I think about this book. I tried to read it when I was back packing through the eastern mediterranean lands (should have been reading The Odyssey instead really). I had plenty of time and headspace so I should have succeeded, but I got up to the bit where they are all holding forth on some other work of literature (IIRC) and gave up. I lent it to a girl who I was travelling with and she read it in two days.

 

[HoopyFrood]

I've read most of it (could technically be considered all of it, as the missing bit was about three quarters of the way through, and then I read the last stream of consciousness part, so I reached the last page).

Some sections I really, really liked -- some of the descriptions were just so sensual and vivid. I think I recall (it's been a while) a part in a restuarant where a character is just watching people eat, and the detail of that section...Those bits where like coming across beautifully clear grassy patches in a very dense forest, though.

As otherwise I was mostly frustrated by other bits. Just talk properly, man! How'm I supposed to know what your half finished thoughts are on about!

 

[GOLLUM]

I've earmarked to read it. I have two alternate texts including the 1920 annotated text as I decided I would be best to get all the help I could with this one....

I also have A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and of course Finnegan's Wake, which my confidants tell me is even more challenging than Ulysses...

 

[Clansman]

Actually, Ulysses, as opposed to the Odyssey, I found to be rather substandard.

Then again, the only version of Ulysses I actually read was abridged, while the version of the Odyssey I read was not.



I admit-I have a prejudiced opinion against Virgil due to the fact that the Romans had all but stolen myths from the Greeks and merely changed a few names around. (Not true on every case, but indeed, there have been cases-the Aeneid being one.)

To be honest, I would recommend the Iliad and the Odyssey over the Aeneid and Ulysses.

Karn, The Bean and JD were referring to Ulysses, one of three novels written by James Joyce, the Irish novelist who was at the forefront of modernism in literature. Along with Ulysses (which has nothing to do with Greek mythology), he wrote Dubliners (a short story collection), A Portrait of The Artist as a Young Man, and Finnegan's Wake, plus some other minor works. Ulysses is particularly famous as Joyce's magnum opus, and it was highly controversial when it was released, and was banned in the US when it first was published.

If you think Ulysses is tough, try Finnegan's Wake, which is utterly unreadable.

And here I thought that I would never use that English Literature 101 course again...

 

[GOLLUM]

HMMM...there appears to be an echo in here......

I'm still going to read those books cover to cover though.

I know of the Dubliners but it may be the only Joyce I do not own.

 

[TheBean]

I think I will have to give Finnegan's Wake a miss haha. I may try and read Ulysses again based. One more chance...

 

[Mary Hoffman]

I have read Ulysses several times, with great enjoyment. (And Finnegans Wake has no apostrophe, btw)

 

[HoopyFrood]

Pretty sure I read all of Dubliners, but if Ulysses was a while ago, Dubliners was a year before that, even. I remember watching a film based on one of the short stories, though. I also have A Portrait... back at home, but I'm yet to read it.

And regarding my previous post, I have realised the dangers of posting after just waking up...

 

[Lobolover]

If you think Ulysses is tough, try Finnegan's Wake, which is utterly unreadable.

And here I thought that I would never use that English Literature 101 course again...

riverrun past Eve and Adam's from swerve of shore to bend of bay , brings us by a commodius wickus (?) of recirculation back to Howth castle and environs .

I memorised as much . Dunno if I ever could get through it unless I would have a real copy .

 

[j d worthington]

If you think Ulysses is tough, try Finnegan's Wake, which is utterly unreadable.

I don't know whether or not I would agree on that personally... I've not yet tackled Finnegan's Wake, though I keep meaning to. I do know some people who have read it, though... some of which abhor the thing, others love it. From what excerpts I have read, as well as what I understand, one has to really soak in that book, with its various levels of wordplay, intertextual reference, shifts in voice and mode, etc.

Personally, this is the sort of thing I can sink my teeth into and relish; but I must also have a fair amount of time to devote to it in order to get the full benefit of it, and that is something I seldom have for the time being. Also, I want to get a truly authoritative edition, as close to Joyce's intent as possible, as both this and Ulysses have an intensely meticulous use of the language and technique, and editorial, typographical, and assorted other alterations can make a profound difference in the reading of such a book....

I would say that, if you are able to read and enjoy Aldiss' Barefoot in the Head, you have a fair chance of enjoying Ulysses and, most likely, Finnegan's Wake....