Podcast

  • Ep. 57 – Full fathom five thy father lies.

    The end is nigh. Kelly and Dermot discuss in the depth the drowning motif of “Proteus”. Other topics include The Tempest and Ariel’s Song, the wily nature of the sea, Stephen’s estrangement from his father Simon, the role of alcohol in the lives of Ulysses characters, quitting alcohol, rising corpses, sea change, porpoises, the ancient…

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  • Ep. 53 – The Virgin at Hodges Figgis’ Window

    Dermot and Kelly carry on discussing “Proteus” in their flutiest voices! Topics in this episode include: yet more discussion of the philosophy of the good bishop of Cloyne, George Berkeley, shovel hats, the fluttering of the veil between the material world and the metaphysical world, Dermot’s grudge against Bertrand Russell, how language obscures one’s perception…

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  • Ep. 52 – A Reign of Uncouth Stars

    Form of my form! Who watches me here? Kelly and Dermot wade into the final pages of “Proteus” to spend some time with old faves like Aristotle, Bishop Berkeley and Giordano Bruno. We dig deeper into Stephen Dedalus’ internal monologue while discussing Stephen’s concern for his future legacy, Stephen’s shadow, darkness shining in the brightness,…

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  • Ep. 51 – Omnis Caro Ad Te Veniet

    Kelly and Dermot discuss one of the most metal passages in all of Ulysses! You can find it at the end of “Proteus” beginning with “A side eye at my Hamlet hat.” Topics include Hamlet (so much Hamlet), Stephen’s creative spark, more resent for Buck Mulligan, more grief for Stephen’s mother, the shifting protean nature…

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  • Ep. 50 – The Birth of Ulysses (w/ Phil Holden)

    We welcome Phil Holden to the podcast to talk about the early publishing of history of Ulysses. Phil is a collector of early Ulysses editions, so he shares his collection while telling the arduous tale of getting a book like Ulysses published in the first place, the role played by Sylvia Beach and Shakespeare and…

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  • Ep. 49 – O, My Dimber Wapping Dell

    White thy fambles, Red thy gan! Wait, what? Find out what this phrase and much more means in this episode as we continue our discussion of “Proteus,” the third episode in James Joyce’s Ulysses. Topics covered in this show include: what Stephen means by “red Egyptians,” background on the Romani and Irish Travellers, Stephen’s class insecurity,…

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  • Ep. 48 – Haroun al-Raschid’s Melons

    Kelly and Dermot take a look at Stephen Dedalus’ prophetic dream in “Proteus.” Topics discussed include James Joyce’s fascination with dream analysis, Stephen’s connection to the mysterious Akasic record, Dermot’s own experience with slippery time, the location of the “street of harlots” in Dublin, how Leopold Bloom and Haroun al-Raschid are connected, Orientalism, almosting, and prolonged…

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  • Ep. 46 – Paradise of Pretenders

    Kelly and Dermot explore Ireland’s historic connections to various pretenders to the English throne, how this connects to Stephen’s unsquashable beef against Buck Mulligan,  Solange Knowles, medieval abstrusiosities of all sorts, the mystery of the princes in the Tower, Dermot’s disdain for the Tudors, whether or not Ireland is still a “paradise of pretenders,” Stephen’s…

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  • Ep. 45 – Bloomsday 2020

    Happy Bloomsday, one and all! Blooms & Barnacles presents our Bloomsday 2020 episode, a little Bloomsday party you can take anywhere you go. Many friends and listeners came together to record their favorite passages from Ulysses, and we’ve compiled them into one, gargantuan Blooms & Barnacles episode. Sweny’s Patreon helps keep this marvelous Dublin landmark alive.…

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  • Ep. 44- Galleys of the Lochlanns

    Kelly and Dermot set sail for the time of Vikings and jerkined dwarfs! They discuss the differences of similarly-shaped seafaring vessels, Lochlanns, Fr. Dineen’s Irish dictionary, the intersection of Viking and Celtic cultures in Ireland, torcs, tomahawk, the horrors of 14th c. Dublin, famine, plague and slaughters, the story of the time a pod of…

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