Only 1 post all year?? I know, it's pretty ridiculously unacceptable. But you wanna know why? It's Ulysses. It has been the bane of my existence this year. For as much as I read that it was a difficult book to get through, I certainly underestimated it. I like to think that I can understand challenging material, but this one was just a struggle every step of the way. And then I wouldn't pick it up for a couple weeks, and find myself struggling even more to figure out where I was and get back into the mode of reading James Joyce's style of writing.
But I completely understand why this novel is often considered one of the greatest of all time (or certainly of the 20th century). It is beyond anything that I've ever read and it blows me away that anyone has the capacity to lay out a story in the way that he does. There are so many things that are told without directly telling and alluded to in such an vague manner, you really have to reread and read between the lines to understand what's going on. Which I think was where I struggled the most. For certain novels, I'll often pull up Cliff Notes or reader's guides, just to make sure that I'm on the right track with my comprehension of what I'm reading, and there is no way I could have made it through this one without that.
So in a nutshell, Ulysses is a day in the life of Leopold Bloom on June 16, 1904 in Dublin, Ireland. He buys soap for his wife, he reads a letter from a woman he's corresponding with, he goes to a funeral, he visits a pub, he masturbates while watching a woman by the beach, he accompanies and acquaintance, Stephen Dedalus, to a brothel, and he ends up taking Stephen back to his own home, returning to his wife. All the while, he is aware of the fact that his wife has cheated on him that day with a younger man. There is, of course, WAY more in between there, but just the highlights. And the entire story is told paralleling Homer's Odyssey (which is actually also on my list...if I was smart, I would read it now, but I don't know if I could mentally handle it...I would likely never finish and stop reading all together).
And Bloom is a fascinating character. I feel as though I understand him very well but would have a hard time explaining him. He's a bit of a know-it-all, but in a really off-putting way, and he doesn't always seem to be right. He seems to want to be a moral voice amongst his other acquaintances, but other actions and thoughts of his reveal him to certainly not be a righteous individual. A lot is written regarding his more base desires and....errr...functions: his appetites for strange meats, him going number 2 in an outhouse, his sexual aberrational fantasies. While trying to portray himself as a learned man, he mostly seems to be a bit of a creepy, dirty old man.
Without question, my favorite part of the book was the last chapter, written from Bloom's wife, Molly's, point of view. In the intro sections of the version of Ulysses that I have, there is detail regarding the court case around Ulysses being banned for vulgarity, and it alluded to certain sections being offensive and overtly vulgar. And while I was reading the book, I would get to a certain section and think "maybe this is the 'vulgar' part they were referring to, but it really isn't all that bad". And thhheeeennnnn I got to the last chapter. And man oh man, Molly was the one spouting off all the dirty stuff. And whereas the rest of the book is written in more vague, round-about ways of explaining more offensive topics, Molly's text is refreshingly straightforward, and straight up naughty. Like, name a dirty topic, and she went there. And I didn't necessarily like the chapter because it was dirty. I liked it because it was refreshing that it came from the female character of the novel. For all that was written from the point of view of the men, and women certainly aren't given much regard, I just loved that she was all out there and without question, the most bluntly honest character.
So I know that there have been theses written, devoted to all of the particulars of Ulysses. And there are infinite things that I could discuss as far as character dynamics, the Irish political and religious backdrop, and the dynamics of Joyce's writing, but I just can't do it. If you can't tell, I really just didn't care for Ulysses. I can appreciate it for its breadth and exquisite writing and story-telling, but I just had such a hard time with it, I just didn't enjoy it as much as I probably could have. I believe I have 2 other James Joyce books on my lists, but it's going to be a minute before I venture back into his realm.
So up next, I'm hoping to be a quick and engaging read it The Bridge of San Luis Rey. Just reading the short background section, I'm already hooked. And I've been to Peru, so that makes me want to dig in even more. Cos I really need a book that's going to get me excited about reading again. Here's my fingers crossed!
230 to go.
