barry answers “I have tried reading this book twice but...”

Deepak Pitaliya asked this question about Ulysses:

I have tried reading this book twice but could not get past 30-40 pages. I even read Iliad and Odyssey before starting this book as the book is supposed to draw some parallel with Odyssey. Is it readable?

barry I recommend the Audiobook (I used Audible) narrated by Jim Norton. I alternated between reading, listening and reading while listening. Usually, I wou…moreI recommend the Audiobook (I used Audible) narrated by Jim Norton. I alternated between reading, listening and reading while listening. Usually, I would begin a chapter by listening to the audiobook and then switch to reading it myself with his narration in mind. He does a great job with voices. Every character has a unique voice. The interior monologues are read differently than the dialogue. It is great.

It is readable and it's worth reading. There are frustrating parts. For example, there are parts where things are listed excessively. I believe it was intended to be funny or poetic. I found it annoying. In Sirens, the language is meant to be musical and suggest inebriation. Sometimes it is very broken up and unfocused. It's tough to read some of that. But, when it works, it is interesting and enjoyable. There are a lot of funny moments. I thought the Cyclop chapter had many. You got stuck on parts 2 and 3. Those are difficult because they take place -roughly- in Stephen's mind. Most of the book does not. I've read somewhere (either in Stuart Gilbert or Anthony Burgess' book) that Stephen is confused or unclear about many of the ideas that float through his mind. So you should be confused and feel disoriented. The language is intended to be disorienting. That is part of its poetic charm. There are references to Aristotle and others but that is not a big deal. I googled a lot of the references. I didn't know that Stephen was thinking about Aristotle when he thought about the "ineluctable modality of the visual" until I did some research. But I don't believe it matters that much. It is more important to have a sense of where his thoughts are circling around and the poetry of the language.

Consider reading Molloy by Beckett. I believe reading that prepared me for the Interior Monologues in Ulysses.

Also, check out Stuart Gilbert's Ulysses: A Study and Anthony Burgess' Re Joyce.(less)

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Frank D Just get the RTE dramatized version and listen to it. You won't need to read the book, and you will finally understand what Ulysses is all about. ...more
Jul 12, 2020 06:56PM · flag

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