Yes I Will Read Ulysses Yes

Reading Ulysses: difficulty, payoff, and strategies

• Many readers say Ulysses is less alien than its reputation but still demanding. Several report only “getting it” on a second read, especially after guides or group discussions.
• A common pattern: first pass is partial enjoyment + confusion; second pass (with annotations/summaries) is deeply rewarding.
• Others bounced off entirely, finding it rambling, slow, or impenetrable, especially compared to plot-driven fiction.
• Some compare its difficulty favorably to other “arthouse” texts (e.g., Gravity’s Rainbow, Beckett), while Finnegans Wake is widely described as nearly unreadable and often abandoned after a few pages.
• One reader notes that letting the prose “wash over you” rather than trying to parse every sentence helps. Skimming on a first pass is also mentioned as a workable tactic.

Audio, performance, and the poetry/prose argument

• Several recommend dramatized or multi-voice audio productions (especially a national broadcaster’s version) as a way in, likening the experience to Shakespeare on stage.
• Others caution that listening can strongly bias interpretation and argue Ulysses is closer to poetry, best first encountered on the page.
• This sparks a long subthread:
  • One side claims poetry is inherently oral and defined by sound, rhythm, and being spoken.
  • The other side emphasizes visual/typographic traditions, concrete poetry, and argues that “best mode of experience” is personal, not prescribable.
• Some advocate “reading with subtitles”: following the printed text while listening to an audiobook.

Education, age, and assigning difficult books

• Strong criticism of assigning works like Ulysses, Crime and Punishment, or Frankenstein to teenagers who lack the life experience to connect with midlife crises, regret, or complex moral psychology.
• Many say being forced through such books turned them off reading for years; they argue curricula should first cultivate enjoyment with more relatable or contemporary texts.
• A minority view: reading advanced literature early can prime later life and isn’t inherently a mistake; the failure is in teaching methods that assume adult experience.
• Related digressions compare this to math education (algebra/calculus taught without clear “why”), and to Shakespeare being taught as text instead of performance.

Companions, prerequisites, and Bloom’s Day

• Several readers find Ulysses heavily reliant on early-20th-century Dublin/Ireland references; annotation-heavy companions and hyperlinked online guides are described as “indispensable.”
• Suggestions:
  • Read A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man or Dubliners first as more approachable entry points to Joyce.
  • Use chapter summaries before each section to avoid getting lost.
• There’s disagreement over whether familiarity with Homer’s Odyssey is a prerequisite:
  • Some say it isn’t necessary at all; the novel stands alone.
  • Others think at least a summary (or a modern translation) enriches the reading and clarifies the title’s significance.
• Bloom’s Day (June 16, 1904) is mentioned as a cultural celebration tied to the book’s single-day setting and Leopold Bloom’s stream-of-consciousness.

Attitudes toward Joyce, Ulysses, and literary prestige

• Enthusiasts emphasize Joyce’s technical brilliance, humor (especially when performed aloud), and the novel’s ability to reward sustained attention.
• Skeptics describe it as dull, lacking narrative drive, or as a book people read “just to say they’ve read it,” though others push back that this is an unfair, status-anxiety-driven accusation.
• Some see Joyce’s later work (Finnegans Wake) as an elaborate in-joke; others compare Ulysses favorably to that, calling it challenging but genuinely readable.
• A few argue that if one is merely “collecting” difficult books for prestige, it’s better simply not to read Ulysses at all; the thread repeatedly stresses reading it (or not) for intrinsic interest, not social signaling.