Joyce set his novel on June 16, , to commemorate his first date with his future wife, Nora Barnacle, a date that ended with a hand job. The detail matters because it reminds us that, for all its high-culture credentials, the greatest novel of the last century is also a monument to perhaps the lowliest of sex acts—one not even deserving of its own Latinate nickname, like coitus or fellatio. A hand job is vulgar, sloppy, and juvenile, much like the book it inspired is at its best.
Bloomsday at its best honors the bawdy and boisterous nature of Ulysses. Nowadays, tens of thousands of Dubliners and tourists take part in two weeks of events , ranging from lectures, readings, and walking tours to pub crawls, costume contests in which participants dress like their favorite characters, and an interactive screening think Rocky Horror of the film adaptation of Ulysses.
Bloomsday has spread well beyond Dublin, to more than cities and counting, including places like Wilmington, North Carolina , which is hosting a marionette version of the novel this year, and Auckland, New Zealand, where two of the stars of Xena: Warrior Princess will reunite for a cabaret performance. Reading Ulysses is a slow, immersive, and ultimately private experience; Bloomsday is a social-media-ready event, where like-minded people convene to celebrate their own taste.
And yet, the silliness might not have bothered Joyce so much. If anything, the aspect of Bloomsday that would have bothered him is its holiness. The selected works will be available online for the duration of the Bloomsday Festival. No problem. You can find further details here. How can I find out more about Ulysses and its author? You can explore the full Bloomsday Festival programme here. To comment you must now be an Irish Times subscriber.
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Please choose a screen name. Unfortunately, the event took place a little late, on 29 June not 16 June. Today, Bloomsday is celebrated by Joyceans across the globe with readings, performances, re-enactments, and a host of other events. In Dublin, enthusiasts dress in Edwardian costume and gather during the day at many of the locations where episodes of Ulysses take place.
We believe that on that day Joyce went out with Nora Barnacle, his future wife, for the first time. Joyce wrote to her at the hotel on 15 June asking if she would like to make another arrangement. Not only did he meet Nora but he started writing the stories for Dubliners and, after spending six days living with Oliver Gogarty at the Martello Tower in Sandycove in September, Joyce made the decision to leave Ireland.
Though Joyce lived at the Tower in September , he was not living there in June. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly. Binance Coin. Live Breaking News:. History and Significance. You might also like. Check Out The Poster.
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