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3.64 AVERAGE
3.64 AVERAGE
I heard about Ulysses when I was in high school. It took me more than 40 years to gain the courage and literary experience to read it. Finally, having done that, I realize a lot more than just time and experience was necessary to prepare me for this novel.
While I thoroughly enjoyed the unique literary style, I was not prepared enough to fully comprehend many of the literary and historical references. To fully understand this book one needs to follow it up with one of the many explanatory/analysis books on Ulysses and then read the novel one more time. I am not sure even after that whether I would be just scratching the surface. Such is the complexity of this narrative.
That is not to say I did not enjoy reading it. I loved the style, and was repeatedly surprised by the fact that book was written almost a 100 years ago. I was mesmerized by the elaborate tapestry of details it uses to paint a rational picture of the main characters as well as the time and place they lived in. I don’t think it is book that is supposed to touch you emotionally. The approach is entirely cerebral, but the unique sense of humor lends a degree of levity.
It is impossible for me to rate this book at this point. It surpassed all my expectations in terms of its formal quality, but since I missed many of the intricate references, I think I should refrain from putting a number.
My only negative impression was about some of the inner monologues (or streams of consciousness) passages. While they were uniformly brilliant, I often found them to be a little contrived and self-conscious.
While I thoroughly enjoyed the unique literary style, I was not prepared enough to fully comprehend many of the literary and historical references. To fully understand this book one needs to follow it up with one of the many explanatory/analysis books on Ulysses and then read the novel one more time. I am not sure even after that whether I would be just scratching the surface. Such is the complexity of this narrative.
That is not to say I did not enjoy reading it. I loved the style, and was repeatedly surprised by the fact that book was written almost a 100 years ago. I was mesmerized by the elaborate tapestry of details it uses to paint a rational picture of the main characters as well as the time and place they lived in. I don’t think it is book that is supposed to touch you emotionally. The approach is entirely cerebral, but the unique sense of humor lends a degree of levity.
It is impossible for me to rate this book at this point. It surpassed all my expectations in terms of its formal quality, but since I missed many of the intricate references, I think I should refrain from putting a number.
My only negative impression was about some of the inner monologues (or streams of consciousness) passages. While they were uniformly brilliant, I often found them to be a little contrived and self-conscious.
joyce is a mad genius
(small note: first 14 episodes were read in physical on a french version, the rest i blazed through on joyceproject.com)
(small note: first 14 episodes were read in physical on a french version, the rest i blazed through on joyceproject.com)
It's sometimes an incoherent mess, but a worthy read for anyone who cares about varying structure, electric sentences, and stream-of-conscious narration.
I don't know what I expected when I first sat down to read Ulysses, probably nothing specific as the book is more known for it's length than anything else. But I was suprised to read descriptions of daily life such as making breakfast for your wife, going to the toilet and going to Mass. Even though much of the novel is written in a stream of consciousness, this did not make Joyce neglect descriptions of daily life, it does not *just* take place inside its characters heads.
Greek philosophy and theatre, Shakespeare and the Bible, and further topics are all discussed at length in Ulysses. I think myself fairly knowledge about Greek philosophy and the Bible but my knowledge of Shakespeare is sorely lacking. Even so I felt that Joyce was educating me on these topics whenever I lacked previous knowledge of them,, especially when it came to sociological things such as Catholic devotions and Irish nationalism. And when I was familiar with a topic, it helped me understand it more.
The prose in the novel is simply fantastic. Its not always easy to read but I always found it fun, and there's lots of rhyming. Joyce manages to switch between writing in a realist style, in the style of a play and occasionally poetry. And there is of course the stream of conciousness, most prominent in the last part of the novel.
Ulysses is not merely a modernist masterpiece and it's not a cold and unfeeling brick, even if it is over 900 pages. Its filled with emotions, humour, contemplation about nationalism and religion, and it's one of, if not the greatest novel ever written.
Greek philosophy and theatre, Shakespeare and the Bible, and further topics are all discussed at length in Ulysses. I think myself fairly knowledge about Greek philosophy and the Bible but my knowledge of Shakespeare is sorely lacking. Even so I felt that Joyce was educating me on these topics whenever I lacked previous knowledge of them,, especially when it came to sociological things such as Catholic devotions and Irish nationalism. And when I was familiar with a topic, it helped me understand it more.
The prose in the novel is simply fantastic. Its not always easy to read but I always found it fun, and there's lots of rhyming. Joyce manages to switch between writing in a realist style, in the style of a play and occasionally poetry. And there is of course the stream of conciousness, most prominent in the last part of the novel.
Ulysses is not merely a modernist masterpiece and it's not a cold and unfeeling brick, even if it is over 900 pages. Its filled with emotions, humour, contemplation about nationalism and religion, and it's one of, if not the greatest novel ever written.
challenging
funny
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
que viagem surreal
me deu vontade de chorar na hora que o poldy olhou pela porta pela última vez antes de fechar
o último trecho da molly só encerrou perfeitamente
a leitura pelo viés romântico é simplesmente incrível
me deu vontade de chorar na hora que o poldy olhou pela porta pela última vez antes de fechar
o último trecho da molly só encerrou perfeitamente
a leitura pelo viés romântico é simplesmente incrível
Some of the so-called literary classics are nothing more than wanking material - it's only there for the artist's pleasure. Well, it explains Kerouac. Anyway, I got 60 pages far in this 700 page plotless mess before this classic 'author' decided to describe a man reading while on the toilet. In detail. I have better things to do.
Meant to be a novel where you spend time in the characters’ minds rather than plot driven. I hated being in either of their minds.