James Joyce
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Ep. 97 – Henrik Ibsen ( w/ Paul Ringo)
Do you have the address of Henry Gibson? Kelly and Dermot welcome special guest Paul Ringo to Blooms & Barnacles. Topics include Joyce’s love of Henrik Ibsen, Paul’s love of Finnegans Wake via the stage, Joyce’s study of Norwegian, realism as seen in the works of Joyce and Ibsen, the artist as a conduit for…
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The Language of the Outlaw: John F. Taylor’s Speech in “Aeolus”
“But though the Irish are eloquent, a revolution is not made of human breath and compromises.” – James Joyce, “Ireland, Island of saints and Sages”, 1907 To listen to a discussion of this topic, check out the podcast episode here and here. In the closing pages of “Aeolus,” Ulysses’ seventh episode, the men gathered in…
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Ep. 96 – Worst Man in Dublin
The Worst Man in Dublin. Topics in this episode include begrudgery, so much Dublin geography, mourning customs, buildings found on Great Brunswick (Pearse) St., jarvies and the hazard, the Invincibles, the Antient Concert Rooms, Joyce’s music career, John McCormack and J.C. Doyle, Dermot’s history with the erstwhile Antient Concert Rooms’ building, St. Mark’s Church, Bloom’s…
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Ep. 95 – Walking beside Molly in an Eton suit.
What kind of person has a picnic party in a funeral carriage? Topics in this episode include a heartfelt thank you, cats that hate technology, the name Poldy, Eton suits, the Blooms’ middle class pretensions, Rudy’s conception, Raymond Terrace and the cease to do evil, Milly Bloom, crustcrumbs and picnic parties, Milly’s trip to Lough…
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Ep. 94 – A Fine Old Custom
I’ll tickle his catastrophe, believe you me! Topics include Ulysses tarot cards, incubism, the system of correspondences found in Ulysses, Martin Cunningham, Mr Power, Simon Dedalus, armstraps, caring for corpses, women’s role in caring for the dead, hats as identities, economic incubism, Bloom’s outsider status, Irish funeral customs, embalming, why Dignam’s widow doesn’t attend his…
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Decoding Dedalus: The Opal Hush Poets
“The first spectre of the new generation has appeared. His name is Joyce. I have suffered from him and I would like you to suffer.” – Æ to W.B. Yeats, 1902 This is a post in a series called Decoding Dedalus where I take a passage of Ulysses and break it down line by line.…
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Ep. 93 – As Decent a Little Man as Ever Wore a Hat
Shakespeare is in the eye of the beholder. Topics in this episode include the real-world inspiration for Paddy’s Dignam’s funeral, Matthew Kane, the funeral cortège to Glasnevin, attendees to Matthew Kane’s funeral, Martin Cunningham, Sisyphus, the short story “Grace,” the true story behind “Grace,” the Jesuits, Matthew Kane attending his own funeral, Matthew Kane’s appearance…
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A POLISHED PERIOD
“—He spoke on the law of evidence, J. J. O’Molloy said, of Roman justice as contrasted with the earlier Mosaic code, the lex talionis. And he cited the Moses of Michelangelo in the vatican.” To listen to a discussion of this topic, check out the podcast episode here. In Ulysses’ seventh episode, “Aeolus”, Evening Telegraph…
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Ep. 92 – Hades
The parallels between Bloom and Odysseus’ journeys to the Underworld. Topics include a summary of Chapter XI of The Odyssey, Bloom as sideways Odysseus, the neighborhoods of Glasnevin and Sandymount, Paddy Dignam and his “apoplexy,” Elpenor, Martin Cunningham the Sisyphus of Dublin, Dublin’s waterways, Dublin’s Charon, coins for the eyes, psychopomps, Reuben J. Dodd, Corny Kelleher,…
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Ep. 91 – Bantams and Bathtubs
“Bantam” is an anagram of “Batman.” Coincidence? Topics include the state of Bantam Lyons’ hygiene, horseracing, Conway’s pub, cat wrangling, the Ascot Gold Cup, Throwaway, Bloom’s accidental racing tip, Dublin geography, Bloom’s disinterest in gambling, lotuses, the fleshpots of Egypt, Dermot’s dad’s betting tips, Orientalism, the Lincoln Place baths, sports as a lotus, Joyce’s love…