James Joyce - Ulysses

[trying to enjoy]

Hello, I've have decided that I am in need of a new enjoyment of the classics. Which means that I haven't read much of it... however, I have read on the outskirts for some time. I went on the web and found many lists of 100 top books(fiction/non-fiction) and decided to begin the endeavor to read as many as I could. Top on most of the lists was James Joyce's "Ulysses", so this was the first book I started with. ...... I consider myself a semi?? educated person, but from the start of this book I was totally amazed that anyone could follow this story for more than 50 pages!!! A standard dictionary doesn't have one tenth the words that are used at the beginning of this novel. Does the noteriety of the book make it a "classic"????
Perhaps, I will revist this book at a later time, however, first impressions will dictate if that will happen.

[bibliophile190]

I haven't read the book, but I must say, the more I hear people talk about it, the more intimidated I am by it. I can't even find a copy that states what it is about. All the book covers say is that it's one of the most influential books ever, blah, blah, blah.

[aeroport]

I've read a substantial portion of this novel for classes, and I have to say I really stop enjoying it after Part I. I like some parts, but it's really too much sometimes. Should you really determine to get through the thing, though, you might check your library for Allusions in Ulysses or Don Gifford's Annotated Ulysses, which are essentially indices of most of the references that the modern reader cannot be expected to pick up on. They're pretty helpful, if you really want to do it. The question, of course, is does it all really bloody matter? Outside of the "stream of consciousness" sections, which can be interesting, there's really nothing to it - it's just a day in Dublin. I'd recommend pretty much anything else by Joyce - even sections of Finnegans Wake, strange as that might sound - but this one is a pain.

[B-Mental]

I read it slowly... in short burts...its easier to digest if you take 5 or 6 pages at a sitting, reflect, and re-read. Otherwise, work slowly into by trying something like Portrait of an Artist as a Young Man by Joyce. Its easier, and yet not easy by any means.

[chasestalling]

several readings is a must. the general outline of the story being second nature, one is apt to notice the most mundane matters in a new light, the joycean light, a rich greenish hue with a dab of grey.

[RichardHresko]

The common comment about [I]Ulysses[I] is that you can not read the book, only re-read it. I confess that seems to be true. One aid that I found immeasureably helpful was the Teaching Company's lecture course on the book.

I think the book's reputation is deserved for two reasons. The first is that the book really does try to bridge the gap between life and our ideas about life as expressed in literature. It does this by treating the most humdrum thing, such as people passing each other in the Wandering Rocks chapter something to notice. Though I am reminded of Quentin Crisp's great line, "Never try to keep up with the Joneses. Drag them down to your level." whenever I get bogged down in the book.

Secondly, it connects our inner lives to the great themes of existence. Think about it -- Joyce argues that a Jew of Hungarian extraction born and bred in Dublin IS another Ulysses without ANY trace of irony.

[bibliophile190]

Wow. Reading Ulysses sounds like more of a chore than a pleasure! Still, I'll get to it eventually. Like the other two hundred books on my reading list......sigh.....

[StayGolden]

I've just begun reading Ulysses myself, and I must say that it's not quite as intimidating as it seems.

I'd suggest finding and reading a brief summary of Ulysses before beginning, as having a general understanding of the novel beforehand tends to make things much easier to follow. Also, when you finish a part, let it sit for a while and then go back and re-read it; as with any book, you gain more understanding with subsequent readings.

Joyce does have a way with words, I'll give you that. If you can't find a word's meaning in the dictionary, try deciphering the meaning of word in relation to the surrounding text. And again, if that fails, let the part you read and don't understand sit for a while and go back to it.

[Finn.Rhies]

I think that before someone reads Ulysses one must read his previous works and read them all in a row. Everything will be much easier because our reading capability will evolve with Joyce's own writing ability. And I assure you: if you can read Joyce you can pretty much read everything else.
Another important advice that I give is that one must learn to accept that one must not understand everything in the book to enjoy it. Develop the "negative capability" as Keats puts it and accept that you can't control every aspect of the novel just as you can't control every aspect of human life (I'm not saying you shouldn't try though).
Get Don Gifford's Annotated Ulysses, it really helps a lot.
And when you start reading a chapter try not to stop. Reading Ulysses evolves a kind of tuning in but once is done is very easy going through it.
Enjoy it.

[Massalex]

I read it for fun and found it more like a chore. Then again, its summertime and what else am I going to do? I view this book as more than a classic. It inspired me more because I want to be writer, and to try to copy or produce the same beauty as Joyce does, is just futile. I really got into this book, and once you get to understanding it and taking notes, you find the greatest of his story. Why would scholars put it so high in ratings?

"He laughed to free his mind from his mind's bondage" - Ulysses

[Daniel A. C.]

I have two suggestions. First, give up trying to understand everything you're reading. Joyce wrote the book this way deliberately, in order to make you feel lost and overwhelmed. It is certainly possible to understand every detail refers to, but save that for later, I'd say.

Second, get Harry Blamires' Bloomsday Book. I picked this up when I was at 'Cyclops', basically understanding the story but feeling a little lost. From there on I would read the Ulysses episode, then the Blamires explanation, then the Ulysses episode again. A lot of reading, but actually far more enjoyable.

My teacher said that Ulysses would make other novels seem inadequate, and I found this to be true: no one I've read subsequently has imagined reality (however small the piece) in such depth and detail, so entirely.

[Dedalus_45]

I have two suggestions. First, give up trying to understand everything you're reading. Joyce wrote the book this way deliberately, in order to make you feel lost and overwhelmed. It is certainly possible to understand every detail refers to, but save that for later, I'd say.

Second, get Harry Blamires' Bloomsday Book. I picked this up when I was at 'Cyclops', basically understanding the story but feeling a little lost. From there on I would read the Ulysses episode, then the Blamires explanation, then the Ulysses episode again. A lot of reading, but actually far more enjoyable.

My teacher said that Ulysses would make other novels seem inadequate, and I found this to be true: no one I've read subsequently has imagined reality (however small the piece) in such depth and detail, so entirely.

I've found that they're not so much inadequate as exceedingly easy, sadly sometimes to the point of banality.

[Willard]

I am reading Ulysses for the 2nd time. It is difficult but it is worth the effort.

I would recommend Anthony Burgess' REJOYCE as a sort of primer to not only introduce Joyce but to allow the reader to approach his work eagerly . Also I first read Dubliners and began to get an idea of the richness of his writings .

Enjoy

[blazeofglory]

I started reading it and to be honest to you I cold not pick up on it. It is indeed a bulkily and wearily written stuff. Maybe a good piece of art. But unplmbed indeed. A master story teller, but who the hell is up to his level to comprehend the book and fathom the profunditiy of it.

That is why I do not read calssics much save a few short stories.

[Willard]

It seems the " Stream of Consciousness " is not only by his characters but the author himself.There does seem to be and there is a certain rambling.But compare it to ones own "stream".Clever of Joyce to use that erratic human jumble of thought/observations .

Joyce and particularly Ulysses is my winter reading . It takes concentration and a dedicated interest .Sometimes I can't seem to cope with the complexity and once in awhile I see his point .

Jackson and Costello biography John Stanislaus Joyce (James Joyce father) is also another work that has helped me understand Joyce .