Irish women
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The Women of Ulysses: Lizzie Twigg
“Everybody who met her liked her – because she was warm and outgoing. Here I am saying good things about Lizzie. Poor Liz – nobody remembers her now.” – Padraic Colum, 1969 As Leopold Bloom passes the offices of the Irish Times in “Lestrygonians”, Ulysses’ eighth episode, he can’t help but think about all the…
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A Pisgah Sight of Palestine or the Parable of the Plums
“But though the Irish are eloquent, a revolution is not made of human breath and compromises.” – James Joyce, 1907, “Ireland, Island of Saints and Sages” In the final sequence in Ulysses’ seventh episode, “Aeolus”, Stephen Dedalus and the men from the Evening Telegraph office, having exhausted themselves with lofty rhetoric, set out to wet…
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The Women of Ulysses: Milly Bloom
Part of an occasional series on the women of Ulysses. To listen to a discussion of this topic, check out the podcast episode here. Poor Milly Bloom. She’s the daughter of one of literature’s greatest heroes, but she’s been given short shrift. Joyce critics over the decades have largely ignored her or written her off…
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The Women of Ulysses: Mr. Deasy’s Perfidious Women
Part of an occasional series on the women of Ulysses. For all posts on Mr. Deasy, click here. To listen to a discussion of this topic, check out the podcast episode here. In “Nestor,” the second episode of Ulysses, Stephen Dedalus finds himself in a discussion with his employer, Mr. Deasy. They have reached a…
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The Women of Ulysses: Mother Grogan and the Milk Woman
To hear a discussion of this topic, check out the podcast episode here. Part of an occasional series on the women of Ulysses. Mother Grogan pops up a couple times throughout Ulysses. She is a reference to an anonymous folk song called Ned Grogan. I couldn’t find a recording of it, so I suppose it’s…