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3.43 AVERAGE
3.43 AVERAGE
Can't stand the stream of conscience rambling. I felt like I was caged inside the mind of someone with severe untreated ADD.
Stephen Daedalus is obviously one of the less sympathetic protagonists you will encounter... Well, I feel obligated to say that but the fact of the matter is, I so deeply identify with him that I have now read this book around seven times. To all those who "don't like" Stephen, can't you still like a *book* about him? Also, did it ever occur to you that Joyce didn't "like" him either? That that's part of the project here? I'm willing to see my love this book as an almost totally subjective experience - it feels a lot more like listening to a great album - the sort you'd be embarrassed not to use headphones for, bc it's so emotionally intense and even overwhelming that you don't want other people to know you ever feel like that...
All the allusions, textual complexity - those are things you can work through, and they enrich the character of Stephen in a way that standard exposition just can't do.
Yeah, you might have to think (and feel) while you read. That's to me the mark of a good book, not a bad one.
All the allusions, textual complexity - those are things you can work through, and they enrich the character of Stephen in a way that standard exposition just can't do.
Yeah, you might have to think (and feel) while you read. That's to me the mark of a good book, not a bad one.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Politics, religion, philosophy, spirituality -- this book has a little bit of everything to make you wonder about the world we live in.
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This book was not for me. Lengthy homilies about the nature of hell, circular conversations about "what is art", heavily telegraphed decisions about joining a monastery. It just wasn't for me.
AP English. I remember quite liking this, even if it was a bit over my head in high school. Still remember the last line.
This was my introduction to Joyce, and I was quite taken with it. Some aspects of this novel were at first a bit impenetrable, however. For instance, it contains a sizable number of Latin passages, numerous references to Irish current events from the 1910s, and Irish vernacular phrases that the average reader won't understand. Fortunately, these and other similar challenges are easily overcome in the era of Google and ChatGPT. But be forewarned that it will require some extra effort on the part of the reader to decipher these more obscure elements of Joyce's text. On the other hand, the intimacy and immediacy of his text draw the reader into the very skin of Stephen Dedalus; visceral reactions may ensue. For example, the priest's long harangue in Chapter III is riveting and rattling, so perfectly constructed that it leaves the reader with clenched fists and white knuckles. This is some spicy prose! And while the novel—if it can truly be called such—ends inconclusively, it does not end unsatisfyingly. In short, this is one of those numerous classics that has earned its reputation.