James Joyce's Ulysses [5-week Reading Group, $150 suggested]
Instructor: Hollis | Tuesdays May 31-June 28 | 8:00-9:30 PM ET
It’s the 100th anniversary of the publication of one of the most famous—and famously challenging—novels of all time! Read it in community to get the most out of it. James Joyce’s Ulysses—which tells the intimate and minutely detailed story of the lives of Stephen Dedalus and Leopold and Molly Bloom on the single day of June 16, 1904—has long had a reputation of being one of the most difficult books ever published. Joyce even played with this idea when he said that he had “put in so many enigmas and puzzles that it will keep the professors busy for centuries arguing over what I meant, and that's the only way of insuring one's immortality.” Joyce’s facetious comment highlights the intimidation that readers sometimes feel when encountering this book. The novel also was famously banned for obscenity in many countries, and it can often make readers uncomfortable with some of its details. In this reading group, we will overcome intimidation and discomfort, and see what Ulysses has to do with our everyday lives, including the minutiae of our daily experiences. Additionally, the novel is profoundly anti-totalitarian as it encourages us to let go of ideas of mastery and embrace a more communal experience of reading. That makes it the perfect book to read in community, where everyone’s perspective matters and we can all bring something new to the reading of the novel.
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