History
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Ep. 20 – Big Words Which Make Us So Unhappy
History is the art of Nestor, so let’s immerse ourselves in the nightmare of history, at least the bits covered on p. 31 of Ulysses. Learn about Stephen’s hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia. Mr. Deasy tries to teach Stephen a bit of history, but (spoiler alert) he doesn’t know much about history. Topics covered include Daniel O’Connell, the Orange lodges,…
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Ep. 19 – Fogey and Tory
A character study of the infamous Mr. Deasy, the headmaster of Stephen’s school in “Nestor,” the second episode of Ulysses. We discuss how Mr. Deasy is a stereotypical Dubliner of his day, as well as his defining characteristics (including his impressive mustache!) Mr. Deasy has a lot to teach us, though he is an old…
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The Women of Ulysses: Maud Gonne
Maud Gonne, beautiful woman, La Patrie, M. Millevoye, Felix Faure, know how he died? Maud Gonne’s name appears in Ulysses’ third episode, “Proteus”, as Stephen rummages through his recollections of his brief sojourn in Paris. Though Gonne did reside in Paris in the early 1900’s, she never met James Joyce (or Stephen Dedalus), but their non-meeting…
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Decoding Dedalus: Wild Geese
In gay Paree he hides, Egan of Paris, unsought by any save by me. This is a post in a series called Decoding Dedalus where I take a passage of Ulysses and break it down line by line. The passage below comes from “Proteus,” the third episode of Ulysses. It appears on pages 42 44…
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La Vie de Léo Taxil
—Qui vous a mis dans cette fichue position? —C’est le pigeon, Joseph. To listen to a discussion of this topic, check out the podcast episode here. Midway though “Proteus,” Stephen reminisces on his time as a medical student in Paris. Amongst those reminiscences, two names are nestled. First, on page 41 (Vintage International Edition): But…
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Houses of Decay
The sciences, each straining in its own direction, have hitherto harmed us little; but some day the piecing together of dissociated knowledge will open up such terrifying vistas of reality, and of our frightful position therein, that we shall either go mad from the revelation or flee from the deadly light into the peace and…
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Ep. 12 – Wings of Excess
Sweny’s Patreon helps keep this marvelous Dublin landmark alive. Please subscribe! On the Blog: Pyrrhus: A Disappointed Bridge Social Media: Facebook|Twitter Subscribe to Blooms & Barnacles: iTunes| Google Play Music| Stitcher Further Reading: Birmingham, K. (2014, June 7). As the world went to war, James Joyce plotted his own revolution. The Irish Times. Retrieved from https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/as-the-world-went-to-war-james-joyce-plotted-his-own-revolution-1.1820543 Gifford,…
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Never Let Them In
—They sinned against the light, Mr Deasy said gravely. And you can see the darkness in their eyes. And that is why they are wanderers on the earth to this day. To listen to a discussion of this topic, check out the podcast episode here. We’ve already discussed Mr. Deasy’s retrograde and inaccurate views on…
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Decoding Dedalus: Glorious, Pious and Immortal Memory
This is a post in a series called Decoding Dedalus where I take a paragraph of Ulysses and break it down line by line. The passage below comes from “Nestor,” the second episode of Ulysses. It appears on page 31 in my copy (1990 Vintage International). Glorious, pious and immortal memory. The lodge of Diamond……