James Joyce

[ElderToadstool]

Great writer or the greatest writer?

 

[Cavallier]

I don't think I could argue Greatest Writer since there are so many diverse writers across history discussing equally diverse topics. We would be hard pressed to actually compare them all with one another. However, Joyce is not only a wonderful wordsmith as evidenced by Finnegans Wake but he is also gifted at highlighting the psychological turmoil of an entire nation. He outlines in detail and understanding the Irish psyche in Dubliners. A history book could give you the basic events but couldn't provide you with the depth of mental and moral torture, the failed attempts as legitimization, and the catharsis that the Irish people were going through at that time. Not only do you get a view of what it meant to be middle class in early 1900 Ireland as an Irishman but in choosing to discuss the middle class he also manages to gain access to the upper and lower classes. Thus he provides a clear view of the class struggle at that time and place. Yet, his narrative voice is neutral. He simply describes the events in each story but avoids forcing his moral judgments on his readers. He leaves his stories ambiguous much like the state of Ireland.

He is a great writer because of his ability to turn his hand to several different writing styles. There is no way of comparing Dubliners and Finnegans Wake except to point out their differences. Finnegans Wake is brilliant in its use of seeming nonsense to build a narrative. The narrative itself dodges in and out of the reader's view to the point of delirium. Some still argue that there is no cohesive narrative. That book is a testament to Joyce's craftsmanship in that it is indeed arduously crafted and yet it reads like a stream of consciousness. It is arguably the most difficult read in the English language and some are still divided even on which genre it belongs in.

Yes, Joyce is a great author. However, on principle I refuse to argue that he is the greatest author.

 

[Melkor]

Fucking prnciples never did me any good. But BLUE lcohol does. SO MUCH. I Lv you.

 

[ckm]

I have been meaning to read something by James Joyce since I had a dream about him a few weeks ago. Haven't gotten around to it yet.

 

[Melkor]

since I had a dream about him a few weeks ago.

I want to hear this story.

Er, now that I'm sober, I'd like to say that I have read and adore ' A portrait of...'
The whole peice is daring, like a budding art form, and yet it's not at all harsh, rather, it's like having a soft tongued stranger relate a childhood dream through hushed song.
Though as Irish writers go, I daresay Wilde, Lewis , and Shaw and seem more likely to grab that lofty title than Joyce is.

 

[ckm]

He wasn't actually in it, it involved a number of children running around a garden, searching for him and calling his name. Repeatedly. Pretty interesting considering I knew virtually nothing about him, other than his name.

 

[adamride]

In reading Joyce, I think it is best to go in order -- so your next book after Dubliners would be Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. His masterpiece, Ulysses, would be next; and finally Finnegan's Wake which is even longer than Ulysses' 740+ pages and spans an even briefer time period. If you enjoy stream-of-consciousness writing, try Faulkner's stuff. You may also enjoy Tristram Shandy by Laurence Sterne and The Good Soldier by Ford Maddox Ford.
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famous quotations

 

[snafupants]

joyce is certainly top ten of the twentieth century, along with my subjective picks of mann, faulkner, wolfe, conrad, bellow, nabakov, and kafka. this tentative list excludes poets, philosophers, and short story writers or writers who otherwise have moot moorings in prose writing. steinbeck causes me dyspepsia, orwell is too simple, and hemingway tried too hard. hemingway had the literal right hook, faulkner had the literary one. some noteworthy writers were undoubtedly - admittedly - elided because they havent come across my desk yet; henry miller and samuel beckett probably merit mention here.

 

[EyeSeeCold]

What do you guys recommend as a starter book? I tried Ulysses about a year ago and was totally lost after like one paragraph, lol.

 

[ElderToadstool]

Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man and Dubliners are more accessible, but Ulysses and Finnegans Wake are more rewarding. Stuart Gilbert's analysis of Ulysses is highly regarded, and serves as an excellent ball of string for navigating the Joycean labyrinth.

 

[EyeSeeCold]

Ok I'll head to the local library and check those two out.

 

[Cavallier]

I started with Dubliners and Artist as well. They are good a starting point for developing a connection with his voice. Read Finnigan's Wake last. I agree with Elder that it helps to have a reference when reading Ulysses. If anything it will give you a bullet list of themes to look for and symbolism.