English Literature: The Odyssey & Ulysses — One in the Same
Inspiration is the biggest factor in the process of creativity; some things may be new and innovative, but they are mostly adaptations of something older and primitive. Yet inspiration does not slander the original idea that it creates, it almost glorifies the two ideas together to show off their similarities and differences. Many artists are compared against their idols because of their inspired style or method of creativity, however, this doesn’t make their idols less important. It highlights the complex styles that were originally created and expanded even later in the future by another inspired creative.
When this happens, it creates an easier method of understanding the artist work, knowing where their inspiration and ideas formed from helps the viewer grasp the meaning and time put into the piece they are analyzing. This extends more than just art pieces and music, but also more so in books. Authors find themselves inspired by another before them with an interesting style or outlook on the way to express many things going on in society. The Irish novelist I’ve had the chance of studying all semester, James Joyce, helped me better see this relationship of inspiration with his most famous work Ulysses and its direct adaptation of the famous Homeric Epic, The Odyssey.
Ulysses is a very obscure, yet clear tale of one person’s entire day. The story is known for its length due to the inner monologue that is the overall narration of the entire novel. This is a style of writing inspired by an older method with a few distinct methods and details brought along with it. Ulysses is known for its mysterious sense of time and location because almost 2 pages worth of dialogue could only be two seconds in the narrative’s world. Joyce somewhat created a mathematical, poetic tone of writing picked up from the narration of the Odyssey, however, the plot style of the story is where most of the inspiration for Ulysses comes from.
The two tales are mapped out with similar characters and events, but told throughout two completely different stories, in completely different universes. However, reading the Odyssey helps while reading Ulysses because it shows the direct narrative in which the story is told and helps the reader get a better understanding of what’s going on in the story of the novel. The flow of chapters in Ulysses, named after characters, locations, and events in the Odyssey is the exact same flow as the Homeric poem starting from front to beginning. With no prior knowledge of the many historic Irish points in Ulysses, it's more than helpful to have this story as a guide to the plot and progression of the tale. With an in-depth analysis of different chapters in Ulysses that coincide with the progression of the Odyssey, we can better understand the flow and process of Joyce’s tale and its direct relationship to Homer’s.
The first chapter, named “Telemachus” after Odysseus’ son, is the very first scene of Ulysses starting off with a character who is an ally of our protagonist. Stephen Dedalus and his unfriendly partner in crime, Buck Mulligan have a short conversation in their home when Stephen internally expresses his disgust and need to escape from his dictated home. This first scene is an exact reenactment of Telemachus and the unwanted suitors inside of his home, who are attempting to court with his mother after hearing Odysseus has died.
This gives an explanation as to why Ulysses does not start off with its main character and further foreshadows relationships with certain characters to be brought up later in the story. Such as Telemachus and the suitor’s relationship being intervened by the main character, his father Odysseus. In this scene, Buck tells Stephen that his mother is beastly dead, like how the head suitor, Antious, tells Telemachus that his father, Odysseus, is dead and claims the power over his household. This causes Stephen to denounce Buck in the same manner that Telemachus does Antious, and ends with both Telemachus and Stephen beginning their solo adventures at the start of the story.
Chapter seven is named Aeolus, the name of the God who gives the bag of winds to Odysseus. In this chapter, the term is a representative for oxygen, wind or lungs which is the body part associated with this chapter in the Larbaud scheme. Many phrases and examples of wind surround the chapter; in the dialogue of characters and thoughts of the protagonist, Leopald Bloom, wind and air are used as similes and metaphors all throughout the conversation Bloom has wind different people, overhears, or even says to himself.
Newspaper and journalism are also the representatives of wind in this chapter as it is portrayed through language and writing style in this surreal universe of Ulysses. In the Odyssey, Odysseus and his men are thrown off course when they unknowingly open a bag of winds, in this chapter, many of the characters such as Stephen, Bloom, and O’Molloy do not gain what they wished for and are in a sense thrown off track.
In chapter sixteen, named Eumaeus, the direct plot connection is shown again when the spiritual representatives of Odysseus and Telemachus, Bloom and Stephen, are reunited together in a safe location home to the hero Eumaeus who helps Odysseus regain his strength after his long journey. In this chapter, Bloom takes Stephen to a “safe” location where they can hide out for a while. The barkeeper is the spiritual representation of Eumaeus, giving Stephen and Bloom shelter and food like how Eumaues did for Odysseus and Telemachus when they were reunited.
The sense of mystery in this chapter amongst if the barkeeper is the getaway car driver is enhanced later by another conversation WB Murphy and Bloom’s thoughts of whether he is hearing the truth. This is another direct connection to the events in the Homeric poem; in this chapter of the Odyssey, Telemachus soon finds Odysseus at his tent and must undergo a test to truly know if he has found his father and whether Odysseus can trust his own son. However, this is not exactly told the same in Ulysses. Instead of Telemachus and Odysseus talking, it is WB Murphy’s words and Bloom’s thoughts intertwining. Here is where the reader must decide on their own if, like Telemachus, this is the Bloom/Odysseus they know or not.
In conclusion, Ulysses is easier to read with the Odyssey because of the direct connections that occur in its chapters that correlate with the Odyssey plot scheme. Truly there is no better way to analyze this novel without Homer’s classic piece of work right next to it. It would almost be as if you were finishing a puzzle but were missing a fourth of the pieces. Ulysses helps highlight its own success in literature and story schemes as well as highlighting the forever inspiring tale of a long, and treacherous journey that is the Odyssey.
Works Cited
Homer, and Robert Fagles. The Odyssey. Viking, 1996.
Joyce, James, et al. Ulysses. Alma Classics, 2015.