Folly. Persist.
My rule of thumb when writing about anything is to keep it simple: know what you want to say and say it. Of course it stands to reason that the more you know about your subject, the more you can say, and hence the easier it is (or should be) to write about it. To write a blog about Ulysses for first time readers is to write narrowly about the particular episodes, their structures, styles, and the narrative pitfalls one might encounter. But I'm also finding that as we move deeper into the book, piecing together a general understanding of the story is important as well, and this requires us to try and fit particular episodes into the wider framework of the book.
"Sirens" (at least for me) seems to be something of a challenge, for while I know this episode fairly well, I can't quite seem to reconcile it into my understanding of the larger story. If we think about Ulysses as a puzzle and the episodes as individual pieces, then you might say that with "Sirens" I have a piece that I don't quite know what to do with. This is made more complicated because we are marching linearly through the book, so I can't really discuss greater meanings at length without giving away the parts that you have not yet read, thus it becomes difficult to lead you (and myself as well in is case) to some satisfactory understanding of the episode.
Sweeeeeet song
I imagine that many of you have found aspects of "Sirens" difficult since Joyce, in his now predictable fashion, has introduced yet another way of deconventionalizing the conventional narrative. Concerning the narrative I don't want to repeat what has already been said one thousand and one times before by one thousand and one different writers: that structurally "Sirens" is meant to read as a musical piece. But there really isn't anything else to say regarding the structure. If there's one thing that you as a new reader might find challenging in this episode it is this musical aspect of "Sirens".
To repeat past analyses, that conglomeration of clipped phrases which signals the start of "Sirens" is Joyce's equivalent of the warming up of an orchestra: different instruments playing different parts of the total piece at the same time. The cacophony that introduces the episode is meant to coalesce into a melodic oeuvre. Joyce attempts to achieve this by effect playing with elements of the text, staccato repetitions here, rhythmic iambs there, and plenty of onomatopoeia. The host of techniques Joyce invents to attain his goal of a musical episode in prose makes for some "interesting" reading in parts. So, if you're finding some of the wording a bit odd, that's your explanation.
Lash me to the mast
As I stated in an earlier blog entry, we mustn't be led away by words, or in this case, we mustn't be led astray by music. The technique here, the siren song, can lead us to believe the text is more difficult than it really is. But once again, just like we did in "Aeolus", we can simply read through the oddity of the style and easily discern the what is actually happening. The surface story of "Sirens" is pretty simple, but the technique gives the veneer of complexity. Perhaps Joyce would have us dash or ship against the rocks.
Do not misunderstand my point here. I don't mean to imply that Joyce is throwing these style shifts in simply to serve as obstacles. I imagine that many who have read parts or the whole ofUlysses have suspected this of Joyce, but they could not be more wrong. Despite the difficulty of the text, Joyce did not create these difficulties for their own sakes. All of these textual anomalies, style "experiments", and the myriad allusions and symbolism that make up Ulysses fit into a broader framework. My own suspicion is that while Joyce understood these difficulties as necessary evils, he nonetheless took a perverse pleasure in knowing how difficult the text would be.
Bringing her in to port (or not)
This brings me back to my particular dilemma: finding a place for "Sirens" in the larger context of Ulysses. I think that's what I would really like to write about in this entry, because I think that's where we now are in terms of what we need to help us get through the remainder of the book. Episode structure will continue to need some commentary, but just as the above analysis required relatively little time, so too will the rest of the episodes. Of course, this doesn't mean that the reading gets easier from this point. Quite the opposite. There is some serious turbulence ahead, but nothing that can't be explained in a couple of paragraphs or so (I think).
The bigger issue is making sense of the text. In the last few entries I've been trying to push you into thinking more about meaning instead of simply taking for granted that meaning will come to you. It won't. That being the case, there is some obligation on my end to try and provide some structure to that end.
The ways of the creator...
I have mentioned in earlier entries that Joyce created a schema (actually two schemata) for Ulysses. The schema can be seen not only as a guide to understanding each episode, but also as a way to integrate the parts to a greater whole. The schema implies connectivity or a larger purpose to the story. I am not suggesting that you can (or should) comb the the schema for answers to the larger meaning of the text -- it ain't in there. But you should take it's existence to mean that each episode -- their respective contents and styles -- has a purpose within the greater organism. And, as we better understand how each particular episode contributes to the whole, we can better understand the meaning of Ulysses.
I have a hard time incorporating this episode into my broader understanding of the story. It's clear that this is the episode where "the deed" commences, but I'm wondering how that, music, And the wiles and ways of women factor into the bigger picture.
"—Greetings from the famous son of a famous father.
—Who may he be? Mr Dedalus asked."
"Means something, language of flow."
"He eyed and saw afar on Essex bridge a gay hat riding on a jaunting car. It is. Again. Third time. Coincidence."
"Follow. Risk it. Go quick. At four. Near now. Out."
"Blazes Boylan's smart tan shoes creaked on the barfloor where he strode."
"See the conquering hero comes."
"Bending, she nipped a peak of skirt above her knee"
"A lovely girl, her veil awave upon the wind upon the headland, wind around her."
"Too late. She longed to go. That's why. Woman. As easy stop the sea. Yes: all is lost."
"Silly man! Could have made oceans of money. Singing wrong words. Wore out his wife: now sings. But hard to tell. Only the two themselves. "
"Hold on. Five Dig. Two about here. Penny the gulls. Elijah is com. Seven Davy Byrne's. Is eight about. Say half a crown. My poor little pres: p. o. two and six."
"If she found out. Card in my high grade ha. No, not tell all. Useless pain"
"Wish they'd sing more. Keep my mind off."
"Seems to be what you call yashmak..."
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