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Readalongs
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Ulysses by James Joyce Readalong & Re-Readalongs (2014, 2016); Audio Listen-Along (2017)
Shocked? Hmmm....I'm not suggesting a full read. I'm not up to that, for sure.Just asking for thoughts. I'm open to pretty much anything that doesn't take up 6 months of my reading time. :D
Petra wrote: "Shocked? Hmmm....I'm not suggesting a full read. I'm not up to that, for sure.Just asking for thoughts. I'm open to pretty much anything that doesn't take up 6 months of my reading time. :D"
And that's what's so shocking! You mean you don't want to dedicate 6 months of every year forever more to Ulysses!? And I thought we were in this for life now! ;)
No seriously. I'm happy to dip in and out of whatever you all choose to do. As I've only read this once myself, I'll be going for the full re-read, or listen, to get a better grasp of things. Not that it's ever possible to get a complete handle on Ulysses!
You'll be reading it through again, Pink? If so, then perhaps we can have a very informal discussion as you go through it. We can just casually discuss whatever comes up (the range of topics is inexhaustible) and those who wish can dip into episodes as you come up to them.
I'm also considering listening to the audio. If you do go for a full reread, can you give me a heads up? Perhaps it will be a good time to start the audio. I only listen during my commutes, so I'll be rather slow with it.
In the background, we can have the treasure hunt going on and dip into the episodes referred to in our find. If we end up finding a mountain of references, we can cut back on the episode reading.
Gill would like to reread Molly's episode, which is a good idea.....by the time we get to that part, we're Ulysses-tired and maybe rush through it a bit.
I've heard that dipping into Ulysses is rather enjoyable ......got that from The Sheila Variations the first time I read this (thought it was a silly idea at the time....how times do change, eh?). This could be an enjoyable way of experiencing the book.
Yes I'm definitely listening next year. I'll be sure to post here when I decide to start!
Last night I was reading This Old Man: All in Pieces, a collection of pieces from The New Yorker written by Roger Angell. His mother, Katharine Angell White, also worked there, as did his stepfather, E B White. When he was growing up, there were often cartoons lying around, and sometimes he struggled to understand them. Here's the passage I read last night.
I can't remember myself often asking for help with a caption or a situation. One exception was Helen Hokinson's American lady in a Paris back street shyly asking, "Avez-vous 'Ulysses'?" A book banned in this country; I was told, and, uh--well, it's hard to explain. I was still only ten.
I can't remember myself often asking for help with a caption or a situation. One exception was Helen Hokinson's American lady in a Paris back street shyly asking, "Avez-vous 'Ulysses'?" A book banned in this country; I was told, and, uh--well, it's hard to explain. I was still only ten.
Well, last night I was reading the title story in Scouting for the Reaper and read the following:
That was in the days before you could buy audio novels. What Short John did was have his girls record the novels for him while he was on the road. He'd pull into Amarillo, crash a few days with this teacher's aide named Bonnie Lou, come away with seven volumes of Proust in ninety minute segments. He had funny-looking girlfriends all over the map making tapes for him--plain-Jane country gals reading James Joyce in hayseed voices. It was practically a goddam cottage industry.
Just kind of weird coming across 2 references in 2 days just in my normal course of reading.
That was in the days before you could buy audio novels. What Short John did was have his girls record the novels for him while he was on the road. He'd pull into Amarillo, crash a few days with this teacher's aide named Bonnie Lou, come away with seven volumes of Proust in ninety minute segments. He had funny-looking girlfriends all over the map making tapes for him--plain-Jane country gals reading James Joyce in hayseed voices. It was practically a goddam cottage industry.
Just kind of weird coming across 2 references in 2 days just in my normal course of reading.
Terri, that is a coincidence (2 Ulysses references in 2 days)! Today I came across this in The Story of a New Name:
(caught reading in the park & asked what she was reading):
"The title is Ulysses."
"Is it about the Odyssey?"
"No, it's about how prosaic life is today. ..... It says that our heads are full of nonsense. That we are flesh, blood and bone. That one person has the same value as another. That we want only to eat, drink, f***."
.....
She (elderly teacher) asked her how the book was. She (heroine) answered that it was difficult and she didn't completely understand it.
(teacher) "Don't read books that you can't understand, it's bad for you."
Great passage, Petra! Where would we be without books we don't understand? :)
OK, here's my latest bit of trivia. I found out this weekend that there's a ship amongst the Irish navy vessels called 'James Joyce'!http://www.northdevongazette.co.uk/ne...
And the reason I know this is because, at the weekend, I came across the ship amongst the Irish navy vessels called 'Samuel Beckett'
Here it is, and here I am!
https://images.gr-assets.com/photos/1...
There's a third vessel called William Butler Yeats.
This is such a fun thread. I'm enjoying all the Joyce & Ulysses trivia and mentions.Gill, that's a great picture.
That's great Gill! What wonderful names for the Irish navy ships! I'm always excited to see new Joyce related posts on this thread.
It was 100 years ago that Joyce wrote A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Here's a link to an interesting article about it. There are some mentions of Ulysses, and a great photo of Joyce.
https://www.theguardian.com/books/201...
https://www.theguardian.com/books/201...
Terri wrote: "It was 100 years ago that Joyce wrote A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. Here's a link to an interesting article about it. There are some mentions of Ulysses, and a great photo of..."That's great, Terri. Thanks a lot for adding it here.
Gill and Pink, thanks to both of you. I'm so glad you liked it. :)
I saved it to read later as it looked interesting and it was! Thanks :) I still get so excited every time there's a post on this thread :)
Terri, thanks for posting the article. I really enjoyed that. "We knew Eternity too early" - so ominous; I remember catechism classes and hearing the sermons of eternity and sin. This phrase says a lot in very few words.
Despite having read Ulysses more than once, I've yet to read any other of James Joyce's works. I should work on that. Perhaps Portrait is the place to begin.
Pink, me, too. I love seeing this thread with an unread post (or more) in it.
I definitely appreciate Portrait more after reading Ulysses, but I didn't enjoy reading it at the time. I'm planning on reading Dubliners early in 2017 :)
And I thought I had overflowing bookshelves! I won't look at them the same anymore. They are absolutely pristine in comparison. Good catch, Pink! I like the segment right after as well where a Joyce biography and picture of Joyce are featured.
Yes I noticed it wasn't the only Joyce on his shelves, though I'd expect nothing less with a library of 35,000!
I thought I'd share that I've just finished listening to Dubliners. I was pleased to see my library had it available on e-audiobook, as I was wondering when to pick it up. I found it quite interesting, though the stories seemed mostly negative, focused on failure and many of them ended abruptly as well. I've decided to get the audiobook for Ulysses, so I'll be giving that a listen sometime over the next couple of months. I'm looking forward to hearing it pronounced, especially those tricky sections (all of it?!) that I struggled through last year!
It's tempting to join you, Pink. The audio would be an interesting experience.I'm listening to The Marriage Plot and came across a Ulysses reference. The line where the fireworks explode in the sky, from the beach scene with Gerdy, was recited.
"And then a rocket sprang and bang shot blind and O! then the Roman candle burst and it was like a sigh"
Pink wrote: "I thought I'd share that I've just finished listening to Dubliners. I was pleased to see my library had it available on e-audiobook, as I was wondering when to pick it up. I found it quite interest..."Pink, i listened to it. It made it a much richer experience.
Just thought I'd share that I started listening to Ulysses on audio book today. I didn't want to get into a new novel, so thought this was the perfect accompaniment while I was cooking. I'm one chapter in and remembering only good things right now! I'm really interested to hear how some of the later and more difficult chapters are narrated. Can't wait!
I'm so tempted to start with you, Pink. I only listen to audio during my commutes so this would be a huge commitment. Tempting, though..... Maybe I'll listen to an episode or two, take a break, continue. Something to think about.
It's a rarity that I re-read anything, but I think listening will give me a different experience. You should all join in! Most of the chapters average an hour, so I'll fit that around my other reading and take it slowly.
Pink wrote: "It's a rarity that I re-read anything, but I think listening will give me a different experience. You should all join in! Most of the chapters average an hour, so I'll fit that around my other read..."This has been on my mind a lot lately! It says that it is 42 hours. I am not in a hurry...so i will commit to two hours a week.
There is almost 100 "chapters" or sections broken down in about 30 minutes each.
Ulysses read by Donal Donnelly
Who is reading your book, Pink?
Pink wrote: "It's a rarity that I re-read anything, but I think listening will give me a different experience. You should all join in! Most of the chapters average an hour, so I'll fit that around my other read..."So this book starts out as a Black Mass in a battle tower.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marte...
"Stately, plump Buck Mulligan" (the opening words of the novel).
https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary...
Joseph Campbell was the one that pointed out that this opening scene of Ulysses is a Black Mass.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black...
I just finished the first chapter.
In continuing with the theme off the Black Mass...
Buck Muligan says that he and Stephen are Supermen. And then little later he writes
"—He who stealeth from the poor lendeth to the Lord. Thus spake Zarathustra."
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thus_...
Many criticisms of Christianity can be found in Thus Spoke Zarathustra, in particular Christian values of good and evil and its belief in an afterlife. The basis for his critique of Christianity lies in the perceived squandering of our earthly lives in pursuit of a perfect afterlife, of which there is no evidence. This empiricist view (denial of afterlife) is not fully examined in a rational argument in the text, but taken as a simple fact in Nietzsche's aphoristic writing style. Judeo-Christian values are more thoroughly examined in On the Genealogy of Morals as a product of what he calls "slave morality."
Mine is narrated by Jim Norton and he must read a lot faster as it's a total of 27 hours 20 mins. There's 25 chapters, each roughly an hour in length, with a couple closer to 2 hours. They look like they correspond with the chapters in the book, but since there are only 18 episodes in the text, I guess some parts will take up two chapters later on.
Pink wrote: "Mine is narrated by Jim Norton and he must read a lot faster as it's a total of 27 hours 20 mins. There's 25 chapters, each roughly an hour in length, with a couple closer to 2 hours. They look lik..."You are right Pink. I looked up on Audible and the hours are different. Norton reads faster and it seems that he reads with an Irish accent. I, being American and finding that difficult, along with Joyce's style of writing, choose Donnelly. I might be able to speed mine up a bit now that i have read it two times already.
I am glad you are re reading this book!
Having an Irish accent was one of the first things I looked for in the narration, as I really wanted to hear it pronounced this way. Luckily I don't have any problem understanding the accent, but I can see it would be troublesome if I did! I listened to the second chapter a couple of days ago, as it was only half an hour long. Again, I found that I'd forgotten most of the intricacies of what happened. These early sections aren't my favourite parts of the book but I think they nicely introduce us to the characters. I'm noticing the dynamics between everyone more this time around.
I will try to read chapter 2 now. I will probably come back to this comment and payout notes as i read through it.MEMORY
Is the first thing mentioned in chapter 2
BY WILLIAM BLAKE
Memory, hither come,
And tune your merry notes;
And, while upon the wind,
Your music floats,
I'll pore upon the stream,
Where sighing lovers dream,
And fish for fancies as they pass
Within the watery glass.
I'll drink of the clear stream,
And hear the linnet's song;
And there I'll lie and dream
The day along:
And, when night comes, I'll go
To places fit for woe,
Walking along the darken'd valley,
With silent Melancholy.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mnemo...
One quote that struck me:
"For them too history was a tale like any other too often heard, their land a pawnshop."
This one is after:
"—Kingstown pier, Stephen said. Yes, a disappointed bridge. The words troubled their gaze."
Kingstown:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dún_L...
I downloaded Ulysses from my library last night. I've only listened to a few minutes, but I did have a little trouble with the accent. I'll keep at it and see how it goes.
I've updated the title of this thread and the first Post to update our Listen-Along. :DI'll be joining in soon (late & behind as always....)
What is it with you guys?! I've just downloaded an unabridged copy read by Jim Norton. I think that's the same as you, Pink. Here we go!!
Hahahahaha!! See I knew you all wouldn't be able to resist! Gill, yes that's the copy I have and I'm happy with it so far. He does a good job with the different Irish accents.
I actually listened to Proteus today, but most of it washed over me without taking much of it in. I might give it another listen tonight, while I'm in the bath.
I'll hold up now, so I can discuss the first chapters with everyone :)
I also have the Jim Norton one. It also has a female narrator, Marcella Riordan. I plan to start later tonight.
I've dug out my copy. I have the same copy as Cosmic: read by Donal Donelly and Miriam Healy-Louie. It's got 40 CDs and is 42 hours in length. Oh boy........
The length does seem a bit daunting, but I'm finding it easier to slot in listening, than reading and it's proving quite a different experience so far. I ended up re-listening to the first chapter last night, as I wanted to go back over it. I'm struck by how much more sorry if feel for Stephen this time around.
I started listening on this morning's commute.The first section was a little bit about the history of Ulysses and Joyce's writing of it.
He started loosely writing the novel in 1910.
The book was banned in the US but not in Iowa. Iowa relied on the booksellers just not selling it but they never officially banned the book.
There was a 30 page pronunciation guide for this recording and it took over a year to record.
One of the stipulations of the Joyce Foundation to allow for the recording is that Donal Donnelly record 17 episodes and an Irish actress record Penelope's episode.
Very early in Episode 1 (still on the parapet), there's a real feeling to Stephen's sadness. It's heavy and deep. Much more real (it seems at the moment, anyway) than one gets by reading the words.
So far, I like the recording and enjoy Donal's voice and narration.
Mod
I'm glad you're enjoying the recording Petra. I agree there's more of a realness of character that comes through from listening. I think when I read the words on a page, half of my effort goes on trying to understand what on earth is going on. When I listen, I notice the different way each character is speaking, the stresses they put on words, when they're being playful, or serious, or mean. So I'm getting more of a connection between Stephen, Buck and Haines. That's interesting information about the stipulations for recordings. I know the Jim Norton version I'm listening to also employs a female narrator, as Terri mentions above, which I'm looking forward to.
I was wondering why we'd need a 30 page pronunciation guide, but then I realised it's the narrator who would have needed it! I'm not surprised, as I don't know how anyone could do the job, but I'm looking forward to finding out.
Greg wrote: "Can't believe you're reading it again! Maybe I'll get a copy from Audible and join you. :)"Yes, please!
Gill wrote: "Greg wrote: "Can't believe you're reading it again! Maybe I'll get a copy from Audible and join you. :)"Yes, please!"
I echo that, do join us Greg!
Greg wrote: "Can't believe you're reading it again! Maybe I'll get a copy from Audible and join you. :)"We are all a bit mad. LOL!
Greg, I hope you join us.
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I was shocked by Petra's suggestion also, Pink!
If we decide to dip in, rather than a complete reread, I would welcome reading Molly's soliloquy sooner rather than later. I don't think I've done it justice yet.