· ·

Ep. 109 – The Tower of Silence

Break out the Tantalus glasses – we’re finally getting out of the Underworld! Topics in our final episode covering “Hades” include paying the ferryman, turning a suit, rats, Robert Emmet,…

Break out the Tantalus glasses – we’re finally getting out of the Underworld!

 Engraving of the Mumbai Tower of Silence, 1886
Engraving of the Mumbai Tower of Silence, 1886

Topics in our final episode covering “Hades” include paying the ferryman, turning a suit, rats, Robert Emmet, the speech from the dock, toxic nostalgia, cremation, the Catholic Church’s position on cremation, quicklime, Zoroastrianism, the Parsi Tower of Silence, the unexpected consequences of a reduced vulture population, the gentleness of seadeath, leaving the Underworld, Mrs. Sinico and “A Painful Case”, Leopold Bloom’s affirmation of life, John Henry Menton, whether JHM ever had a shot with Molly, Mat Dillon’s parties, Tantalus, Tantalus glasses, Ajax revisited, and our closing thoughts on “Hades”.

Support us on Patreon to access episodes early, bonus content, and a video version of our podcast.

Blooms & Barnacles Social Media:

Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

Subscribe to Blooms & Barnacles:

Apple PodcastsSpotifyStitcher

Further Reading: 

  1. Geoghegan, P. (Feb 2011). Emmet, Robert. The Dictionary of Irish Biography. Retrieved from https://www.dib.ie/biography/emmet-robert-a2921  

  2. Gifford, D., & Seidman, R. J. (1988). Ulysses annotated: Notes for James Joyce’s Ulysses. Berkeley: University of California Press. Retrieved from https://tinyurl.com/vy6j4tk 

  3. Homer, translated by Palmer., G.H. (1912). The Odyssey. Mineola, New York: Dover Publications. 

  4. Igoe, V. (2016). The real people of Joyce’s Ulysses: A biographical guide. University College Dublin Press.

  5. Karkaria, B. (2015, Jan 26). Death in the city: How a lack of vultures threatens Mumbai’s ‘Towers of Silence’. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/jan/26/death-city-lack-vultures-threatens-mumbai-towers-of-silence 

  6. McGarry, P. (2021, Oct 25). Catholic Church’s shifting view on cremation seen in new site for urns. The Irish Times. Retrieved from https://tinyurl.com/4ztd9p8p 

  7. Schotsmans, E. M. J., Denton, J., Dekeirsschieter, J., Ivaneanu, T., Leentjes, S., Janaway, R. C., & Wilson, A. S. (2012). Effects of hydrated lime and quicklime on the decay of buried human remains using pig cadavers as human body analogues. Forensic Science International, 217(1-3), 50–59. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2011.09.025 

  8. Schwarz, D. (2004). Reading Joyce’s Ulysses. Palgrave Macmillan.