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James Joyce's "Ulysses" (pg. 2)
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| MrJiveBoJingles |
| quote: | Originally posted by RJT
OK, so if I grant you that it wasn't a pisstake, then it's the work of someone who is clearly insane. |
"Great wits are sure to madness near allied." :p
I don't think you'd be the first to put Joyce in the latter category. |
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| MrJiveBoJingles |
| Kind of refreshing to have a literary thread in here. It seems like it's been a long time. |
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| Lebezniatnikov |
| quote: | Originally posted by RJT
I really struggle with why anyone holds "Ulysses" in high regard at all when it was just Joyce having a bit of a pisstake.
There is no substance what-so-ever, and the joke is on those who actually work their way through it all for no reward. |
And yet, it was rated the #1 book of all-time in a number of the more "authoritative" lists.
http://www.randomhouse.com/modernli...bestnovels.html |
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| RJT |
I think I also take some issue with the notion that it seems Joyce was intentionally trying to alienate as many readers as possible, but perhaps even more issue with those who claim they "get" Ulysses.
I've yet to find any kind of consensus as to what it is they "get", which leads me to believe it's a lot of self-important speculation posited as understanding. |
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| Lebezniatnikov |
| quote: | Originally posted by RJT
I think I also take some issue with the notion that it seems Joyce was intentionally trying to alienate as many readers as possible, but perhaps even more issue with those who claim they "get" Ulysses.
I've yet to find any kind of consensus as to what it is they "get", which leads me to believe it's a lot of self-important speculation posited as understanding. |
You make me want to read Ulysses just to tell you I "get" it.
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| enydo |
Interesting lists, I actually just picked up The Great Gatsby again, I love that book. :p |
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| MrJiveBoJingles |
I always wonder about those lists, about how much people's rankings are motivated by what they genuinely enjoy and how much they're motivated by thoughts of their self-image and what they "should" like.
"I'm a literary person. That means I should, if asked, tell people that I really like Ulysses."
:D |
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| Lira |
| quote: | Originally posted by MrJiveBoJingles
I always wonder about those lists, about how much people's rankings are motivated by what they genuinely enjoy and how much they're motivated by thoughts of their self-image and what they "should" like. |
Even if that's the case, their list looks a lot more interesting than the so-called Reader's list :p |
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| Stasis |
Looks like a pretty good list (although as a side note, how does Hemingway not show up until 45?) That "Reader's List" on the right side of the page though, what is up with that???
As for Joyce, I can only recommend reading Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man first just to get a hang of the guy's writing, um, "style." |
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| Lira |
| quote: | Originally posted by Stasis
That "Reader's List" on the right side of the page though, what is up with that??? |
It gets worse, actually.
I must confess I like non-fiction better, and that's why I'm a lot more interested in this second list. While there are interesting people such as William James, John Maynard Keynes and Vladimir Nabokov on the Board's List Top 10, the readers picked Ayn Rand, L. Ron Hubbard and Leonard Peikoff :wtf: |
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| pkcRAISTLIN |
| quote: | Originally posted by Lira
It gets worse, actually.
I must confess I like non-fiction better, and that's why I'm a lot more interested in this second list. While there are interesting people such as William James, John Maynard Keynes and Vladimir Nabokov on the Board's List Top 10, the readers picked Ayn Rand, L. Ron Hubbard and Leonard Peikoff :wtf: |
Ayn rand makes for interesting reading though. She's a fruity nut-bar obviously, but there's still good nuggets in there if you can cope with all the bollocks. At least, that was my impression about 10 years ago. Ive forgotten most of what ive read. |
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| Lira |
| quote: | Originally posted by pkcRAISTLIN
Ayn rand makes for interesting reading though. She's a fruity nut-bar obviously, but there's still good nuggets in there if you can cope with all the bollocks. At least, that was my impression about 10 years ago. Ive forgotten most of what ive read. |
You know, it's really hard to hear me saying that I don't like a specific author. But even the tertiary literature about her "philosophy" makes me cringe... |
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